Grandma Joyce’s Scones

Ingredients

Flour…8 cups
Sugar…1-1/2 Tbsp
Salt…1-1/4 tsp
Yeast (dry)…1-1/2 Tbsp
Hot water from tap…1 cup
More hot tap water…2-1/2 cups
Oil, butter, or oleo…1/4 cup
Oil (for frying)…1 inch
Powdered sugar, honey butter…to taste

Method

• Heat oven on ‘warm’ setting.
• Place flour in mixer. Make hole in center of flour. Pour water into hole.
• Measure and sprinkle sugar into hole.
• Sprinkle salt around outside of flour.
• Stir water and a tiny bit of flour to cool water to comfortable temperature (tepid).
• Now pour yeast in the hole and with fork mix slightly. Let set until yeast rises (20 mins). It’s okay if a little flour mixes in.
• When yeast has shown it is active and rises and puffs up, slowly add 1 cup of hot tap water to the flour, NOT the yeast. (Use a spoon to wet the flour, thus heating the flour. Alternately, pulse mixture by turning mixer on/off until flour is moistened. This prevents flour from becoming airborne.) Avoid the yeast so as not to kill the yeast’s activation.
• Gradually add the remaining water.
• Before bread mixture is totally mixed, add 1/4 cup oil, butter or oleo (either melted or solid is acceptable).
• Finish beating with the mixer until the dough pulls away from sides of bowl (about 3-5 minutes).
• Grease a bowl 3 times larger than dough volume and place dough in the greased bowl.
• Turn oven OFF. Oven temp should not be hot to feel but just warm to enhance bread dough to rise.
• Place a towel on the oven shelf (to prevent melting the bowl, if using plastic). A board or a stone or flat surface such as a baking sheet or jelly roll pan will also work.
• Cover the dough and let stand in a warm place (set it on the towel in the oven).
• When dough has risen (about an hour), mix it down again to release the air. Recover and allow to rise again until double in bulk.
• When dough has doubled, it is ready to shape into scones. (Variation: Dough can also be used to make loaves or cinnamon rolls.)
• To make scones, take small amount of dough (appx. 3/4 cup) and pull it into the desired shape and size. (For best results, dough should be kept warm to the touch.)
• Fry dough in approximately 1 inch of oil until fork inserted comes out clean. (Heat oil to 350 degrees.)
• Sprinkle with powdered sugar or slather with honey butter and gobble down while still warm!!
• Yummy!!