Granny's Scones: A memory to be savoured

Granny's Scones

My husband’s grandmother came to Canada from Scotland as a young woman and married a handsome young blacksmith. They settled in a small town in a picturesque valley in southern Manitoba where they raised two daughters. By today's standards, life was far from easy with wood stoves for cooking and wringer washers and clotheslines on laundry day. Housekeeping was an art and Granny was a master. Neighbours, friends and family were always welcome around her table.

Around Granny's table, circa 1952

When I met Granny, she was in her mid-seventies and still going strong: looking after her own home, garden and yard and tirelessly contributing to her church and community. From that first time I met her and for many, many years to come, I always looked forward to Granny’s scones. In fact, her melt-in-your-mouth scones were renowned among her family and friends and were enjoyed time and again whether she served them with butter and jam or slices of cheese and cold leftover meat. Getting some of Granny's scones to take home was a real treat.

Granny seldom cooked from written recipes. So one day many years ago when I was visiting her home, I followed her around her kitchen as she made her scones. I wrote down what I saw her doing. The recipe for scones was so much a part of her that she didn’t need to measure carefully: it was a handful of this and a half teacup of that. You’ll find the measured ingredients in the recipe below. Granny cooked the scones in her old electric frying pan the kind with a lid. You’ll need a frying pan or griddle with a lid to make your scones. When you make these, be sure to enjoy one with a cup of tea and offer a toast to celebrate a sweet Scottish Granny and her scones. 

Granny’s Scones

Setting up to make scones

4 cups flour

1/3 cup sugar

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

½ lb butter, cold

2 eggs

½ cup milk

Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.

Half the dough rolled out and cut into 8 wedges

Cut butter into dry ingredients until it is in small pieces and distributed evenly throughout the dry ingredients.

Mix together the eggs and milk.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, adding more milk a half-teaspoonful at a time until you have a stiff dough. Mix well using your hands.

Divide dough in half.

Place in pan, then cover with a lid

On a well-floured board, roll one half of the dough into a circle approximately 8” in diameter. Cut into 8 wedges. Repeat the rolling and cutting with the second half of the dough.

Heat a griddle or large fry pan over medium heat. Place wedges into pan. Cover and cook for 5 to 10 minutes or until golden brown on bottom. Turn wedges over and cook covered for about another 5 minutes.

Remove from pan and place on rack to cool.

Cooked scones can be kept in a covered container on the counter for two to three days or refrigerated for about five days.

Serve, either whole or split, with butter, jam, cheese and/or cold cuts.

Makes 16 scones.

Printable Recipe for Granny's Scones