KAREN BROAD shares her savoury scones recipe The field above us has been cut, and the scent of drying grass hangs heavy in the air –warm, sweet and intense, with a trace of honey.
It is a deeply nostalgic scent, one that seems to carry the weight of time.
After May’s unseasonably chilly spell only a few weeks ago, when we came close to putting the heating back on, the sudden heatwave has taken us by surprise.
Though it is technically still spring, it already feels like the height of summer. That warmth carries me back to France and to those halcyon days of sun-drenched heat.
Those golden days, the French countryside ablaze with colour: fragrant lavender fields as blue as an ocean, and acres upon acres of majestic sunflowers resplendently basking beneath the summer sun. The French word for summer, l’été, which comes from the Latin aestas, simply meaning “time of heat”.
My first visit to the place that later became my home for many years was something of a culture shock, and it was the intensity of that summer heat that persuaded me I had found somewhere I wanted to live. The heat is different, it is a dry heat, unlike the humidity of here in the UK but hey, we are an island.
Life was easier to plan in sunshine; eating al fresco felt essential, and entertaining almost always took place outdoors, food somehow tastes so much better when eaten in the fresh air.
Picnics were almost a tradition and are just as popular today as they were then. We would often set off on an almost ‘Blytonesque’ adventure, basket in hand, and head into the local forest for welcome shade from the intense heat.
Our picnic always included the essentials: French pastries, freshly picked apples and plums, and, of course, cheese. But I would always add one unmistakably British touch – home-made scones, still warm from the oven.
The French may not have discovered the joys of clotted cream, but they did have the most wonderful rich cream, almost yellow in colour, which paired beautifully with luscious strawberries.
These days, I often make savoury scones, and today’s version is a little different. They make a wonderful addition to any picnic and are especially good served with a generous spread of cream cheese. Best of all, they are wonderfully simple to make.
Savoury scones recipe with smoked salmon and samphire
Ingredients:
225g/8oz self-raising flour
Pinch of salt
55g/2oz butter
150ml/5fl oz milk
Extra milk to glaze
Smoked salmon pack pieces
Packet of fresh Samphire
Onion and sesame seeds for the topping
Method:
Preheat the oven to 220C/200C Fan/Gas 7 and lightly grease a large baking tray.
Mix the flour and salt. Using your fingertips, rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
Add the chopped smoked salmon and the samphire
Mix in most of the milk and mix to form a soft and slightly sticky dough. If the dough is a little dry, add more of the milk.
Turn out onto a floured work surface and knead very lightly. Pat out into a round shape about 2cm/¾in thick.
Use a 5cm/2in cutter to stamp out rounds and place on the baking tray. Lightly knead together any remaining dough and stamp out more scones to use it all up.
Brush the tops of the scones with some milk and sprinkle with the seeds, Bake for 12–15 minutes, or until well risen and golden-brown.
Enjoy!
Karen Broad lives in Burton Bradstock, with her husband and two mad dogs. She ran The Mousetrap in Dorchester, has lived in France and loves discovering new food producers.
Did you try this savoury scones recipe? We would love to compare notes and find out how yours turned out! Send your photos to emily@westdorsetmag.co.uk
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