If you’re new to savoury baking, these chilli and garlic scones are a brilliant place to start. There’s no need to mess around with proving dough or faffing with delicate pastry like you would for tarts or quiches. Just mix, shape, bake and done! They’re perfect as a mid-afternoon snack or slathered in butter for a quick, grab-and-go breakfast.
Cheese tends to be the go-to flavour when it comes to savoury scones (and hey, no shade – especially if you’ve tried my wild garlic & cheese version!). But this time, I wanted to mix things up a bit with fresh chillies and garlic. I even got to use a gorgeous smoked garlic bulb I picked up from our local farm shop – and it was so good in this recipe!
Now, it’s not exactly standard practice to top scones before baking, like you would with a pizza or focaccia, but trust me on this one – it absolutely works. Not only do they come out looking extra fancy, but the little hit of chilli and garlic on top adds a punch of flavour that takes them to the next level.
Method
Follow these steps to make our Chilli & Garlic Scones
Start by setting your oven to 200°C (fan) and pop a baking sheet inside to start warming up. In the meantime, combine your dry ingredients – the flour, sugar, a good pinch of salt, as well as half of your chillies and half of your garlic (finely chopped). Mix to combine.
Next, add your wet scone ingredients to the dry mixture. This includes 120ml of milk, most of your chosen oil (reserve 10g for later on), 2 tablespoons of hot sauce. Use a spoon to work the mixture together. Once mostly combined, tip the mixture out onto a clean floured surface and give it a quick knead until a smooth dough has formed.
Once a dough has formed, pat it into a rough rectangular shape. Then, press the mixture down, reshaping as needed, until it is around 2cm thick. You could use a round cutter here, but I love the rusticity of a square scone, so I simply used a knife to chop the rectangle of dough into six even shapes. Pop these onto your pre-warmed non-stick baking tray.
Now for the fun part! As mentioned earlier, I top these scones with a gorgeous garlic-chilli mixture that takes the flavour to the next level. To make this mixture, simply combine your remaining oil (about 2 tablespoons), 1 tablespoon of hot sauce, a big pinch of salt, and your remaining chilli and garlic cloves – which I’ve finely sliced. Use a pastry brush to generously coat the tops of each scone with this mixture.
Top Tip: When brushing your scones with milk, egg, oil, or other ingredients for that golden brown crust, avoid washing the sides. By keeping the mixture only to the top of your scones, you give the scone the best chance to rise.
Add your finished scones into your preheated oven and bake for 18-20 minutes, or until the tops of the scones are golden brown. I enjoyed mine straight from the oven, slathered in butter – but you could also store them in an airtight container to enjoy at a later date.
Storing Your Chilli & Garlic Scones
These scones are best enjoyed fresh and warm, but they’ll keep nicely in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. To refresh, just pop them in a low oven (around 160°C) for 5–10 minutes. You can also freeze them – just wrap individually and reheat from frozen when needed. Perfect for batch-baking and grabbing on busy mornings!
Oil VS Butter in Scones
You may have already spotted, but in these chilli and garlic scones, I’ve opted to use oil in the dough, instead of butter. Wondering why? It’s not just great for keeping the scones lovely and moist – it also saves you time, since there’s no need to faff around rubbing the butter into the flour. Plus, if you’ve opted to use olive oil, it adds a lovely savoury depth that really complements the garlic.
Easy Baking Recipes From Savery Grazing
These scones are also perfect for packing into a picnic or enjoying as a mid-afternoon snack. If you give this recipe a try, I’d love to hear how it turned out! Leave your thoughts in the comments below, or tag us on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest.
If you’re looking for more easy bakes, why not try:
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