Oat Scones
Rustic scones made with rolled oats and wholemeal flour for a nutty, hearty crumb, baked for 20 minutes.
Photograph credit: Oat N Raisin Scone by thetechhimself1 · CC BY 2.0 · Flickr
Most home versions come out dry and crumbly, and the fix is to soak the oats first. Rolled oats absorb liquid quickly, and if they go into the dough dry they take moisture from the flour as the scones bake, which leaves a crumb that tastes more of sawdust than oats. Ten minutes in the milk makes all the difference.
Oats have a place in Scottish baking that goes back centuries, in bannocks, oatcakes and scones. They give a nutty, slightly sweet flavour and a chewy texture that plain white flour cannot match. Here they are combined with plain and wholemeal flour, in roughly equal parts, so that the scones rise well but still have character.
Keep the butter in visible flecks. Rub the cold butter in until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs with a few pea-sized lumps still remaining. The lumps melt in the oven and leave little pockets that help the scones rise and give a tender, flaky texture.
Pat the dough to 3 cm thick, cut straight down, and brush the tops with milk. Press a few whole oats on top for decoration. Bake on a hot tray until golden. Serve warm with butter, honey or jam, or with a slice of strong cheddar.
How to Make Oat Scones
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Soak the 60 g oats in the 150 ml milk for 10 minutes. Heat the oven to 220°C / 430°F with a tray inside.
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Mix both flours, baking powder, salt and sugar. Rub in the butter until it forms coarse crumbs with a few pea-sized lumps.
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Stir in the soaked oats and egg to a soft dough.
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Pat out to 3 cm thick and cut 8 rounds with a 6 cm cutter. Brush the tops with milk and press on the extra oats.
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Bake on the hot tray for 20 minutes until golden. Cool for 10 minutes.
Tips That Matter
- Soak the oats before mixing.
- Leave pea-sized lumps of butter.
- Bake on a preheated tray.
Serve It With
Butter · Honey · Mature cheddar · Hot tea
Storage
Best the day they are made. Freeze for 1 month.
What's in a Serving
Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy). A calculation, not a laboratory analysis: brands, cuts and how you measure change the real numbers. How the figures are worked out.
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Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked.
First published ; last changed .
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