A deliciously wild take on a savoury scone, using just a few fresh Wild Garlic leaves, perfect on its own still warm from the oven, or enjoyed with a Spring soup. Baked in just 15 minutes, they are quick and easy to make.
I'm not typically a big fan of savory scones, I'd much rather think of my scones lathered in sweet, sticky jam and butter! But with the Spring well under way, and the appearance of Wild Garlic which is beginning to carpet the woodlands, I can now start making these deliciously buttery Wild Garlic scones once again.
Wild Garlic begins to push through the ground in February, creating a dense carpet lasting well into the Summer. The pointed leaves are coloured a beautiful fresh green which stand out against the woodland floor, and when it comes into flower, it displays clusters of delicate white flowers on the top of a single stem.
The entire plant is edible, and it has an intense fiery garlic flavour which is especially strong at this time of year, before the plant begins to flower. Wild Garlic is an excellent plant for novice forager's as its easy to identify and when you do come across it, it usually grows in great abundance! Its strong smell helps you to know that you've found the right plant but its a good idea to familiarise yourself with potential lookalikes such as Bluebells, Lords and Ladies, Snowdrops and Dog's Mercury all of which are toxic and are often found growing alongside Wild Garlic.
 To make Wild Garlic scones, you only need to gather a small handful of leaves to chop up and fold into the dough. I always add a bit of red onion and nutritional yeast powder when I make these, and top them off with a bit of grated cheese, sprinkled over the top before popping them into the oven. All of these are optional extras but they really do add to their flavour.This recipe makes four large scones, but it can easily be adjusted to make more.
Wild Garlic Scones
225g self-raising flour
50g butter, cut into small chunks
½ small red onion, finely diced
6 wild garlic leaves, thinly sliced
½ tsp sea salt
60ml milk
3 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)
30g finely grated cheese
Preheat the oven to 200c and prepare a baking sheet.
In a large bowl, add the flour and rub in the butter until it looks like fine bread crumbs.
Add the salt, nutritional yeast, red onion and wild garlic to the bowl and mix until everything is evenly distributed.
Add the milk and mix gently until the mixture comes together to form a dough. Don’t over mix and stop as soon as it all comes together.
Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and using a rolling pin, gently roll it out to about 3cm thick.
Using a round cookie cutter, cut out the scones and then re-roll the dough until you have used as much as you can.
Place them onto the baking sheet and brush the tops with a little milk, and then scatter a fine layer of cheese over the tops.
Bake for about 15-20 minutes and allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.
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