Baking with Mummy: Earl Grey Lavender Scones!

I wish I could say that I had anything to do with these delicious Earl Grey & Lavender scones, but Alas! My mother was completely in charge--- !

I'm currently going through a hard-core scone addiction, the dryer and weirder the better, so when Mummy suggested she bake scones, I was like, "Maybe we can find a recipe for something obscure that tastes a little like a candle and sucks every last drop of moisture out of your mouth?" and rather than question why on earth I would want a scone to taste like that (which I really genuinely do), she was like, "Ta-Da!" and whipped up this scrumptious recipe.

From my vantage point (drinking coffee on the other side of the kitchen island) this looked like a pretty labor-intensive recipe, but she churned it out like a trooper, and the results were tremendous. Perfect for my 4:00 coffee-and-a-scone snack time. You'd never know that I'm of English descent...

Lavender Earl Grey Scones 

 Makes 10-12

• 2 heaping teaspoons Lavender Earl Grey tea (scroll down for recipe)
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup sugar (and extra for sprinkling)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup butter (cold and cut into cubes)
• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup heavy cream (for brushing)

Preheat the oven to 425F/220C

Steep 1 heaping teaspoon of the Lavender Earl Grey tea in 1/4 cup of boiling water for 3 minutes. Strain and reserve the tea.

Using a pestle and mortar or coffee grinder, grind a teaspoon of Lavender Earl Grey tea to a fine powder. 

In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and ground lavender tea powder. Add the butter and rub the flour and butter together with your fingers until you get a fine breadcrumb like texture.

Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture and add the buttermilk, vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon of the brewed Lavender Earl Grey tea.

Combine the mixture very slowly and lightly until the dry mix is wet- do not knead!

Turn the mixture onto a floured surface and gather the dough together very carefully, handling it as less as possible.

Gently pat the dough to make a rectangle or square about 1 1/2 inches thick. Using a dough cutter cut the scones into circles or wedges, however you prefer. Lay them on a nonstick baking sheet.

Gather the remaining dough together lightly to cut more scones. Try to touch the dough very little for a beautiful scone texture.

Brush the top of each scone generously with heavy cream and sprinkle with sugar.
Bake the scones for about 12 minutes, or until very lightly browned.

Lavender Earl Grey Tea: 

- Earl Grey Tea Leaves

- Lavender flower buds (ground roughly with a pestle and mortar)

Whatever amount of Earl Grey you use, you will need 1/2 the amount of Lavender. So for every teaspoon of Earl Grey add 1/2 teaspoon of roughly ground lavender buds, or for a bigger batch add 1/2 cup of lavender to every cup of Earl Grey.

Mix the Lavender and Earl grey together and store in a sealed jar or container. You can use more or less of the lavender, its completely up to how you like it.

Either way, I recommend enjoying one of these with a cup of coffee mid-way through your afternoon. It just might give you the stamina to make it to dinner...!