WW2 Orange Zest Scones (from 1944)

Oranges were in short supply in Britain during World War Two, so people would never have wasted the rind. I found this simple recipe in a newspaper from 1944 at The British Newspaper Archive.

The scones are quick and easy to make, smell lovely and taste good too. I'll definitely be trying them again! The recipe takes about 10 minutes to prepare, 10 minutes to cook and you'll make between 8 and 12 scones (depending on the size of your cutter).

Recipe for Orange Zest Scones

Ingredients

• Plain flour (4oz / 113g)
• Butter (1/2oz / 14g)
• Orange zest (finely grated, from 1 orange)
• Caster sugar (1 level dessert spoon)
• Baking powder (2 level teaspoons)
• Salt (1 pinch)
• Milk (just enough to bind the mixture)

Method

1. Heat your oven to 220C / 200C fan / 428F / gas 7.
2. Sieve the flour into a mixing bowl and add the butter. Rub together with your hands.
3. Add the orange zest, sugar, baking powder and salt.
4. Add a splash of milk and mix everything together. Repeat until the mixture binds together into a soft dough.
5. Put the dough on a floured surface, knead it and roll out to about 1/2-inch thickness.
6. Use a circular cutter to cut into small rounds. Gather the leftover dough, roll out again and repeat the cutting until you run out of dough.
7. Put the rounds on a greased baking tray and bake for about 10 minutes.

Original recipe from World War Two

The recipe below was printed in the Lichfield Mercury on 25 February 1944. Visit The British Newspaper Archive to search historical copies of the Lichfield Mercury.