This article came about because my dear friend Catherine and I were eating scones on one of our regular outings. We often do that, and compare different qualities. It has to be said that Catherine is the baker of very fine home-made scones. Mid munch, we started talking about the history of scones, and this is the result of research. Of course, anyone looking to follow our example, and sample scones and possibly a cream tea in Rye, has a multitude of tea houses to choose from.
Obviously, a scone is an essential element of our traditional cream tea. I don’t intend adding to the, sometimes heated, debate about the correct order in which to dollop on your clotted cream and jam. At the risk of offending the good citizens of Devonshire and Cornwall, (and isn’t the role of a writer to sometimes stimulate a lively, friendly debate?) I would say just enjoy the combination however you like it best. Further, there are those who say that the only appropriate conserve is strawberry. Again, I just say enjoy whatever takes your fancy. In my case, I rather like Tiptree peach.
Scones are, apparently, such simple things to make. Never having done so myself, (I’m bad at cooking but an expert at eating,) I’m told that it takes but flour, butter, milk and sugar. Some advocate the addition of egg, apparently. There is no tradition of helping mother in the kitchen and learning from her with our family. My mother lived to the age of 91 and never even boiled a kettle in her life. She would have starved in a full kitchen. Late in life, I’ve sort of mastered the basics.
It’s odd that the scone, so much considered to be an integral part of the English cream tea, was probably first made in Scotland in the 16th century. The first mention of this Food of the Gods is in a Scottish poem dated 1513. The recipe originally included that Caledonian favourite, oats. They were made as one large, round shape, with cuts scored into the top, conveniently dividing it into four or six pieces. Cooking was done on an iron griddle over an open fire. Although Scottish, the word scone itself comes from either the German word Sconbrot, meaning fine bread, or the Dutch word schoonbrot, which, unsurprisingly, has absolutely the same meaning.
Afternoon tea was popularised by Anna, Duchess of Bedford, a lifelong friend of Queen Victoria. In about 1840, the duchess found that she was getting peckish in the afternoon. Dinner, which was originally a midday repast, was now being served later and later, for a number of reasons, including the introduction of gas lighting. Sometimes it was served as late as 9 pm. Now, luncheon was the midday meal.
Luncheon originally meant a thick piece of food, such as meat. It was first mentioned in relation to a meal during the 17th century, but rarely used as such until the 19th. This left a long gap between meals, and Duchess Anna felt the need of a little something between luncheon and dinner. Although now it is often seen as something of a treat, a civilized interlude in a working day, to Duchess Anna and her circle, it stopped them from fainting with hunger (very tight corsets may have had a hand in causing fits of fainting). So, at about 4 pm, along with a cup of tea, there would be sandwiches, cakes, scones and, in winter, muffins. The idea became popular and spread from Woburn Abbey to other, less substantial homes across the land.
A curious piece of etiquette went with tea. If a guest returned her empty cup to the hostess with the spoon in the saucer, it meant that she would like another cup. A Frenchman, unaware of this, returned his cup with the spoon in the saucer. It was refilled and returned to him. This happened about half a dozen times until he arose, in some discomfort, and rushed from the room crying, "Alas, Madame, I can take no more."
As with so many articles of food there are competing claims for invention by both the Welsh and the Irish, both of whom are producers of delectable baked goods.
