Tea and Scones

One of our current popular breakfasts consists of hot tea and current scones. Above you can see the birthday breakfast we enjoyed earlier this month to celebrate Baby's first birthday. Each of us chose a special cup and saucer from my collection instead of our usual selection of mugs, this is Big Brother's choice. They are always so excited to sip (gulp is more like it) their hot tea from a delicate china cup. I love using them too. Nothing like fine china to elevate a regular breakfast to something memorable.

Now, you can't be afraid of scones. They sound fancy but are really just sweet biscuits cut into wedges instead of circles. This makes them easier than biscuits because you can shape and cut them on the baking sheet and save the mess of rolling out dough and cutting it. I like to add currents solely for tradition, very English. Also, I picked up two boxes of them oddly enough at a rinky-dink little grocery store in my hometown. Seriously, you would be hard pressed to find brown eggs at this store but they do carry currents. It never ceases to amaze me. Whenever I am shopping there with my mom, I nab several boxes of currents to keep in my pantry to add to scones. If you don't have currents just substitute raisins, dried cranberries or leave them out. Plain scones are divine too. Get out your apron, fill the tea kettle and polish your china. Let's make some scones!

Current Scones

1 3/4 cup flour (part whole wheat if your into that)

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

4 Tablespoons butter

1/2 cup currents

3/4 cup milk

Raw sugar (optional)

Sift together flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Cut in butter (Come on and use your hands, it's therapeutic!) until the texture is like crumbly meal. Stir in the currents. Stir in all but 1 tablespoon of milk to make a soft dough. Knead together lightly and gently to smooth out the dough. Don't go crazy, just get it mixed. Divide the dough in half and scoop each portion onto a large buttered baking sheet. Pat each ball of dough into a disk about 3/4 of an inch thick. Let the dough rest for 10 to 15 minutes. Brush each part of dough with the reserved milk and sprinkle with raw sugar. Use regular sugar if that's all you have, you just need to have that delightful crunchy sugar top on your scones. It will make you happy, I promise. Cut each circle of dough into 8 wedges with a knife. You don't have to separate the wedges, basically you are scoring them into serving pieces. Put the scones into a preheated 400 degree oven for 15 minutes or until they are golden and brown. Serve with a pot of hot tea and enjoy!