Juliet Sear’s festive cream tea with Rodda’s Cornish clotted cream

Method

Equipment: Two baking trays, parchment paper, small pan, large bowl, rolling pin (optional), food processor (optional), cutlery knife, small round cutter (approx. 5-6cm) and pastry brush.

1. Line two baking trays with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 180c fan.
2. Add the milk and clotted cream to a small saucepan on a gentle heat jug for about 30 seconds until warm, but not hot. Add the orange juice, then set aside.
3. Tip the flour into a large bowl with all the spices and baking powder, then mix to distribute all the powders.
4. Add the cold cubes of butter and rub in with your fingers until the mix looks like fine crumbs. Alternatively, you can blitz the mixture in a food processor. Then stir in the sugar.
5. Make a well in the dry mix, and add the clotted cream from the saucepan, orange zest, chopped ginger, and fruit, combining it quickly with a cutlery knife. It will seem wet at first but don’t worry!
6. Scatter some flour onto the work surface and tip the dough out. Dredge the dough and your hands with a little more flour, then knead the dough briefly until it’s a little smoother. Pat or roll the dough gently into a round roughly 2.5cm deep (about an inch).
7. Use a small round cutter (approx. 5-6 cm) and dip it into some flour. Plunge into the dough, then repeat until you have used up all the space. Bring the scraps lightly together and cut out some more rounds.
8. Brush the tops of the rounds with beaten egg and bake for around 15-18 mins until risen and golden on the top.
9. Eat just warm or cold on the day of baking and spread them with festive jam first, then top with Rodda’s Cornish clotted cream or Rodda’s brandy clotted cream. You can toast them the next day if they are a little hard!

If freezing, freeze once cool. Defrost, then put in a low oven at about 160c for a few minutes to refresh.