A foolproof cheese scone recipe that is impossible to over-handle
Preheat a lined metal baking sheet in a 200 °C oven. It is very important to have the baking sheet ready and hot, so do not skip this step.
Place flour, baking powder, salt and cayenne pepper in a food processor and pulse several times until all dry ingredients are combined.
Add the cubed butter to the food processor and stir with a spoon to coat in flour. Pulse the blender in very short bursts of no more than 1 second until the butter is fully combined in the flour, which now resembles fine breadcrumbs in texture.
Add all of the cheddar and ¾ of the Italian cheese, and pulse again to combine.
Add all but a splash of the milk and pulse for a few seconds at a time until the mixture starts to come together to form a crumbly dough. It won't form a solid lump, but you should see the start of it coming together. If it isn't, add the last splash of milk and pulse again.
Remove from the processor onto a floured surface and briefly press together until it is a single lump. It may be full of cracks, and that is fine. You are not looking for a smooth dough.
Roll to 2cm in thickness. Again, cracks in the dough are fine.
Cut into triangles or hexagons using a sharp knife, or into rounds using a 7cm fluted cutter.
Glaze with a thin coating of milk using a pastry brush
Remove hot baking sheet from oven and place scones quickly on it. Sprinkle the remaining Italian cheese on top and return to oven and bake for 16-18 minutes until lightly coloured on top.
For a flavour twist on these cheese scones, swap out the cayenne pepper with some onion or garlic powder and some finely chopped chives, or use a hot smoked paprika or a pinch of mustard powder.