Vegan Scones with Coconut Cream and Vanilla

Preheat the oven to 220°C (200°C fan) and line a baking tray with parchment paper.

Measure the 120 ml of cold oat milk, stir in the apple cider vinegar and vanilla extract, and set aside for 5 minutes until slightly curdled. Return the cubed cold vegan butter to the fridge until needed.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, caster sugar, and salt in a large bowl.

Add the cold cubed vegan butter to the flour mixture and rub it in quickly with your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse, pea-sized crumbs — work fast to keep the butter cold.

Pour the curdled oat milk mixture into the flour and butter, and stir with a butter knife using a cutting motion until a shaggy dough just comes together — do not overwork it.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and pat it gently into a disc approximately 2.5 cm thick — use as few strokes as possible to avoid developing gluten.

Cover the dough loosely with a clean tea towel and rest for 10 minutes to allow the baking powder to begin activating and to relax the dough for a better rise.

Stamp out 8 rounds using a 6 cm floured cutter, pressing straight down without twisting, and place them on the lined tray. Re-pat any offcuts once only.

Brush the tops of the scones with the 2 tablespoons of oat milk, then bake for 16–18 minutes until well risen, deeply golden on top, and hollow-sounding when tapped on the base.

While the scones bake, open the chilled coconut cream and scoop only the thick, solidified cream into a cold bowl, discarding or reserving the liquid. Whip with the icing sugar using a hand whisk until soft peaks form, then refrigerate until needed.

Transfer the scones to a wire rack and cool for at least 10 minutes before splitting and serving with the whipped coconut cream and strawberry jam.