I’d never had a drop scone before making this recipe. I’ve had scones, I’ve had pancakes. But never a drop scone. Having said that, it’s basically a mini pancake so I don’t think there is much achievement in finally having one.

The past 10 days have been spent visiting friends in the UK, and given that the first people I saw have a young daughter, the time spent was much more about catching up than it was about food.

The second friend I went to see has her own catering company, and so it was all about food from the minute I got to her house. We visited her allotment, and got a basket of veggies to eat over the days while I was there. We picked blackberries off the bush right next to the car. We pored over cookbooks, deciding if there was something we could make for lunch or dinner. Then her partner, a chef, would come home and get involved in the kitchen. We had a feast every night.

My friend has recently made blackberry jam, so we figured we could overload on blackberries with this recipe. I mixed up the batter, and cooked the drop scones in the evening, and then just toasted them up in a frying pan again the next morning.

They were divine.

Now, I can’t take credit for this recipe by any means. The mastermind behind it is Gill Meller, and the recipe is from his book Gather. The recipe is filled with incredible dishes made from (partly) British ingredients, including squirrel and wild boar. The beauty of the dishes though is that they are essentially fairy simple for those who are comfortable in the kitchen. I’m actually putting the book on my order list as we speak.

The truth is that you can adapt this recipe to match your taste: blueberries, raspberries, strawberries. You just need to make sure that you mash them gently so that they blend in with the batter. Blackberries and raspberries crush very well in your hands. Blueberries and strawberries might need a fork to mash them up a bit. Either way, they’d work really well.

This is a great weekend breakfast or afternoon tea, if you’re feeling really peckish. I can highly recommend a large dollop of blackberry jam and Greek yoghurt, as well as a drizzle of honey and a handful of fresh blackberries on the side.

Ingredients

175 grams plain flour
2 tablespoons baking powder
40 grams caster sugar
pinch of fine salt
1 egg
1 pinch of saffron
100 ml milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon honey, plus extra for serving
2 handfuls fresh blackberries
1 large knob of butter

1. Place the flour in a large mixing bowl with the baking powder, sugar and salt. Add the egg, saffron, milk, vanilla and honey. Combine fully with a whisk.
2. Gently crush the blackberries in your hands, then add to the batter. Stir through.
3. Over a medium-high heat, melt the butter in a large frying pan. Pour most of the butter into the batter, and stir through. Keep the remaining butter in the pan.
4. Add 4 generous tablespoons of batter, one by one, to make 4 individual drop scones.
5. Cook for 2 minutes on each side, or until golden, then flip and cook for 2 minutes on the other side. Remove from the pan, and place on a plate. Repeat with the remaining batter.
6. Serve with honey, yoghurt, blackberries and blackberry jam.