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Drop Scones (Scotch Pancakes)

February 7, 2016 By Amy 26 Comments

Drop Scones

If there’s one type of baking I feel I’ve mastered, it’s pancakes! I’ve even joked about writing my own recipe book solely of different pancake recipes. And it all started with these little beauties. Drop Scones, also known as Scotch Pancakes, are something I’ve been baking since my childhood and something that Granny has always been on hand to help perfect. Similar to American Pancakes but way simpler, they make a great treat for breakfast or just for snacking.


We best enjoy Drop Scones for breakfast, straight from the gridle with a little bit of butter on top. They also make great snacks for wee ones, topped with fruit, yoghurt or lashings of jam – our boys can’t get enough of them! Best of all you can even freeze them, popping them in the toaster for a minute or so to bring back to life whenever you fancy one. And if you plan on batch baking some Drop Scones then Granny’s top tip of adding a little oil to the batter is a clever way of stopping them from drying out and tasting stale.

So whatever your preference this Shrove Tuesday, you won’t go wrong with a plate of Drop Scones!

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Drop Scones

Print Recipe
5 from 1 vote

Drop Scones (Scotch Pancakes)

Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time20 mins
Author: Baking with Granny

Ingredients

  • 220 g Self Raising Flour
  • Pinch of Salt
  • 50 g Caster Sugar
  • 2 Eggs
  • 280 ml Milk
  • 1 Tbsp of Sunflower/Vegetable Oil

Instructions

  • Sift the flour, salt & sugar into a large bowl.
  • Whisk the milk & eggs together in a separate bowl with a fork and then gradually add them to the dry ingredients whilst mixing together. Once combined add the oil and mix again until just combined.
  • Grease your griddle or frying pan with a little oil. Once hot, spoon a small amount of the batter (around 2 tablespoons) onto the griddle.
  • Your pancakes are ready to flip once bubbles have started to pop on top & they appear dry. Using a spatula, flip the pancakes & cook the other side for around a minute or until a golden brown.
  • Remove from the heat & enjoy with your topping of choice.

 Drop Scones

Do you know them as Scotch Pancakes or Drop Scones?

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Filed Under: pancake, recipe, scottish

Comments

  1. Ro says

    May 4, 2016 at 2:22 pm

    These look so lovely and uniform. Brownies, cookies and pancakes are my top three sweets that I have always had a obsession with getting just right. I’ll be halving the batter but trying these for breakfast tomorrow. How many does this recipe make? Thanks!

    Reply
    • Bryan montagu says

      November 10, 2019 at 7:34 pm

      My first attempt at drop scones was very good but the recipe given made 14 good sized scones, I think I may halve the amounts next time.!

      Reply
  2. Deanne says

    March 1, 2017 at 5:25 pm

    Hi, Just wanted to say that thanks to pinterest I found your blog and recipe and I have to say we loved it, I’ve blogged about our pancakes and linked back to yourself
    Thanks again x

    Reply
  3. filipino food recipes says

    April 24, 2017 at 7:01 am

    What’s up to every body, it’s my first visit of tnis blog;
    this weblog contains awesome and trly excellent
    materioal foor readers.

    Reply
  4. Jacq says

    August 27, 2017 at 6:05 pm

    The first 6 drop scones I made with this recipe were millimetres thick. So stopped and checked recipe against others.. The difference was this one included no Baking Soda. Added 2 tablespoons, gave mixture a quick whisk and tried again. Turned out just fine after that..

    Reply
    • Amy says

      August 28, 2017 at 11:54 am

      Thanks for your feedback, Jacq. This recipe goes along the lines of traditional Drop Scones, only relying on the raising agents already in Self-raising Flour.

      By adding Baking Powder you would certainly get the taller, fluffier pancakes but these would then be along the lines of American Pancakes and not the good old fashioned Drop Scones.

      Reply
      • sandra hasan says

        October 15, 2017 at 7:39 am

        I hate the taste of soda in my pancakes

        Reply
      • lisa welsh says

        June 20, 2018 at 10:46 am

        Of course you are already aware that there is nothing ‘traditional’ about self-raising flour – it is simply a convenience food comprised of plain flour with additives which include ‘baking powder’ [which itself is a convenience option being a ready-made mix of bicarbonate of soda & acid – if you are being completely traditional you go back to BoS & cream of tartar as you do when you make traditional scones]. The addition of extra baking powder is simply adding a bit more raising agent to what is already in the mix, which as Amy points out will produce higher, fluffier pancakes. But worry not there is nothing un-traditional about adding baking powder or indeed eschewing self-raising flour altogether and going back to basics & using plain flour, BoS & CoT (although it might take a few batches to get the balance right for inexperienced cooks) in fact the product you end up with would be strictly speaking much more good old fashioned drop scones as great granny used to make. :)

        Reply
      • Wee Ally says

        November 23, 2018 at 11:05 pm

        Traditional Scottish dropscones have raising agents. This recipe is not traditional at all for dropscones. It’s a pancake recipe.

        And while the two are similar they are not the same. Dropscones are a regional pancake most common to Scotland and the regions of England that border it.

        Not having a dig. Just wanted to make you aware that pancakes as this recipe makes are not dropscones.

        Reply
        • Mary says

          February 5, 2019 at 9:54 am

          Well, what is the recipe for Scottish pancakes? (dropped scones in English)

          Reply
  5. Lily says

    December 22, 2017 at 7:41 pm

    Hello. I can only drink goats milk and so I used that instead of cows milk. Whenever I use goats milk, all the pancakes and recipes I try always come out flat like crepes. Does different milk types affect the thickness of the pancake. Thank you and please reply. Lily

    Reply
    • Amy says

      December 29, 2017 at 9:15 pm

      Hi Lily. I’ve not tried baking with goats milk personally but I am aware that the composition does differ to that of cows milk. The main factors which could influence a difference in baking recipes is that of the fat and sugar content, which is where a bit of experimenting would come in. If you find that the batter is too thin, perhaps try adding a little less milk, or even a little extra flour and see how you get on.

      Reply
  6. Ruth Randell says

    December 31, 2017 at 8:25 pm

    I made these scotch pancakes for my new year eve starter. Kids loved them ! Delicious.! Thank you. For your recipe.

    Reply
  7. Loti says

    February 13, 2018 at 9:19 am

    I struggled to find a pancake recipe for many years, but since finding these I have only used this recipe. I must have used it 20 times by now and every time the pancakes are gorgeous and delicious! Thank you!!

    Reply
  8. Nicola says

    March 13, 2018 at 8:08 pm

    Love this recipe. I add some vanilla paste for flavour. Makes enough to have them tossed a few days in a row! Used to make these a lot as a teen, Mum never had any (at work) grandparents and inusd to polish them off! Have rgytedcthat wrong with this recipe, several times over. Ned to try some of the other recipes…

    Reply
  9. Angie Mallia says

    March 14, 2018 at 5:48 pm

    Hello from Sunny Malta (in Europe) Amy, does the brand or quality of flour effect the end result of the baking?
    Thanks in advance x

    Reply
  10. Angie says

    March 17, 2018 at 6:54 am

    Good Morning from Malta again. Doing the drop scones as I write. Amazing!!!! XXX

    Reply
  11. Sallie Stuart says

    August 2, 2018 at 5:48 pm

    Love your recipe, I use gluten free self raising flour for my husband who is a coeliac and they turn out perfectly.

    Reply
  12. judi poker says

    August 31, 2018 at 2:02 am

    You really make it appear really easy along with your presentation but I in finding this matter
    to be really something that I think I would by no
    means understand. It sort of feels too complicated and very
    vast for me. I am looking ahead for your subsequent post,
    I’ll attempt to get the grasp of it!

    Reply
  13. Fiona Mac says

    October 20, 2018 at 3:04 pm

    made these drop scones with rice milk as hubby is on a low potassium diet couldn’t tell the difference and they just disappeared

    Reply
  14. Rebecca says

    February 10, 2019 at 8:57 am

    I have tried hundreds of scotch pancake recipes and this recipe is by far the most delicious, making moist fluffy pancakes. You have found just the right balance of ingredients and far easier than CoT and baking powder recipes which I find always taste odd. Thank you!

    Reply
  15. Michael Piper says

    March 1, 2019 at 11:40 am

    My grandmother used to make these,using a bakestone, only difference is she used to thinly slice a cooking apple into small bits and stir the apple into the mix before cooking, result = magnificent

    Reply
  16. Kirsten Heding says

    April 16, 2019 at 3:24 am

    I live in Denmark where self-raising flour is not available so my question is very simple :how much baking powder do I need per 100 grams of plain flour?
    Your recipes look delicious and I’m looking forward to trying everyone or at least a whole lot of them

    Reply
  17. EH says

    October 15, 2019 at 3:09 pm

    5 stars
    Thanks for a great recipe. I’ve tried a few fo drop scones and these consistently turn out the best. Thank you for sharing :)

    Reply
  18. Charles L. Gallagher says

    November 8, 2019 at 3:06 pm

    In Scotland, your ‘griddle’ is traditionally called ‘A GIRDLE’ which is a thick metal plate no sides and a high overhead handle across the diameter.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. A Taste of Home – Hope Breathes says:
    April 20, 2017 at 7:46 pm

    […] of well-wishers. I used up the leftover frozen berries and filled the frying pan with batter for drop scones (pancakes for the Americans/flapjacks for South Africans). I wondered if it was crazy, or some sort […]

    Reply

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