Over dinner one of these nights, I came up with the brilliant idea of jotting down our “house favorites”.
Between bites of our vegetable pasta and the help of a blue ballpoint pen , we came up with a list of around 15 favorite dishes – complete with ratings (out of five stars) – scribbled quickly on the last page of Juan’s notebook.
I suppose it’s amazing to think that in the past one year of cooking nearly three to four times a week, we’ve finally produced a line of dishes that are worthy of repeating and relying on.
After surveying and revising the list (one can never be too complacement), we came to the conclusion that these are precisely the sort of dishes that are fail-proof, fool-proof, and which can be called into the line of duty when we have dinner parties and guests are on their way.
We realized that most of the dishes that made the list have been in rotation throughout the seasons, and are mostly uncomplicated recipes that demand nothing more than good, fresh ingredients.
What’s stunning is how simple these dishes tend to be – terriyaki salmon, crispy oven-baked potato wedges, rainbow guacamole, or my favorite fried rice – it seems that the easier the dish, the more it appears on our menu.
Over the years, as I’ve gotten to know myself better, I’ve learnt that less is usually better for me.
I have a preference for fuss-free hairstyles, practical clothes that stand up against the test of time, and more recently, simple, doable recipes that don’t exhaust me or empty the bank. This need for simplicity is often seen in the food that I repeatedly cook – like a trusty cafe you return to over and over again.
Today’s recipe is one that I think you’ll love as much as I do.
It’s a new recipe that I’ve just tested, but already know that it’s one which will make more than just one lone appearance.
These are utterly simple, delightful raisin scones – and gluten-free at that.
You can use your own gluten-free flour blend, or as in my case – a combination of rice flour, tapioca flour, corn flour and potato starch (a mixture that has given me great results in my recent gluten-free adventures – like these blueberry cornbread muffins, or this gluten-free sandwich bread).
The batter comes together quickly by mixing all the ingredients together – first the dry ones, then the wet ones, and then stirring both wet and dry together. Last of all, fold in the raisins, then pour the batter into a prepared cast iron pan, then pop it into the oven.
While the scones may look a little plain, I find that the raisins are more than enough to give the scones just the right amount of taste and sweetness.
If you like them a touch sweeter, I suggest that you eat the scones with your favorite jam.
I’ve been devouring these scones for breakfast this entire week – two scones at a time to be precise. They are moist, tasty bites laced with sweet rich raisins.
Incredibly good and reliable scones. You should try them too.
Gluten-free Raisin Scones
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 25 mins
- Total Time: 45 mins
- Yield: 8 1x
Description
Moist, tasty bites laced with sweet rich raisins – these gluten-free raisin scones can be eaten on their own or smeared with your favorite jam.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup rice flour
- 1/2 cup tapioca flour
- 1/2 cup corn flour
- 1/4 cup potato starch
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 stick chilled butter (115g), cut into small pieces
- 2 large eggs
- 1/3 cup cold milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup raisins
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 400 deg Fahrenheit (200 deg Cel)
- Line a cast iron pan with baking paper
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, starch, sugar, baking powder, xanthan gum and salt.
- Add in the pieces of chilled butter, and using two knives, cut at the butter until it is mixed with the rest of the ingredients and you get a crumbly mixture
- In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, milk and vanilla together until frothy. Pour wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until well blended (the batter will be thick and sticky)
- Gently fold in the raisins until raisins are evenly distributed
- Pour batter into the baking paper-lined cast iron pan, and let mixture sit for 10 minutes before placing in oven.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown on top.
- Carefully remove cast iron pan from oven, let cool for 5 minutes before slicing scones into 8 pieces.
- Category: Snacks
- Cuisine: Gluten-free
Have you tried this with dates? I love date scones and am keen to find a simple Gluten free recipe
Hi Alicia! Thanks for stopping by! I haven’t tried these with dates, but I’m assuming that if you cut the pitted dates into raisin-sized pieces, and use the dates instead of the raisins in this same recipe, I believe the result will be the same (just tasting of dates instead of raisins!) Let me know how it goes if you do try it!
Hi Felicia,
I really enjoy your food photographs – simple, but so artful…
Btw, in the recipe, could I replace tapioca flour for some other flour kind?
Hi Jasmin! Thank you so much for your sweet comment 🙂
You can replace tapioca flour with arrowroot flour (it’s the closest thing to tapioca flour). If not, you can use a gluten-free flour mix to replace all the flours directly.
Let me know how it goes! all the best!
O talkiing about surfaces… Yours look pretty amazing too! As do those scones. And I agree on the simplicity… Although I tend to also do really complicated things from time to time… Simplicity is always better!
Hey Simone! Thanks for dropping by! Yes, I love this surface – it’s a new one that I asked a local carpenter to put together for me. It was quite expensive, but I really like the rustic effect it has in photos, plus because it’s a greyish brown, it doesn’t draw attention away from the food! 🙂
looks so good! Love your wooden surface… I also found myself in a foreign country for love, enjoy! Xoxo
Hey Allyson!! How cool is it that we both moved to foreign countries for love?? And yes, i love my wooden surface too! 🙂 Just got it made at a local carpenter’s!