British-Style Currant Scones (without the currants)

Unlike American versions these scones are not overly sweet. They are a perfect vehicle for getting delicious clotted cream and jam or curd into your mouth. Leaving out the currants make them suitable for whatever flavor toppings you prefer. In my case it was lime curd.

Recipe Summary
Total Time: 1 hour
Servings:10-12
Source: Cook's Illustrated March/April 2014

Ingredients

All purpose flour, 3 cups
Sugar, granulated, 1/3 cup
Baking powder, 2 Tbs

Salt, 1/2 tsp
Unsalted butter, 8 Tbs, softened, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
Milk, whole, 1 cup
Eggs, 2 large

Directions

1. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 500 degrees. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or grease with oil spray.
2. Pulse flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in food processor until combined, about 5 pulses.
3. Add butter and pulse until fully incorporated and mixture looks like very fine crumbs with no visible butter, about 20 pulses. Transfer mixture to large bowl.
4. Whisk milk and eggs together in second bowl. Set aside 2 Tbs milk mixture. Add remaining milk mixture to flour mixture and, using rubber spatula, fold together until almost no dry bits of flour remain.
5. Transfer dough to well-floured surface and gather into ball. With floured hands, knead until surface is smooth and free of cracks, 25 to 30 times. Press gently to form disk. Using floured rolling pin, roll disk into 9-inch round, about 1 inch thick. Using floured round cutter, stamp out 8 rounds, re-coating cutter with flour if it begins to stick. Arrange scones on prepared sheet.
6. Gather dough scraps, form into ball, and knead gently until surface is smooth. Roll dough to 1-inch thickness and stamp out 4 rounds. Discard remaining dough.
7. Brush tops of scones with resserved milk mixture. Reduce oven temperature to 425 degrees and bake scones until risen and golden brown, 10-12 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through baking. 
8. Transfer scones to wire rack and let cool for at least 10 minutes.Serve scones warm or at room temperature.

Notes

1.  I used two knives instead of a food processor. A pastry blender may also be used.
2. Reduced fat milk may be used instead of whole milk.
3. I used an ornament Christmas cookie cutter instead of a biscuit cutter.
4. The scones are best served fresh but can be frozen and reheated in a 300 degree oven for 15 minutes.