For this “Photo Friday” I wanted to cover the magic of Polaroid cameras and include a recipe that I shot on one. I’m a lover of instant film and the effects it creates. It almost feels like you are stepping back in time when you are using this beast. Although film can be a little expensive I’ve always managed to find some here in Chinatown…this is why I have to be very careful when using it. You can search through my archives and see a variety of posts I have shot using a Polaroid SX-70 camera. And if anyone is curious the only thing I do to the final image is scan it and crop it to fit the width of my blog.
Now to the lemon and date scones. The idea to make these scones came from my recent visit to Wellington for the Wellington on a plate food and wine festival. I was having a conversation with Sarah who admitted she had this fascination with date scones! She has been experimenting and searching to find the best date scone recipe. Not one to back away from this I said I would look through my bookmarked recipes and see what I had up my sleeve. And here we are! The only difference with this recipe is that it has lemon which adds a lovely citrus note to the final taste of the scones. The recipe itself isn’t too sweet and I think next time I might try it using some high quality medjool dates. Overall these were delicious!
I’ve always loved scones and I always remember preparing them for the first time in primary school. Scones are best served straight out of the oven and topped with jam and fresh whipped cream and accompanied by a strong “cuppa” as we say here in Australia. I think the number one rule or “secret” with scones is to not to overwork the dough. Mix until all the ingredients come together and that’s it! Do not be tempted to knead it like bread dough or you will end up with hockey pucks! I hope you like these Sarah and I hope you like the vintage feel of this post!
Adapted from Masterchef Australia Season 1
(makes 12)
Dry Ingredients
- 3 cups of self raising flour
- 2 tablespoons of caster sugar
- 1 cup of chopped dried dates
- Grated rind of 1 lemon
Wet Ingredients
- 150mls of milk
- 150 mls of pouring cream
- 1 egg
- a “splash” of good quality vanilla extract
- Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl and mix well
- Whisk the wet ingredients together and add to the dry and combine until the mixture comes together nicely-DO NOT OVERWORK!
- Press the dough out to about 2-3cms thick.
- Using an 8cm round cutter or the rim of a drinking glass cut scones from the dough and lay flat side up on a baking paper lined tray.
- Brush the tops with a little milk and place in a preheated 200 deg C fan forced oven
- Bake for 12-15 until golden brown and serve immediately with jam and cream.
Hi! I'm Peter. Welcome to Souvlaki For The Soul. My "little" space on the web. My blog is choc full of recipes, travel stories and photos. Have a good look around and enjoy your time here. Cheers!
Oh, I love your polaroid shots! The tones and colors have a very nostalgic feel to them. The last shot is my favourite, it makes me feel like I’m sitting at the table and enjoying my slow Sunday breakfast! And the scones themselves look scrumptious!
Absolutely amazing, Peter! I love this set of photos! And for the scone recipe, you know I’m with you
Thanks Anh! I can’t believe we made the same recipe on the same weekend!…LOL! Great minds think alike!
Peter when I first look at these photos I thought. “Oooh I love this look, I must ask which lens”. So it is Polaroid. Fantastic. I think there is a programme you can buy to get the poloroid look with regular digital photos…unless I can find a polaroid to buy!
I love date scones.
Barbara, you are right. There is a free polaroid-transforming tool called Poladroid, which I’ve used before! http://www.poladroid.net/
Love the grainy vintage look that Polaroid camera gives. And those scones look scrumptious too!
Love the texture of these shots!
I’ve baked these lemon and date scones before and they are soo soft and fragrant! Love love love the polaroid images Peter.
Hi Peter – was awesome to meet you at Matterhorn! I loooove the photography in this post – a very dreamy and old-fashioned quality to it. Interesting method with no butter to rub in – I bet the cream makes them delicious though
Woozers I want scones, now! Love the lemon and date combo…!!
I love those grainy photos! What delightful scones!
Cheers,
Rosa
I love your Polaroid shots Peter. I had a Polaroid camera but I imagine it is long gone from my parents place. Dates in scones would add an earthy sweetness that would be so delicious with some melted butter….I am off to the kitchen!
Scones are a favorite thing in my house, and I’ve made a lot of them. But, never scones with dates. I have to try these!
with dates it must be delicious!
have a nice time
Paula
Love the pictures and love the look of the scones. Do you think subbing yoghurt or sour cream for the other cream would be OK as I have tons of that stuff? I just bought 2 packs of fresh Tunisian dates the other date and have been eating them plain. Love anything date. Ever tried a date shake?
Love the shots Peter. One question – what is pouring cream?
Pouring cream is “thin” cream. In Australia we also sell “thickened” cream-which has been enhanced with gelatins etc… The easiest way to describe it would be regular cream. Hope that clarifies things.
can i ask you what is that table in all the photos? wood? a painting i can’t tell…..but i love it
for a scone lover addict it’as a wonderful recipe
That last photo is so perfectly balanced – it reminds me of ikebana. Beautiful use of the Polaroid.
Gorgeous pictures as always!!
Yeah, great pics as usual. Totally agree with you – scones are best served straight out of the oven, with jam & cream & a nice strong cuppa. It gets my aaaahhhhh factor
The easiest, tastiest but more importantly most successful scone recipe I have used to date (pardon the pun) and now firmly ensconsed in my in my favourites. Thank you for sharing.
Extremely high quality Polaroids, Peter. I’m curious though, what is the background? A floor? A board? It’s just so perfect for your subject. As for scones, I’m a junkie. Your tip about not over-working the dough is spot on. Another is to keep the dough on the moist side, too much flour being the bane of a nice light scone. Never tried them with dates, but I’m now certain to…
Very cool photos Peter – they are so vintage! Love those scones too!!!
it’s always been wonderful to know you and your creations, P. always so inspiring. i would love to try polaroid sometime.
Great photos and great reciepe. Date scones have always been my favourite but this reciepe makes them even better.
This sounds so good. Dates are my all time favourite thing to snack on. Sooo Good for you! Iv just recieved a packet of dates from my dad from the middle east and they are just like sweet dark chewy peices of date gum. WOW! I am going to use them to make this. Looks So yummy!
Very cool shots. Its amazing what you have done with an instant camera. Lemon is one of my favourite flavours in sweet items. The sour makes the sweet that much more interesting.
What a beautiful photograph. And your scones sound exquisite…I would have never thought of pairing dates with lemons.
Love the feel of the images!
Absolutely gorgeous photos, Peter. I just love the feel of them. And I know I would love the taste of those scones! I’ve said it before, but I need to be your neighbor so you can pawn some of your baked goods off on me.
My husband always loved using his old Polaroids for portrait shots but stopped when film became scare then obsolete. Your photos are stunning, the quality is unearthly! Beautiful!
beautiful polas…i’ve never had such a tone on my 600 films, they were always warmer. i’ll have to try these when i find good dates.
You can’t beat a good fresh scone, can you? Bookmarked for later use. Do you use dried dates that are sugared, because these are the only ones I can find here in Greece
I love the look of these photos. I am wondering if your poloroid is a more high tech, expensive version than the type I had years ago. I have some old photos taken with poloroids in some of albums and they always seem so spotanious and somehow exotic when I look at them. And dates and lemons? Genius!
Mmm, the best part about scones is the clotted cream, I think!
Beautiful scones. Love the mood lighting that sets the scene so well. Trissa has been raving about date tart and now you are making date scones…. make me wanna bake something with dates!
love polaroids
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