This is the recipe for the Episode 3 Technical Challenge on The Great South African Bake Off 4.
You'll find links to the recipes for the season's other episodes underneath it.
Butternut Maize Meal Parmesan Scones & Homemade Butter
JUDGE PAUL'S TIPS:
- The butternut is included for sweetness.
- Be sure to treat the maize meal right because if you don't, it's going to pick up a texture.
- A scone is all about texture.
INGREDIENTS
For the Butter
250ml Double Cream
½ tsp Baleni Salt, or any other fine Salt
For the Scones
200g Butternut, chopped
150g Self-raising Flour
75g Fine Mielie Meal
½ tsp Salt
1 tsp Baking powder
½ tsp Bicarbonate of Soda
30g Homemade Butter, chilled cut into small pieces (above)
50g Parmesan, grated
Apx.80 ml Buttermilk (from Homemade Butter)
½ tsp Mustard Powder
For the Glaze
1 Egg Yolk, beaten
30g Pumpkin Seeds
Drop of reserved Buttermilk
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 220ºC/ fan 180ºC
For the Butter
Whisk the cream until the cream collapses and separates into buttermilk and butter.
Strain; over a muslin lined sieve, retaining the 150ml of the buttermilk for the scones.
Whisk butter again, to remove any retained buttermilk and drain once more.
Knead the salt into the butter, then fill a small ramekin with butter.
Spread the remaining butter, 1 cm thick on a baking paper lined tray and freeze for 15 minutes.
Once butter is firm use to make scones.
For the Scones
Roast or microwave the butternut until tender; drain on paper towel to remove excess moisture.
Mash, cool and reserve.
Sift 250g of flour with 2 teaspoons of baking powder to make self-raising flour. Sift again.
Sift the dry ingredients together, and then rub in the butter, until the texture of coarse crumbs.
Fold in Butternut, Parmesan into the flour mixture, adding just enough Buttermilk to form a dough.
Dust the work surface with flour, tip the dough out and push together to form a dough.
Press the dough down to about 4 cm high then cut using a floured 6 cm non fluted cutter.
Place on a paper lined baking tray.
Beat the egg with a tablespoon of reserved Buttermilk and brush the tops of the scones.
Sprinkle on the Pumpkin Seeds and bake for 12- 15 minutes until golden brown.
Serve with the homemade butter.
NOTES
Scones are a Quick Bread - same as muffins.
• For a better rise, use cold butter - or even frozen butter.
• When it comes to mixing, don't overdo it; mix until the dough just comes together. Don’t overwork dough or scones can be tough.
• When cutting out scones, use a cutter dipped in flour. Don’t twist the cutter or the scones may not rise evenly.
• Once you've shaped your scones, chill them before baking. The final chill relaxes the gluten which yields a tender texture. It also cools the butter down again, which is how you'll get that flaky texture."
• Spacing- keep them close - helps them to rise (almost) touching, which will give you nice, soft sides.
• The Butternut needs to be tender and drained on towel to remove the excess moisture.
Tap these links to see recipes from each week:
(Each one opens in a new window.)
Episode 1: Chocolate & Citrus Biscotti
Episode 2: Macadamia Lemon Meringue Roulade
Episode 4: Classic Choux Swans with Berry Coulis
Episode 5: Plum and Ginger Pudding with White Chocolate Sauce
Episode 6: Turkish Spinach and Cheese Street Food
Episode 7: Jammy Coconut Crème Doughnuts
Episode 8: Chocolate and Almond Cake
Episode 9: Milk Tart Saint Honoré
Episode 10: Banana Soufflé & Dark Chocolate Ice Cream