By: Susan Mar 28, 2002

I serve these wonderful tea scones with homemade strawberry Jelly  and Devonshire clotted cream if you want to you can use your own type of home made Jelly and  spread it on the scone they are the highlight of any  afternoon teaparty which is great when family and friends pop round to come see you  i serve my guests family them all the time . Incredibly easy to make and fast to disappear. I hope you'll try them and if you don't have clotted cream available, serve whipped  cream with Jelly of your choice. Enjoy.

SERVES 8 (change servings and units) to how many visiting guest or family members are going to turn up so that you can have enough to serve all round...

       

      Directions

      1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
      2.  
        In a bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt.
      3.  
        Add the butter and blend the mixture until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs.
      4.  
        In a bowl, beat together the egg and milk.
      5.  
        Add this mixture, a little at a time, to the dry ingredients until a sticky dough is formed.
      6.  
        On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a round 3/4-inch thick.
      7.  
        With a cookie cutter, stamp out rounds.
      8.  
        (I use a drinking glass approx. 2" diameter) Transfer rounds to a greased baking sheet.
      9.  
        Bake for 12- 15 minutes until golden.
      10.  
        Serve with jam and cream

       

       

      Mini Chocolate Eclairs Recipe

      INGREDIENTS
      Enough for approximately 20 miniature eclairs

      For the choux pastry:
      5fl oz (150ml) water
      2oz (50g) butter, cut into pieces
      1 teaspoon caster sugar
      2 1/2oz (70g) strong plain flour, sifted
      2 large eggs, beaten

      For the filling:
      10fl oz (285ml) heavy (whipping) cream, whipped

      For the icing:
      2oz (55g) plain chocolate, broken into pieces
      1/2oz (15g) unsalted butter
      3oz (85g) icing sugar, sieved

      METHOD

      • Place the water, butter and caster sugar in a heavy based saucepan and bring slowly to the boil. As soon as the water starts to simmer and the butter has melted, turn off the heat.

      • With a wooden spoon (or electric whisk) in one hand and the four in the other, tip in all of the flour at once and beat vigorously.

      • Continue to beat for about a minute until you have a smooth ball of paste which has left the sides of the pan.

      • Now add a little of the beaten eggs and continue to beat until the paste becomes smooth and glossy again. Continue adding the eggs this way a little at a time keeping the paste smooth and glossy between additions.

      • Preheat the oven to 200C/400F, gas mark 6. Lightly grease a baking sheet.

      • Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a 1/2inch/1cm nozzle and pipe into about 20 eclairs, about 3inches/7.5cm long leaving space between them to spread.

      • Bake on a high shelf in the preheated oven for 10 minutes and then increase the oven temperature to 220C/425F, gas mark 7 and bake for a further 15 to 20 minutes until crisp and golden.

      • Immediately pierce the side of each eclair with a sharp knife to let out the steam and then allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

      To save time on the day you intend to serve them, the above stages of this chocolate eclairs recipe can be completed the day before. Once completely cold, the shells can be stored in an air tight container with the layers separated by greaseproof paper.

      • Fill a piping bag with a plain nozzle with the whipped cream, and fill each eclair.

      • To make the chocolate icing, melt the chocolate in a bowl with 2 tablespoons of cold water and the butter over a pan of hot water. Once melted, beat until smooth and remove from the heat.

      • Blend in the icing sugar until a smooth and glossy finish is achieved. Dip each eclair into the icing to coat the top and leave to set. Serve immediately.

      This chocolate eclair recipe is just one of my delicious homemade, tea-time suggestions.