I adore a tea – be it Devonshire, high or afternoon I think it is all wonderful. I would have been right at home in the Victorian era: nibbling on dainty sandwiches, sweet morsels and pillow soft scones. Ahhh, it is all about the scones. For as much as I adore a freshly made scone I’m not too fond of the mess they make of my bench tops. I’m not a clean freak but nor am I fan of scraping remnants of dough off my countertops.
But every so often the need for scones hits and when it does this easy peasy 3-ingredient recipe is the one I reach for. It is child’s play and produces light, floaty scones with a lovely colour. The recipe has been around forever so I’m not sure who to credit for it.
And what are freshly made scones without a real, fruity strawberry jam? I’d been wanting to make strawberry jam for ages but every time I bought the required two punnets of berries my fruit bat daughters would devour the lot. So last time I saw strawberries on sale I bought three punnets, cut one up for the fruit bat daughters then set about making this jam with fruit bat daughter number one. Having never made any type of jam before I picked an easy recipe from kidspot.com.au that called for it to be made in the microwave. It tasted amazing but I don’t know that it would have been any quicker than using the stovetop recipe. It made a sticky mess of my microwave but beauty is pain…
Miss 6 loved the fact we made & labelled our own jam. A gorgeous vintage label wold have looked waaaaay better than my slapdash attempt but I’ll remember that for next time.
EASY THREE INGREDIENT SCONES:
GATHER:
325g self-raising flour
2/3 cup cold lemonade
2/3 cup thickened cream
LET’S GET TO IT:
Preheat oven to 200C and spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray.
Sift flour into a large bowl. Combine lemonade and cream in a jug and pour to the flour bowl. Gently mix until just combined – it will be very sticky.
Tip onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead until about 3cm thick. With floured scone cutters or a glass cut out scones and place side by side on the tray.
You can brush the tops with a smidge of milk if you like but it isn’t absolutely necessary.
Bake for between 12 and 15 minutes/until pale golden. Serve warm with strawberry jam
STRAWBERRY JAM
GATHER:
Two punnets of strawberries, washed, hulled and roughly chopped
1 1/4 cups caster sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
LET’S DO IT:
Put a saucer in freezer [you’ll need this to test the jam later]
Put strawberries, sugar and lemon juice in a very large and deep microwave-safe bowl.
Leave for 15 minutes to allow the strawberries to soften.
Place in microwave and cook on high for 4 minutes, stopping every minute to stir the jam to ensure sugar is dissolved.
Microwave a further 25-30 minutes on high, stirring every 5 minutes or until the jam reaches setting point. (To check, place a spoonful of jam on the cold saucer and place it in the freezer for two minutes. Run your finger through the jam and if it stays in two separate portions it is set.)
Leave to cool for five minutes then gently decant into a sterilised glass jar.
the hungry mum 
I will definitely do this over the summer. ♥
You’re right, it is best to wait until berries are seasonal – I saw them this morning at the greengrocers for $5 a punnet!
I keep looking for them at my grocers. =0/
My Elflings have been begging for berries. I really need heaps, just to make sure some make it into jam… and not just their bellies. ♥
hehe ♥
Berries are so popular in our house too but at that price I just can’t justify it, especially when there’s always a few in the box that are mouldy or soggy 😦
I agree. It seems the sneaky packers slip the soft ones into the middle. Berry season will bring an abundance our families will love. =0)
Will try to make tomorrow!. Looks so easy, how long does it last ?. I thought that you would use jam setting sugar ??. Thanks for the tips. Love Meliss (very proud sister-in-law)
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Hey Meliss! We made ours a fortnight ago and it is still going strong. I’m not sure about the chemistry but perhaps the lemon juice acts as setting agent? All I know is that it is easy & delish [but quite messy to make!].
Thanks for stopping by!
I do love afternoon tea…such a treat! I’ve never made my own jam…it’s always looked too scary! Thanks for sharing this recipe Belle and debunking a few of those myths for me. The scones look delish too!! I have a recipe for scones using the same ingredients, but in different quantities. I tried it once with Sprite Zero and it was a massive fail…you definitely need the full sugar stuff.
I also though jam was too scary to contemplate but honestly, this was a cinch. Miss 6 was quite the helper with chopping etc but I didn’t let her stir the jam as it was cooking – was like lava!
Yep, I reckon the sugar-soaked lemonade is the best for the scones. Nothing beats real sugar!
Home Made jam is the best! A lady after my own heart!!! Love the scones too, nothing beats scones, jam & cream 🙂
Now that I’ve made my own I’ll never return to the mass produced stuff!
The strawberries we have on offer here aren’t particularly nice anymore so I find that stewing with a bit of sugar just makes them that more palatable…ah autumn….
Same here – expensive & bland. I’m boycotting until they are in season once more.
These look so good! I am opening a bed and breakfast in Virginia so I am always looking for some good recipes! Thanks!
Thank you! The scones cane be whipped up in a jiffy and you can’t beat a warm, fresh scone smothered in home-made jam.
I love making my own preserves, bottling, pickling, and canning. I’m a huge advocate of eating seasonal and local, so this is a great way to eat some fruits and veg all year ’round. That strawberry jam looks divine! Is it named for Little Miss 6, by any chance? 🙂
I’ll have to make it again, now that strawberries are no longer $8 a punnet! And yes, it is named for Miss 6 [and me – those are our nicknames] x
Delicious for strawberry season!! I cannot wait : )
Yeah, wait til strawberries are delicious & plentiful to make this – it is *so* yum!