How to use forgotten tea
a recipe for chai scones with mascarpone and marmalade
Chai Scones with Mascarpone and Marmalade
I’m a fanatical tea drinker and often lose track of how many cups I drink per day. I’m certain I’m not alone in that. In amongst those many cups of tea destined for consumption, there are quite a few stragglers: those forgotten about and left behind on various table tops and surfaces around the house. Cold and unappetising they mostly get poured away in favour of a fresh cup. My mum microwaves a lot of her tea (forgetting to drink tea is a family trait) and I also do occasionally if it’s still tepid; but not if it’s been left for more than an hour. The dilemma is that I don’t like waste. That’s how this recipe came about.
It’s a slight tweak to a well-loved classic: using the cold (but perfectly usable) tea as the liquid mixed into scones. Although you can’t taste the tea as a stand-out flavour on its own, it adds a depth of flavour to the scones and this is what I like. I’ve tried several iterations using various types of tea: Assam and Earl Grey being in my top three; but my favourite version is this one using Chai.
The marmalade and mascarpone seem to go well with the gentle spices in the Chai. Clotted cream and jam would still be delicious, but there’s something about the orange flavour of the marmalade which complements the cardamon, nutmeg and cinnamon in the tea.
Just as the tea adds depth, so does the flavour of the Chai. What you get is a hint of spice in the scones, not a full on mulled wine-y fug. Therefore if you don’t have any Chai tea bags, then any other tea will do. Whichever tea you use, it needs to be milk-less. It’s also a good idea to make it long enough in advance to cool completely, before you use it in the recipe.
Lastly, jam before the cream or cream before the jam? In order to avoid offending any West Country readers, I won’t be divulging which I put on first. Also, as its marmalade and mascarpone, it should be exempt from the order of layering! Any way is a delicious way.
This recipe makes 10 to 12 scones depending on the size of pastry cutter used.
INGREDIENTS
160ml boiling water
4 Chai tea bags
325g plain flour
50g caster sugar
3 ½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
75g cold unsalted butter, roughly diced into small pieces.
METHOD
Add the boiling water to the 4 Chai tea bags. Give them a good stir then leave to steep until the tea is completely cool. Squeeze out the teabags so that you’re left with just the cold tea. You should have approximately 100-120 mls of liquid after taking out the squeezed bags.
Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 with a large baking tray inside.
If you’re using the food processor method just add the flour, pieces of butter, sugar, salt and baking powder to the container. Process until the mixture has the appearance of breadcrumbs.
If you’re mixing everything by hand, combine the butter and flour in a bowl and use your fingertips to gently rub the two together, to make breadcrumbs. Try not to mix too much as the heat from your hands may start to melt the butter. Then add the sugar, salt and baking powder and stir it well until it’s all combined.
Whether you have used the food processor method or your fingers, the next step is to tip the dry mixture into a bowl and start to mix in the chai liquid, bit by bit. Avoid pouring it all in at once as you may not need the full quantity of liquid to get the right consistency. Aim for medium soft dough, but not sticky. If your mixture still needs extra liquid after using all the Chai, then add a tablespoon of milk at a time until the right consistency is reached. The dough needs to be soft enough that it’s not crumbling and firm enough to roll out and hold its thickness without splaying.
Lightly flour a surface and roll out the dough to approximately 2 cm thick. I use the minimum amount of flour I can get away with, so the scones don’t become tough and dry.
Dip your chosen pastry cutter in a little flour to prevent it sticking to the dough. Then cut out the scones. I recommend using a 6 to 8 cm diameter pastry cutter. I use a 6.5 cm diameter frilled cutter because it gives me the size I like, but it’s up to you.
Once cut into rounds, take the baking tray out of the oven, then put a sheet of baking paper on it. Add the scones to the sheet leaving approximately 2 cm between each one.
Put the tray of scones into the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.
Cool for 15 to 20 minutes then serve warm, with the marmalade and mascarpone.
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