Blueberry & Vanilla Scones

Makes 8

Serve the warm scones with a dollop of clotted/freshly whipped cream and the vanilla strawberries

Ingredients:

225g self-raising flour

Small pinch of fine salt

½ tsp baking powder

50g caster sugar, plus 1 tsp for sprinkling

75g unsalted butter, cubed at room temperature

75g fresh blueberries

2 tbsp soured cream

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla essence

Method:

Heat the oven to 200C.

Sift the flour and baking powder in to a large bowl, then stir in the salt and sugar. Add the butter and using your fingertips, rub in to the flour until it resembles bread crumbs. Stir in the blueberries.

In a jug, whisk together the soured cream, egg and vanilla. Add to the dry ingredients and mix with a round bladed knife, then bring together the mixture with your hands to form a soft dough. It’s important not to over-mix or knead the dough to keep the scones light.

Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to about 2 cm thick and cut out 8 rounds using a 6cm round cutter. Transfer to a lightly greased baking tray. Brush the tops with a little beaten egg and sprinkle with caster sugar.

Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes until risen and golden. Transfer to a cooling rack.

Meanwhile, put the strawberries in a bowl. In a small pan, gently heat the sugar, vanilla essence together with 1-2 tbsp water, until the sugar has dissolved, then simmer for 2 minutes until syrupy. Pour over the strawberries, toss and leave to cool until ready to serve.