Tea and Scones Around the World

The scone is the heart of the Cream Tea. But this little snack bread has quite a history and is served around the world in many different forms.

The scone originated in Scotland, possibly named after the Stone of Scone (or Coronation Stone). This 336 pound stone was historically kept at the abby of Scone near Perth, Scotland. The abby is now in ruins. The stone was used in the coronations of Scottish Monarchs who would be seated on the stone. One legend purports that it is the pillow stone used by the Biblical Jacob.

American scones are almost always sweet and are filled with a myriad of ingredients, such as nuts, fruits, chocolates, etc. The recipe given here is a basic cream scone. It’s a bit out of character with most mass-produced scones in America. This one is moist and sweet, rather than dry and crumbly. Enjoy this recipe and look for more scone recipes on our site in the future.

2 cups baking mix, such as Bisquick or Jiffy

5 tbs Sugar

1 egg

½ cup heavy cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

Mix all ingredients together and knead until smooth (dust with more baking mix if sticky). Make into softball sized balls and pat down into a 6 inch circle about a inch thick. Cut into four pieces and place on a lightly greased baking pan. Bake in 400 degree oven for about 10 to 12 minutes, or until the edges are just golden. Serve these scones hot with whipped buttered heavy cream and jam.

After many episodes involving the transport of the stone of Scone, it now rests in Edinburgh Castle. But why was the little biscuit that we enjoy with our tea today named after the stone of Scone? Some scones I’ve tasted have been as hard as stone. One account points out that a battle bread was broken apart and consumed during the coronation of a monarch and, thus, called a scone.

The British scone is a small quickbread, usually lightly sweetened, but occasionally savory. It is quite like the North American biscuit (conversely, the term biscuit in England refers to a cookie). British scones usually include currants, raisins, dates and sometimes cheese.

In Scotland, savory scones can be soda scones or potato scones and look like pancakes. Griddle scones are fried instead of baked. They are somewhat like crumpets. In New Zealand these griddle scones are called girdle scones or drop scones.

The realm of the British Empire is evident in the popularity of scones around the world. Argentinians love this little snack bread and serve it with yerba mate’.

Australians love their vegemite scones. Vegemite is a brewers yeast extract leftover from beer manufacturing, which has other ingredients such as vegetable and spice additives. It’s a salty, somewhat bitter, malty-tasting spread.

Tea Cuisine
Return to Home