Giant clotted cream and cherry scone cake recipe

This clotted cream and cherry scone cake recipe is a giant twist on the classic British scone.

Scones are the perfect afternoon tea treat and this one is great for sharing. If you want to shake up your cream tea or you have got friends coming round then this clotted cream and cherry scone cake is ideal. If you want to save time or you’re not a fan of rubbing in the butter yourself then feel free to use a food processor. Also, why not try different fruits like strawberries or raspberries – and you can use fresh cherries when they’re in season. Whipped cream will also work but clotted cream is important for that authentic cream tea vibe.

Ingredients

• 250g self-raising flour
• 1⁄2tsp baking powder
• 50g butter, chilled and cut into cubes
• 50g golden caster sugar
• 100g dried cherries
• 150ml buttermilk, plus extra for brushing
• 425g can cherries in syrup, drained
• 227g tub clotted cream
• caster sugar, for dusting

You will need:

• 18cm loose-based cake tin

Method

1. Heat the oven to 220 C, 200 C fan,425 F, gas 7. Grease and base-line the tin. Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl. Rub the butter into the flour until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
2. Stir in the caster sugar and cherries, make a well in the centre and add the buttermilk. Mix with a palette knife until the mixture comes together to form a soft dough.
3. Press the dough into the cake tin, brush with extra buttermilk and bake for 20 minutes, until golden. Cool for 5 minutes in the tin, then cool completely on a wire rack.
4. To serve, dry the canned cherries on kitchen paper to remove any excess syrup. Slice the scone cake in half horizontally, then spread each cut half with clotted cream, leaving a 1cm (1⁄2in) border around the edge. Put the bottom half on a serving plate, top with the cherries, add the top layer and chill for at least 1 hour so the cream firms up. Dust with caster sugar and serve.