Wholemeal Pesto Scones

Last weekend brought a wonderful excuse to visit Galway.  I travelled solo and met up with The Gravy Man at The G Hotel where we availed of their Fabulous Friday package which included a 3 course meal that was superb.  Only staying for one night, as the doors of the lift to the carpark closed on my departure I whispered ‘I’ll be back’ to the glimmering decadence of one of the three opulently and distinctly styled drawing rooms (thanks to the artful eye of milliner Philip Treacy).
I travelled alone on Saturday northwards in the direction of Oughterard and soon met the bustling village of Moycullen.  Here I ascended to the second floor of An Cearnog Nua and greeted by beautiful sunshine easily located the venue for my Gimme the Recipe demonstration – The Galway Cakery.  The demonstration and book signing had been organised by Anne Quinn of The Moycullen Village Bookshop who was there to look after book sales on the day.

The Galway Cakery is a bright, spacious and tastefully decorated cafe and Henrike was a very welcoming host making me feel at ease and free to use what I liked from her kitchen as she got on with her own preparations for the day.  The demo went over very well and before I left I fortified myself with the homemade mushroom soup and the savoury scone that Henrike had very kindly included from my book on her menu for the day.
As I gathered my things to leave I paused to take a few shots to share a little of the feel of the place and what’s on offer.
I returned home with a boxful of goodies to try out and as an out and out chocoholic I have to say the journey to Moycullen was worth it for the brownies alone –  amazing.  Portion sizes at The Galway Cakery are very generous and both the brownie and the rocky road were sufficient for at least two people.

Here’s a snapshot of Henrike’s interpretation of my wholemeal pesto scone bites – they were deliciously moist and fortifying for the journey home.
Wholemeal Pesto Scones
Makes 10-12 regular sized
You will need:
300g wholemeal flour
150g plain flour
½ tsp salt
1 tsp bread soda
125g unsalted butter
300ml butter milk
2 tbsp basil pesto
1 egg and milk to glaze
Method:
Preheat the fan oven to 180^oC/Gas mark 6.
Lightly grease two baking trays with a little butter.
Mix the wholemeal flour and plain flour with the salt and bread soda in a large bowl.
Cut the butter into cubes and crumble together with the flour with your fingertips until it resembles breadcrumbs.
Make a well in the centre, pour in the buttermilk and mix well with a fork, then stir in the pesto.
When the dough is combined, flour your hands and pour the dough out onto a floured board.  As the dough is very moist there will be no kneading –  just use plenty of flour on your hands to push it, shape it into a ball and then flatten it out either with your hands or a floured rolling pin.
Flatten or roll out the dough to a thickness of approximately 2cm.
Use a medium sized round pastry cutter to cut out approximately 10-12 scones.
Place the scones on the greased baking trays and brush the tops and side with some beaten egg and milk mixed together.
Bake for 15-20 minutes until nicely risen and golden brown.
Cool on a wire rack.
Enjoy.
Til next time, Sheila.