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What Is Wrong!

post #1 of 8
11/16/06 at 9:10am
Thread Starter 
Okay, someone I know has made these 2 times and they have not turned out....suggestions??? I think she says that are NOT rising and that are flat.

Scones with Clotted Cream or Lemon Curds
½ cup wheat flour
2 cups white flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup canola oil (butter)
2/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
¼ cup white chocolate chips, or chopped dried fruit (craisens, raisins, dates, blueberries, apples, strawberries, apricots) or 1/3 cup thick jam (fruit boiled down halfway)

Sift together dry ingredients; mix wet ingredients together. Add filling. If filling with jam, wait until the next step. Combine all ingredients while mixing with a fork. Knead dough for thirty seconds.

If triangle pieces are desired, spread dough in a cake pan and cut desired number of pieces. Remove half of the pieces to another cake pan or heavy baking sheet.

If circle pieces are desired, press dough out on tin foil ½ - 1” thick. Using a circle cookie cutter, cut out shapes and place on heavy baking sheet.

If filling with jam, cut a slit through the side of the scone, all the way through to the other side but not through horizontally. Inside slit, impress a circle in the bottom half of scone and fill with jam.

Bake at 450 for 13 minutes.

Clotted Cream

4 oz. cream cheese
1 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons sugar

Whip until thick and smooth.

Lemon Curds
Bake one lemon to cristp the rind.

Zest of one lemon
Juice of one lemon
4 tablespoons butter
½ cup sugar
1 egg, well-beaten

Melt first four ingredients over low heat. Add egg. Stir until thickened like a jam

Yield: 8-12 scones (5 batches can make 100 if stretched)


Thanks in advance,

Egirl
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post #2 of 8
11/16/06 at 12:06pm

Hmmm...

I can see a few things that I would do differently just off the top of my head.

First off I've never heard of kneading scone dough. Of course that's just me. When you knead dough it tends to compress the ingredients together unless you're kneading bread and the little yeasties will take care of the rise. For a lighter biscuit you want those little air spaces. The effect I would guess would be somewhere between a buttermilk biscuit and shortbread.

I also would use solid (very cold) shortening or butter and cut it into the flour mix, not use liquid oil. My recipe is similar to yours, but calls for 2 TB of baking powder, an egg, and a half cup of sugar.

I'm guessing that using liquid oil and not enough baking powder are the major factors. Also has elevation been considered? Anything over 3000 feet and you start to run into little quirky problems.

April


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post #3 of 8
11/16/06 at 5:22pm
I agree with April that kneading is bad for scone dough. You do need to bring it together but gently does it. I also agree about the butter. Not only will it give you a lighter and flakier scone it will just taste better.

I belive the single most common mistake people make with scone dough is to roll it out too thin. Anything less than 3/4" and it just won't rise. The recipe says 1/2" to 1". You definately want it closer to 1".

Jock
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post #4 of 8
11/16/06 at 7:26pm
Thread Starter 
Elevation is not an issue, I'm in Minnesota :D :D :D


Thanks for the replies, I will test it for my friend and get back to you!!

Again Thank you
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post #5 of 8
11/17/06 at 3:57am
Hi egirl- I agree with most of what has been said. My first thought was the baking powder. Does she know it's still good? She can test by mixing a teaspoon into 1/2 cup of hot water. If she doesn't see an instant reaction it's dead. Using cold, solid butter or shortening will help. As it reacts to the heat of the oven it creates steam. The steam helps create the air pockets that make for lighter scones. The kneading thing, or lack of it, has to do with gluten development. In the case of scones and biscuits you do not want to develop gluten because you will end up with tough scones and biscuits. You want to mix the dough gently just until the ingredients come together.

Hope this helps,
Kyle
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post #6 of 8
11/17/06 at 7:10am
Thread Starter 
Here is the edited recipie of the scones...KyleW Thanks for the Baking Pwd Tip! I did not use any of the cream recipies at the bottom...my family like choc chip scones.

Scones with Clotted Cream or Lemon Curds
½ cup wheat flour
2 cups white flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 TB of baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 stick butter
1 egg
2/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
¼ cup white chocolate chips, or chopped dried fruit (craisens, raisins, dates, blueberries, apples, strawberries, apricots) or 1/3 cup thick jam (fruit boiled down halfway)

Sift together dry ingredients; mix wet ingredients together. Add filling. If filling with jam, wait until the next step. Combine all ingredients while mixing with a fork.

If triangle pieces are desired, spread dough in a cake pan and cut desired number of pieces. Remove half of the pieces to another cake pan or heavy baking sheet.

If circle pieces are desired, press dough out on tin foil 3/4" thick. Using a circle cookie cutter, cut out shapes and place on heavy baking sheet.

If filling with jam, cut a slit through the side of the scone, all the way through to the other side but not through horizontally. Inside slit, impress a circle in the bottom half of scone and fill with jam.

Bake at 450 for 13 minutes.

Clotted Cream
4 oz. cream cheese
1 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons sugar

Whip until thick and smooth.

Lemon Curds
Bake one lemon to cristp the rind.

Zest of one lemon
Juice of one lemon
4 tablespoons butter
½ cup sugar
1 egg, well-beaten

Melt first four ingredients over low heat. Add egg. Stir until thickened like a jam

Yield: 8-12 scones (5 batches can make 100 if stretched)
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post #7 of 8
11/19/06 at 5:41pm
I have a few of suggestions.
1. The ratio of milk to flour seems a bit high, so the dough might be too wet. I'd try cutting the milk down just a little.
2. Wheat flour is heavier than white flour (which might explain the amount of milk in the recipe) but you'll need to feel the texture to know how wet or dry the mix is.
3. I wouldn't use canola oil; only butter - real butter. And I'd make sure to cut in the butter rather than add it using any other method, and be sure to use only VERY cold butter chunks for this ingredient
4. I'd increase the baking powder to 4 tsp rather than a single Tbsp.
5. Rolling scones to 1/2 inch is too thin. I'd never roll or press them thinner than 3/4 inch.
6. Scone dough is, in my kitchen, kneaded briefly to ensure that all dry and wet ingredients are smoothly combined.
7. You didn't say which of the "filllings" you're using but remember that 1/4 cup of white chocolate chips means you're adding 1/4 cup more fat to the recipe.
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post #8 of 8
11/19/06 at 9:50pm
i would use butter instead of canola oil. Way different stuff. I would also use cream cheese in the batter- it makes it much more moist. I wouldn't reccomend kneading your scone dough, I just form giant balls onto my baking sheet and let it bake away! Of course a biscuit cutter always helps. i would reccomend using a little less milk so It's not too wet.
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