Scones And Biscuits Are Different Because Of One Ingredient
A lot of foods in the U.S. have massively shifted away from their origins, but biscuits have morphed into something entirely different. In England, "biscuits" are the moniker for cookies, and in the U.S., biscuits are a type of quick bread that is similar to scones. Scones are a type of baked pastry that originated in Scotland, are incredibly popular in England, and are continuing to make more of a splash in U.S. cuisine.
If you want to add something special to your weeknight dinner, or if you just want a good, comforting weekend breakfast, both biscuits and scones are great options. They can both be made with added ingredients and paired with different toppings to create something unique to match what flavors you want. But even though they may be very similar, there are some key differences between the two. One of the biggest differences comes down to a single ingredient, and the ways it affects the texture of the bread.
The ingredient that changes it all
Biscuits are often round for the most part and tend to be lighter and fluffier than scones because they are made from a mixture of all-purpose flour, salt, butter or shortening, and milk. Scones, on the other hand, are usually formed into a triangle shape and are made with flour, butter, sugar, milk or cream, and eggs. The eggs in the scones make them denser and more cake-like in texture, and the sugar makes them sweeter than the biscuits.
These ingredients, though, are just the basic recommendations. You can add nuts and spices to scones to make them more savory, or add things like blueberries and lemon zest for blueberry lemon scones. With biscuits, you can add things like cheese to create cheesy biscuits or mixed berries to make a breakfast biscuit. The options are almost endless, and you can even use different types of flour, milk, or cream to create more subtle changes in texture and taste to your starchy baked goods.
Which one is easier to make?
Before you get nervous about making scones, you should know that both scones and biscuits can be relatively easy to make. If you've ever made biscuit dough before, you can probably make scones, too. The difficulty level, though, depends on the specific recipe you are following. In general, biscuits may be slightly easier to make than scones because they require fewer ingredients and less prep time, and you can use a round glass to uniformly cut them into circles before being baked.
Scones may require a bit more effort because they include additional ingredients and the dough is often shaped into wedges by hand before baking, but overall, the effort for scones isn't much more than you need to put into biscuits. Biscuits may cook slightly faster than scones because they are usually smaller and thicker than British scones, so they take about 12-15 minutes, depending on your oven. On the other hand, scones can take 15-20 minutes to bake. Again, though, baking time depends on the recipe you are following.