Recipe courtesy of Psychologies Magazine and taken from Soup Broth Bread by Rachel Allen of Ballymaloe Cookery School.

Makes : 9

Deliciously savoury and gorgeously light in texture, these scones are great served with a hearty bowl of soup. You can use any squash instead of pumpkin and, if you fancy, add lardons of crispy bacon or diced chorizo to the mix.

Ingredients :

175g peeled and deseeded pumpkin (weight when peeled and deseeded)
1 tbsp olive oil
200g plain flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
Pinch of cayenne pepper
2 tsp finely chopped rosemary
1/2 tsp salt
50g finely grated cheese (Cheddar or a hard cheese such as Parmesan)
1 egg
100ml milk, plus 1 tbsp extra for brushing over the top

Method :

1. Preheat the oven to 200oC, 180oC fan, gas mark 6. Cut the pumpkin into 1-2 cm chunks and place on a roasting tray. Drizzle with the olive oil and roast in the oven for about 20 minutes, until tender. tip the pumpkin into a bowl (leaving the oven on) and mash very well with a fork, or blend in a food processor, then allow to cool. If using canned pumpkin puree, you’ll need 125g.
2. Sift the flour, baking powder and cayenne pepper into a bowl and add the rosemary, salt and all but 2 tbsp of the grated cheese, reserving the remaining cheese for scattering over the scones before they go into the oven.
3. Whisk the egg and mix with the pumpkin puree and milk. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients add the wet ingredients then, with your hand in a claw shape, mix the two, making sure you don’t knead but simply mix until it comes together.
4. Tip the mixture out on to a floured surface the tidy the sides, working it into a rough square and patting the dough out to 2 cm thick. Brush a little milk over the top and scatter with the remaining cheese, then cut the dough into 3 x 3 portions to make 9 scones.
5. Place the scones on a baking tray and bake in a preheated oven for about 15 minutes, or until golden and cooked through. They should sound hollow when tapped on the base. Cool on a wire rack.