Soda Water Scones Without Cream

I did it. I made Soda Water Scones without cream. Firstly, for context, it’s important to be aware that this recipe is coming to you from April 2020. We are currently in the middle of social distancing and self isolation in Australia. A time when two factors collide:

• We’re stuck at home and baking seems like a good way to pass the time and fill our bellies.
• Supermarkets shelves are not fully stocked and we probably can’t justify popping out to get one missing ingredient for a spontaneous baking activity.

Which is why – after years of resisting creating this recipe – here I am.

It all began with the time I attempted to make lemonade scones without cream OR self raising flour and failed miserably.

However I noticed a lot of people coming to the page searching for a recipe for “Lemonade Scones Without Cream“. So I went ahead and made that recipe so people weren’t leaving disappointed.

Then I started ranking for the search term Dairy Free Lemonade Scones – so I created that recipe as well.

But for years I have ignored people coming to my page searching “lemonade scones without lemonade or cream”.

Otherwise known as Soda water scones without cream. I guess?

I’m going to preface this recipe with a simple piece of advice; if you want to make a three ingredient recipe, and you only have one out of two ingredients for that recipe…maybe… just maybe…. Consider making something else?

However, I’m going to admit it definitely wasn’t terrible. My children wolfed down these soda water scones. They weren’t great, but they did the job and would be fine in a pinch.

Also ironically, I served with whipped cream. Just because you don’t have cream doesn’t mean I can’t have it.

However, if you don’t have cream or lemonade, but you DO have butter, flour and milk, then I would urge you to consider just making plain old regular, normal, basic scones. They are so much better than these substituted lemonade scone recipes I am somehow known for. And are only really a small amount more effort – but totally worth it!

So I have included a small batch recipe at the bottom of this, as a better alternative that is also 3 ingredients, none of which is lemonade or cream! So technically they are lemonade scones without lemonade or cream. Kind of.

And sorry, please nobody ask me to make a recipe for lemonade scones without flour, because it can’t be done! I refuse. (Okay, maybe catch me next apocalypse and I’ll see what I can do…. maybe some combination of coconut flour and almond flour? Fine. Leave it with me. They’ll probably end up low-carb and keto-friendly. )

Soda Water Scones Without Cream

(Makes approximately 12 scones)

Ingredients

• 1 cup of soda water (freshly opened)
• ½ cup of milk
• 3.5 cups of SF flour

Method

Preheat Oven to 200 Degrees. Line a baking tray with lightly oiled baking paper.

Sift flour into a large mixing bowl and then pour in the milk and soda water into the bowl. 

Mix ingredients until they just come together. It’s important not to over handle, or over mix scones because they will become heavier and biscuity. 

When the dough starts to form, turn it out onto a lightly floured bench and press out the dough to 2cms thick. (You can use a rolling pin, but you don’t have to and it’s one less thing to wash up.)

Using a round cookie cutter, cut out your scones. I used an approximately 7cm cookie cutter, but it’s up to you. Scones rise up, but don’t really expand in width, so keep that in mind when selecting your cookie cutter.

Gently bring the leftover dough back together, press out onto the bench again, and cut out more scones.

Place your scones on the paper lined baking tray. Allowing at least 2 cms space between scones.

Bake for approximately 10-15 minutes. Until the scones are firm to touch and lightly browned. You can open a scone up to check that the inside is cooked through. 

Serve with jam and butter (or cream) or whatever you have lying around! 

ENJOY!

Basic Scones Mini-Recipe

As promised here is my super small batch of scones recipe. It makes 4 scones (which is 8 half scones.) So it’s a perfect afternoon tea size at home with the family, or if you have a friend coming over (after social distancing is over) and you just want to serve enough scones, without making a pile of leftovers.

OR you only have 1 cup of SR flour left in the house! 

Ingredients

• 1 cup of SR Flour
• 25g chilled, unsalted butter
• ⅓ cup of milk

Method

Preheat Oven to 200 Degrees. Line a baking tray with lightly oiled baking paper.

Rub together the flour and butter in a large mixing bowl. You have to use your hands and ake your time with this step. It’s worth the patience of making sure all the butter is properly broken up and rubbed into the flour. When it’s properly combined it should feel a little like kinetic sand. It feels dry, but if you squeeze a handful of it, it will form into a fragile ball.

Once you’ve finished combining the butter and flour, add in the milk. As with Soda Water Scones or Lemonade Scones, you want to JUST combine the dough until it’s smooth enough to roll out, without over kneading the dough.

Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured bench, and press out to 2 cm thickness. Cut with cookie cutters and place your scones on the paper lined baking tray. Allowing at least 2 cms space between scones.

Bake for approximately 10-15 minutes. Until the scones are firm to touch and lightly browned. You can open a scone up to check that the inside is cooked through.

That’s it! Done!

Soda water scones VS Butter Scones

The payoff using the butter method of a basic, regular, scone recipe, over a soda water scones, or lemonade scones without cream, is the scones are might lighter in texture and better flour (Which is unsurprising, right? Because butter makes everything better!)

Rubbing the butter into the flour only really takes 5 minutes longer – tops. And if you’re currently self isolating, then surely you have a spare 5 minutes. 

I hope you enjoy these recipes. Let me know how you go with them! Or if there’s any other variations you’d like to see – because who am I kidding, while people keep reading these, I’ll keep making them.