Cowboy Scones

2½ cups plain flour

2½ teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

4oz butter (or margarine, spread)

½+ cup buttermilk (or milk)

• Preheat the oven to 190C/375F. Stir and sieve the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in a mixing bowl. Add the butter (dice into pieces first.) Rub the dry ingredients and the butter together between your thumbs and fingers until the mixture appears crumbly and flaky. Add ½+ cup of the milk (until kneadable and not too sticky) and gently fold the mixture with a wooden spoon until combined.

• Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, knead and then roll it out to a thickness of about 1½ins/4cm. Use a biscuit cutter to cut out 3-inch rounds, or shape by hand. Place them about 1 inch apart on a baking sheet or foil and brush the tops with milk (for a golden top). Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown and the centers are still moist, soft, and flaky.

• There are variations of this basic recipe which can be explored in your next Cowboy Biscuit batches. I quite like less butter for a more powdery biscuit for example. Keep within reasonable recipe boundaries and whatever your test results they will be delicious as an adjunct to your main course, or on their own with some spread as a quick snack!

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Are cowboy biscuits and English scones related and if so can a fine line be drawn between their recipes so that they're interchangeable for sweet and savoury porpoises?

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strawberry jam and cream on fresh cowboy scones

mmm, come on little wasp

let's tuck in

but, first

a fried egg!

— jp

http://godmythmagic.multiply.com/

* This recipe is half-way between cowboy biscuit and scone. If slightly undercooked - a dumpling! Vary the sugar if you like. COWBOY SCONES Yippie-yi-yo-ki-yay!!