Buttermilk and Sour Cherry Scones for Afternoon Tea and Picnics

A delightful and EASY scone recipe that is perfect for a proper afternoon tea or to take on a picnic. Dried sour cherries are sensational and give a deep essence of cherry flavour to these scones, whilst the buttermilk makes them light and airy. This is a casual eating scone, easy to rustle up, and is perfect when eaten fresh from the oven with butter and maybe some cherry jam and cream too! If taking on a picnic, wrap the scone in a clean tea towel to keep it warm and pack the butter and jam separately. Makes one large scone, which is marked to split into wedges when served.

• Ready In: 35 mins
• Serves: 4-6
• Yields: 1 large scone

Ingredients

• 250  g plain flour
•  salt
• 2  tablespoons  golden granulated sugar
• 1  teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 150  ml buttermilk
• 50  ml milk
• 75  g  dried sour cherries

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 200 C/190 C fan/Gas Mark 5. Dust a baking sheet with flour.
2. Sieve together the flour, salt, sugar and bicarbonate of soda. Mix together the buttermilk and milk. Make a well in the centre and pour on the buttermilk mixture. Mix well until the dough is even, and stir in the sour cherries.
3. To shape for cooking, set the dough on a floured surface and turn around in your hands, until you have a neat round shape. Use a floured knife to score the surface into 4 or 6 sections.
4. Transfer to the floured baking sheet and bake for 20 - 25 minutes. Set aside on a rack to cool. Best eaten straight away, but can be stored for up to 3 days in an airtight container.