Baking

Edd Kimber’s Strawberry & Clotted Cream Slab Scone

Edd says: “British folk can’t agree on how to correctly pronounce the word scone or even whether the jam or cream should go on first, so this slab scone will be sacrilege for some, but I love it, as it turns a dainty afternoon tea staple into a perfect dessert."

25 minutes, plus cooling and macerating time prep, Cook: 25 minutes cook

Serves 8–10

Ingredients

For the slab scone:

500g self-raising flour, plus extra for dusting

1 ½ tsp baking powder

50g caster sugar

½ tsp fine sea salt

Finely grated zest of 1 large lemon

150g unsalted butter, chilled and diced

120ml whole milk, plus a splash for the egg wash

4 large eggs, beaten

2 tbsps demerara sugar

For the topping:

400g fresh strawberries, hulled and halved

25g caster sugar

½ tsp vanilla extract (or vanilla bean paste)

340g clotted cream

Method

Preheat the oven to 190°C/Fan 170°C/ Gas 5. Line the base of a 23 x 33cm baking tray with a strip of parchment paper, so some excess hangs over the longer side of the baking tray.

For the slab scone, mix the flour, the teaspoons baking powder, sugar, salt and lemon zest together in a large bowl, then rub the unsalted butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs with a few larger pieces remaining.

Make a well in the middle and pour in the milk and three of the beaten eggs, stirring to form a soft but not sticky dough.

Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface, press or roll into a 23 x 33cm rectangle and transfer to the prepared tin.

Beat the remaining egg with a splash of milk to form an egg wash, and brush over the top of the scone, then sprinkle liberally with the demerara sugar. Bake for 20–25 minutes, or until golden brown. Set aside to cool completely in the tin.

Meanwhile, prepare the topping. Place the strawberries into a large bowl and sprinkle over the sugar and vanilla extract, stirring together briefly. Leave to macerate for 30-35 minutes, or until the sugar has dissolved.

Once cool, remove the scone from the tin and place it onto a wire rack. Spread the clotted cream all over the scone and then top with the macerated strawberries, drizzling with the syrup that is left in the bottom of the bowl.

Cut into portions and serve. This scone slab is best served on the day it's made, soon after assembling.