Recipe: Paul Ainsworth’s Traditional Cornish Strawberry and Vanilla Cream Tea Trio served with Rodda’s Cornish clotted cream

• Serves 4
• Preparation time: 30 minutes
• Cooking time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

For the poached strawberries:

• 500ml of Prosecco
• 100g caster sugar
• 1 star anise
• 1 sprig of thyme
• 1 lemon, peel only
• 30g dried hibiscus flower
• 12 whole black peppercorns
• 250g fresh strawberries

For the scones:

• 140g plain flour
• 140g strong flour (plus extra for dusting)
• 40g caster sugar
• 12g baking powder
• 1 tsp fine salt
• 75g butter, fridge cold, diced
• 90ml whole milk, fridge cold
• 1 whole egg, fridge cold
• 1 egg yolk

To finish:

• 250g fresh strawberries
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 1 lime, zest only
• Small pinch of fennel pollen (optional)
• Small bunch of apple marigold or lemon verbena leaves
• Small jar of your favourite great quality strawberry jam
• 227g of Rodda’s Cornish clotted cream

Tools:

• Large saucepan
• Large bowl
• Flat baking tray
• Greaseproof paper/silicone baking mat
• Stand mixer with paddle
• Jug
• Cling film
• 40mm round cutter
• Knife
• Pastry brush

Method:

1. Poach your strawberries

Place a large saucepan on medium heat and add the Prosecco, caster sugar, star anise, thyme, peppercorns, hibiscus and lemon peel. Bring to a boil then immediately turn off the heat.

Prepare the strawberries by removing the leafy end and cutting them in half lengthwise. By the time you have prepared the strawberries the poaching liquor should be cooled down to the temperature of a drinkable cup of tea.

Place all the strawberries in a large bowl, pour over the Prosecco mix and allow to gently poach. These will naturally cool down to room temperature which is the ideal serving temperature.

2. Make your scones

Preheat your oven to 180°C.

Line a flat baking tray with greaseproof paper or a silicone baking mat. Combine the two flours, caster sugar, baking powder and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle. Add the diced butter to the bowl. Mix on slow speed for 10-15 minutes until you achieve a breadcrumb like texture. Alternatively, mixing by hand will be just as effective.

Combine the whole milk, eggs and egg yolk in a jug and mix well then pour slowly into the dry ingredients until a dough comes together.

Be careful at this stage not to overwork the dough. Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and bring it together by hand. Roll the dough out into a 4 cm thick slab. Cover with cling film and chill in the fridge for 15-20 mins.

Once the scone dough is chilled, use a 40mm round cutter to cut out your scones. Flour well before cutting out each one and tap out firmly onto the baking sheet. Make sure all your scones are presented with the smoothest side facing up and are well-spaced.

Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown and risen. Remove from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature.

3. Prepare the fresh strawberries

To finish, slice the fresh strawberries into 1cm thick slices and lay them out on a tray.

In a bowl, combine the vanilla extract with the extra virgin olive oil.

Brush the slices with extra virgin olive oil and “season” all the slices with the finely grated lime zest and if you have it, a little sprinkling of fennel pollen.

4. Assemble the dish

Warm the scones in the oven or for a few seconds in a microwave on medium power. Cut each scone in half, allowing 3 halves per person.

For the traditional scone, spoon a generous layer of jam on a warm half scone, and top with a dollop of Rodda’s Cornish clotted cream.

For the poached strawberry scone, arrange as many pieces of poached strawberry on top of a warm scone half as you can. Top this with a few delicate apple marigold or lemon verbena leaves. Finish with a teaspoon of Rodda’s Cornish clotted cream.

For the final fresh strawberry scone, lay 5-6 slices of the dressed fresh strawberries on the remaining warm scone half and top with a teaspoon of Rodda’s Cornish clotted cream.

Enjoy!