Royal chef shares scone recipe cherished at Buckingham Palace

The Royal Household Head Chef has shared his classic scone recipe

The Head Chef of the Royal Household has revealed a recipe cherished by the family – and it’s ideal for the summer months.

Chef Mark Flanagan, who prepared the wedding feasts for William and Catherine, the Prince and Princess of Wales, as well as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, has now unveiled his “simple recipe for scones.” Described as a “tea-time classic”, the recipe encourages folk to whip up these “indulgent” delights while tackling the age-old “great dilemma: is it cream or jam first?”.

Accoridng to the Royal Family website, garden parties held at Royal Residences see more than 27,000 cups of tea, 20,000 sandwiches, and 20,000 slices of cake consumed annually.

At these gatherings, the pastry chefs prepare and serve scrumptious fruit scones, which are “traditionally served at Buckingham Palace every summer.” Two recipes are provided to cater for all tastes – plain scones and scones with sultanas.

Royal Family plain scones – full recipe

Ingredients

• 250g (1 7/8 cups) plain flour
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 45g (¼ cup) unrefined caster sugar
• 50g (¼ cup) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into cubes
• 1 free-range egg
• 70ml (¼ cup) buttermilk
• Pinch of salt
• 1 extra egg yolk and a pinch of salt for the egg wash
• Jam
• Clotted cream

Equipment

• 5 cm / 2″ plain round cutter

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220ºC (425ºF, gas mark 7).
2. Sift the flour, salt, sugar and baking powder into a large mixing bowl. Add the chilled diced butter and begin to gently rub into the dry ingredients using your fingertips. Once the butter has all been incorporated, gently add the buttermilk and egg into the dry ingredients until a soft, slightly sticky dough is achieved.
3. Remove the dough from the bowl and place onto a lightly floured work surface. The dough must be handled carefully at this stage so that it isn’t overworked. Using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the dough to an even thickness of 2 cm, ensuring that the dough comes off the work surface easily.
4. Dip the cutter into some flour before cutting out as many scones as you can, placing them evenly spaced on to a baking tray. If you invert the scones as you place them on the baking tray they will rise more evenly during baking. Brush the scones with the egg wash, being careful to brush only the tops and not the sides of the scones.
5. Place on the middle shelf of the preheated oven and bake for approximately 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Once baked remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack.

This recipe is taken from Royal Collection Trust.

Royal Family fruit scones – full recipe

Ingredients

• 100g Sultanas (Cover in hot water and leave to soak for 30 minutes)
• 500g Plain Flour
• 28g Baking Powder
• 94g Butter
• 86g Sugar
• 2 Whole Eggs
• 140ml Butter Milk

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180 C
2. Mix the flour, baking powder, butter and sugar together in a bowl, until a crumb is formed
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs and buttermilk together
4. Add the liquid to the crumb mixture
5. Continue to mix the dough, until it is smooth
6. (Optional) Add the sultanas, and mix until evenly distributed
7. Remove the dough from the bowl, flatten the dough and cover
8. Cover and leave to rest for approximately 30 minutes
9. Roll out the dough to a thickness of 2.5 cm and cut to desired shape
10. Rest the scones for another 20 minutes
11. Gently egg was the top of the scones
12. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes until golden brown
13. Cool before serving with jam and clotted cream

This recipe is taken from Royal.uk.