Easy Plain Scones

Directions

1. 1
   If using a food processor: Please see
2. 2
   Preheat the oven at 200C.
3. 3
   These scones are ready to bake during the time it takes to preheat the oven.
4. 4
   Put the 4 ingredients into the plastic bag.
5. 5
   Incorporate some air inside the bag, and shake well to mix the ingredients together.
6. 6
   Add the margarine.
7. 7
   Mash the margarine over the bag to coat it with flour and break it apart.
8. 8
   When there are very few lumps remaining, massage the mixture over the bag with both hands until it has a crumbly texture.
9. 9
   Beat the egg yolks well in a measuring cup.
10. 10
    Add enough milk to bring the total up to 80 ml, and mix well.
11. 11
    Make a small indent in the centre of the mixture inside the bag and pour in the egg mixture.
12. 12
    Let some air to the bag again and shake the bag it around well.
13. 13
    The dough should gradually come together and start clearing the sides of the bag.
14. 14
    If this doesn't happen....
15. 15
    ...then measure out 10 ml more milk into the measuring cup that contained the egg mixture and add it to the bag.
16. 16
    This time I added 10 ml, so the total egg-milk mixture added was 90 ml.
17. 17
    Push the mixture to the bottom of the bag,, fold the bag to the width you want the finished scones to be, and push the dough with your hands over the bag into a rectangular or log shape.
18. 18
    Flatten it until it's 2 to 2.5cm thick using a rolling pin or your hands.
19. 19
    If using our hands, push using the fingers of both hands alternately towards the outer edges to form the dough into a nice shape.
20. 20
    Scrape the bottom side corner with your finger nail...it's hard to describe.
21. 21
    Cut the edge of the bag with scissors or a knife to the bottom.
22. 22
    Tear and open out the bottom with your hands.
23. 23
    Brush the egg mixture left in the cup with your fingers to glaze the surface.
24. 24
    Cut the dough with a knife, into squares or triangles.
25. 25
    The cut ends will make crack nicely, so if you want to make it very neat, cut off the entire surrounding edge of the block of dough before cutting into individual scones.
26. 26
    Roll up the cut off bits and bake it along with the rest.
27. 27
    If the cut ends become to spread out by the knife, adjust the shape over the bag.
28. 28
    Don't press too hard or the dough will stick back together.
29. 29
    Line up the dough on a baking sheet.
30. 30
    Bake for 17-19 minutes.
31. 31
    If the dough is too soft to handle, use the plastic bag to handle the dough.
32. 32
    Adjust the cooking time while watching the color of the scones.
33. 33
    The scones will crack nicely in the middle, even with this rough recipe.