Hebrides Cruises is a proper family business. Rob Barlow is Owner and Skipper; daughter Emma is Sales, Marketing and Shore Manager, her husband Peter works on the cruises in a variety of roles, including Skipper and Engineer. Not to be forgotten is Granny Mary, a vital person in the business, providing the scones for the guests arriving on the boat for their cruise which are always much appreciated! Here is the recipe - with a few extra tips. There is definitely a knack to getting the lightest of scones and guests agree that Granny Mary has that touch! If you want to try one for yourself, come aboard our Open Day on April 22nd at Dunstaffnage Marina - from noon till 4pm.
Granny Mary Scone Recipe: Makes 12 Scones
Ingredients
1Ib Self Raising Flour
4oz Granulated Sugar
4oz Soft Margarine
2 Level teaspoon Baking Powder
8-10oz Milk
Method
Preheat your oven to 220oc or 210fan.
Add all the dry ingredients (flour, sugar & baking powder) together in a bowl. Add the soft margarine to this and mix all together with your hands (Wee Tip: Make sure you have cold hands!) Whilst mixing make sure you lift the mixture high to allow the air through it.
Once the mixture resembles a crumbly consistency you can add the milk, small amounts at a time. Mix with a wooden spoon until mixture has blended. Keep the mixture as dry as possible making sure its still bonds.
Transfer the mixture onto a floured board. Shape the mixture into a circle about 1” thick with your hands, handling as little as possible.
Cut out mixture with scone cutter. Then place on a floured scone tray then dust lightly with flour before popping in the oven to bake.
After 20mins, take out of the oven, leave to cool on a wire tray.
Take a scone, cut in half and fill it with yummy jam and/or cream and have with a nice wee cup of tea!
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Our trip to the Outer Hebrides was exceptional in every way; the talented staff; the comfortable accommodations; the little details (a refreshing glass of Prosecco on the return of each day's trip); the always-full cookie jar; the welcoming and beautifully decorated table spread with good food; the post-dinner discussions and chart-reading with Captain James and our naturalist, Will; the frolicking Bottlenose dolphins "bow riding" upside down next to the "Emma Jane"; the seals lazily lounging on the rocky ledges; the Minke whales; the diving gannets, nesting puffins, and Great Skua (nicknamed "Bonzies" by the Scots.....Will photographed one Bonxie trying to grab a mackerel away from a shearwater); the while fulmars flitting in and out the rocky crevices; and our wonderful trip companions. It was a trip to treasure and relive many times in future years! Every new adventure offered the chance to read and to learn about the many marine birds, the "beasties" (ocean mammals), and the fascinating stories and history of the Outer Hebrides. All experiences were unique; hiking in the Isle of Eigg to the "Massacre Cave"; viewing habitats of nesting puffins, guillemots, shags, fulmars on the cliffs of the "Shiants" and St. Kilda's; seeing the aquaculture salmon rafts stretched in a row off the coast of Skye; steaming across the water to the archipelago of St. Kilda's and experiencing the view of Hirta, St. Kilda's main island, mysteriously rising out of the fog as we approached the island All were memorable experiences. And we were lucky! The weather was perfect for our trip....some light drizzle off and on, some wind but no strong "houlies" (very strong winds)! This is a trip of a lifetime. We recommend it with enthusiasm and with joyful memories! Sally and Alan Gayer June 2019 Private Cruise to the Outer Hebrides and St. Kilda's
Sally and Alan Gayer: 8 June 2019Private Charter 10 Nights