Cinnamon Spice Scones

I've been enjoying making lemonade scones for a while now; which is a simple, easy and no-fail recipe. But today I decided to step up from my comfort zone to make a traditional scone with butter and milk. And then, to pep it up with cinnamon and nutmeg.

I once read that just smelling cinnamon can boost your brain function and improve memory. It also regulates blood sugar and reduces bad cholesterol. Not too bad for a simple looking bark, heh! So now, I have no second thoughts on including this bark in my recipes. Benefit or no benefit, the best thing about using cinnamon in your baking is its sweet aroma filling the air in your house that perks up everyone fast asleep.

I made these scones for a morning tea with my friends and served it with whipped butter and it went very well with most of them. My two little boys, gave me a big thumbs-up and said that I could include this in my kitchen menu, but they want whipped cream to go with it. My big boy, gave a small grunt, a satisfied grunt, which is the best I can get from him at any time, and I know he liked it.

                                     Cinnamon Scones - Freshly Baked from the oven

So here is my recipe, from Women's Weekly Easy Baking and Baking - A Commonsense guide, twitched to suit our tastes and I think it is definitely worth a try.

Makes: 12 scones
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients
For the Scone

• 450g self raising flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon powder
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg powder
• 2 tbsp caster sugar
• 50g cold butter, coarsely chopped
• 1 cup + 2 - 3 tbsp milk
• 1 tbsp milk, to brush scones

For the Topping

• 2 tbsp caster sugar
• 1/2 - 1 tsp cinnamon powder

Method
1. Preheat fan-forced oven to 200°C. Line a 15 cm x 25 cm rectangular cake pan with baking paper. 
2. Sift all dry ingredients at least 2 times. (Sifting is done to aerate the flour which is very important for these scones). Rub in cold butter with tip of fingers. Add 1 cup of milk and mix well until just combined. Add remaining milk, 1 tbsp at a time, if the dough is too dry, as required. Mixing should not be more than 10 strokes. The dough will be quite sticky to touch and will not be smooth. But that is how it is meant to be.  
3. Dust the working floor with generous amount of plain flour, to avoid the dough sticking to the floor. Pat scone dough on the floor till it is around 3 cm thick. Cut out scones with a 5 cm cutter. Place scones side by side, just touching, in pan. Gently knead scrapes of dough together and repeat patting, cutting and placing in pan. Brush tops with  milk. Bake for 15 minutes.
4. For topping, mix caster sugar and cinnamon. Top scones with cinnamon sugar mixture as soon as they are out of the oven.

Serve hot with whipped salted butter.

                                        Cinnamon Scones served with whipped butter
Note:
- These scones are at its best if made just before serving. Eat them hot, straight out of the oven.
- To make whipped butter, whip salted or lightly salted butter till light and fluffy. 

Variations:
1. Add chopped dates, sultanas or dried apple to make a spiced fruit scone.
2. Scones can be served with whipped golden syrup butter for extra sweetness. For every 50g butter, add 1/2 tbsp golden syrup and then whip butter till light and fluffy.