In our neighborhood, we usually have annual or bi/annual neighborhood get-togethers. One home volunteers to host the entire street for an afternoon of great company, catching up from our otherwise busy lives and also to indulge in some great food in community. Not to be picky, but their is this one home I never ever miss when they are the hosts. The lady of that home is called Violet but we call her Aunty Vio, because in Kenya, anyone who is not you mother is your aunt by default. Let me tell you, Aunty Vio can make one mean banquet. She does not joke around when it comes to hosting ; from the tender marinated meats, to the freshly baked moist cakes, to the array of fresh salads, and hearty starches. It would be mean to say I attend just for the food and not the company, LOL, but as a foodie, food is a huge part as to why I never miss out on the get-together when Aunty Vio is hosting. One of my favorite cakes that she usually bakes is her lemon poppy seed cake. She gets it right! From the texture and moistness of the cake, to the flavors, to the frosting. It is always a hit!! I make sure to get a huge slice each time and sneak some back home with me, in true Kenyan fashion, for post party indulgence. Do I sound greedy? Well, maybe I am :DD
With these memories as the back drop, I decided to make drop scones, one of my favorite breakfast recipes with a hint of my favorite cake flavors. I substituted lemons for limes, but either way, they were super duper delicious. Can’t wait for you guys to try this out!!
PREP TIME : 5 MIN COOK TIME: 20 MIN SERVES: 3
Ingredients
1 cup of self raising flour
1 cup of mala (or plain yoghurt )
¼ teaspoon of nutmeg
¼ a cup of blue poppy seeds
3 tablespoons of sugar
1 tablespoon of lime zest
1 egg
Method
Beat the egg and the sugar for about 4-5 minutes or until it becomes frothy and turns pale yellow.
Then in a separate bowl, mix all the dry ingredients (flour, nutmeg) then add this to the egg-sugar mix. I love the warmth of nutmeg in my drop scones. You can use cinnamon or cardamom in its place to which are just as warm ad aromatic as nutmeg. All three of these spices are available in our local supermarkets, so no excuse :))
Mix this in while adding your mala to it bit by bit until it becomes slightly thicker than yogurt but still heavy and sticky. Using mala instead of milk ensures your drop scones are fluffy. And no, they will not be sour. It is the same thing we used in this recipe and many others on the blog. You can use plain yogurt in its place too or buttermilk if you have some readily in the country you are reading this from. A small change, can make a huge difference. Trust me!
After it is all evenly distributed, fold in your poppy seeds and the lime zest. I did not have lemons at home but I had limes, so it was a definite perfect substitute. You can use any other citrus fruit too, oranges, grape fruit etc. As you are grating your rind, do not grate the white part. You only want the thin colored section. If you grate the white part, the drop scones will have a bitter taste and no one wants bitter drop scones.
As for my poppy seeds, I bought the ones by Naturally from Nakumatt at about 200 shillings a pack. I am sure they will last a lifetime & you can find them too in any other large supermarket too.
Once it is just mixed, you can begin your cooking. Do not over mix.
Add some vegetable oil to a small sufuria. Once it is hot enough, take spoonfuls of the dough with a table spoon and drop one at a time into the oil. A tablespoon may seem too little, but since we are using self raising flour, it will swell up as we cook. Do not take too much since it your scone will be too thick and fail to cook all the way through.
Allow each side to have 2 minutes until they turn golden brown then take from the heat.
Drain with a paper towel then serve. Dust them with some icing sugar or a drizzle with your favorite syrup and you are good to go. *pours tea into mug*
Breakfast being the first meal of the day, why not make it a grand party for your taste buds? If I could, I would make these lime poppy seed drop scones every single day. I especially loved how the taste and aroma of the lime was perfectly complimented by that of the nutmeg. The poppy seeds provided such a beautiful textural element and their nutritional benefits were an added plus!
Light, fluffy , delicious and so easy to make! I really couldn’t ask for more!
To good food and easy recipes,
-K <3
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Hey there! My name is Kaluhi and I love food! Through my blog, I am happy to share with you my self-taught recipes, steeped in nostalgia and the happiest of memories. I hope each recipe you try out is as addictive as the previous one and is shared on a table full of love and hearty laughs!
I must try this.
i LOVE the first image ????????????????????????. and yes, you sound greedy, but aren’t we all! LOL
how do you prevent them from being oily?
Make sure your oil is hot enough. To ensure it is hot enough, drop a small bit of the batter into the dough. If it sizzles, it is hot enough. If it doesnt it is not how enough. Cooking with oil that is still not hot enough will result in soggy oily dropscones.
Delicious
you bet!!!
I tried them but they were so soggy and looked nothing like the pics????maybe I’m not meant to cook????????????
Here is what makes drop scones soggy:
1. Your oil was not hot enough
2. because your oil was not hot enough, you made them stay in too long waiting for them to cook, but instead they just soaked in oil.
Do not give up. You made a mistake, but it does not meat you can’t try again and ace it the next time. I also mess up, but in order to be better, you find your mistake and try again and again and again.
I think it would help if you posted photos that would show amount of oil used since the post only says “Add some vegetable oil to a small sufuria”….my kidogo may not be your kidogo and all that ;).
Tried the recipe minus the poppy seeds – were awesome apart from the kidogo 🙂 soggyness….. Will repeat with less/hot enough oil. Thanks for the recipe!
But also, dont you think it would be impossible to tell the amount of oil by just looking at a picture? I would love to take pictures of everything, but unfortunately, that is just not possible!!! Not possible. Somethings I leave for you to use your judgment and decide. Yes, my little may be someone else’s plenty, but if we are talking about deep frying outcome should be similar. If you are frying a small quantity of drop scones, you should not use a lot of oil. And the opposite is true for a large quantity. Always use your judgement.
Another example, if we are frying an egg, and I say, add some oil to the pan, you will use your own judgment to determine how much oil you need considering what we are cooking, and how much you need to have.
Lastly, soggy drop scones are a result of using oil that was not hot enough. The dough stays in too long and soaks up all the oil. Next time, make sure your oil ids hot enough to overcome the issue of sogginess.
Ok going to try bila poppy…. will update
Looking forward to you take on this beauties!!
Right into this recipe,…will update on the outcome
Dope!
What is you just have plain flour? What measure if baking powder is required?
For every cup of all purpose flour, add 1.5 teaspoon of baking powder
I love how you reply and encourage everyone to try.. I will definitely try this recipe.. ❤️❤️❤️
Utapenda!