Warm, golden scones fresh from the oven, resting on a linen cloth

Nanna's Scones

From Nanna June → Mum → You · Ballarat, VIC

circa 1965

Prep time 15 minutes
Cook time 12-15 minutes
Serves 12 scones

Nanna June made these every Sunday afternoon in her kitchen in Ballarat. The lino was peeling and the oven ran hot on the left side, but she knew it like she knew her own hands. Mum learnt standing on a wooden stool at age six, flour in her hair, watching Nanna's hands move with a sureness that only comes from decades of repetition.

The mixing bowl — a heavy ceramic thing with a chip on the rim — is the same one. Three generations of scones have been turned out of it. The recipe was never written down until Mum finally pinned Nanna to the kitchen table with a pen and paper. Even then, Nanna kept saying "a bit of this, a bit of that" and Mum had to translate on the fly.

Ingredients

  • 3 cups self-raising flour
  • A good pinch of salt
  • 1 tablespoon caster sugar
  • 80g cold butter, cubed
  • ¾ cup lemonade (the fizzy kind — Nanna used Schweppes)
  • ¾ cup thickened cream
  • Extra flour for dusting
  • Jam and cream to serve (always jam first — this is not negotiable)
"Don't twist the cutter, love. Push straight down." — Nanna June

Method

  1. 1
    Preheat your oven to 220°C (200°C fan-forced). Nanna's ran hot, so she did 210°. Know your oven.
  2. 2
    Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl. Add the sugar and give it a mix.
  3. 3
    Rub the cold butter into the flour with your fingertips until it looks like coarse breadcrumbs. Nanna said "like wet sand at the beach."
  4. 4
    Make a well in the centre. Pour in the lemonade and cream together.
  5. 5
    Stir gently with a butter knife — not a spoon, not your hands, a butter knife — until it just comes together. It should look shaggy and rough. If it's smooth, you've overworked it.
  6. 6
    Turn onto a lightly floured surface. Pat (don't roll) to about 2cm thick. Nanna was very firm on this: "Hands, not a rolling pin."
  7. 7
    Cut with a 6cm cutter. Push straight down — don't twist. Twisting seals the edges and stops them rising.
  8. 8
    Place on a lined tray, sides just touching. This helps them rise straight.
  9. 9
    Brush tops with a little extra cream.
  10. 10
    Bake for 12-15 minutes until golden on top and they sound hollow when tapped.
  11. 11
    Wrap in a clean tea towel while still warm. Let them steam gently for 5 minutes.
  12. 12
    Serve with jam and cream. Argue about which goes first. (It's jam.)
"Mum always doubled the sugar. Nanna would have had words about that." — You
"The secret is cold hands and a hot oven. And not fussing." — Nanna June

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