Queen’s Drop Scone Recipe Given to Eisenhower by Queen Elizabeth

In 1959 the Queen hosted former US President Dwight D. Eisenhower and his family at Balmoral Castle in Scotland. During his visit, her family's recipes for drop scones were served. The president must have raved about the pancake-like scones (Scottish Pancakes). Because a year later the Queen had the recipe typed up and sent to Eisenhower. Queen's Recipe Below.

AI Drawing of Queen Elizabeth and President EisenhowerPhoto byDa Vanci AI / Colorado Martini

These scones are not like the scones Americans are used to eating. Drop scones, also known as Scotch pancakes, are a flat, fluffy, cake traditionally eaten with tea. They resemble thick pancakes. Drop scones are often eaten with butter, honey, maple syrup, or jam.

Drop Scones (Scothist Pancakes).Photo byColorado Martini

Unfamiliar Ingredients?

In the recipe, the queen typed out the recipe in terms and ingredients that might be foreign to many Americans. I have added the term used in the United States in parentheses in the recipe below.

The original recipe from the Queen was sent to Einshower.Photo byNational Archives, Public Domain

Caster sugar is one of those ingredients unfamiliar to most Americans. Caster sugar is super finely ground granulated sugar. But is not as fine as confectioners’ sugar (powdered sugar). In the United States, you can find it under the name Baker’s Sugar. I often use Baker’s Sugar to sugar rim cocktail glasses for specialty drinks like lemon drops. Caster sugar is often seen in UK and Australian baking recipes for cookies, cakes, and shortbread.

Baker's sugar is Caster sugar in the USA.Photo byColorado Martini

According to Arm & Hammer, baking soda is pure sodium bicarbonate. The queen’s recipe calls for bicarbonate soda (aka bicarbonate of soda) which is an alternate term for the same ingredient as baking soda. If your recipe calls for bicarbonate of soda, it is simply referring to baking soda. Baking powder is a blended mixture containing baking soda, acidic salts, or dry acids, and often a starch such as cornstarch. Baking powder typically contains tartaric acid, more commonly known as cream of tartar. Quite a bit of cream of tartar is already called for in the Queen’s recipe. So, using baking power would add more cream of tartar where baking soda is the translated ingredient. It is these two ingredients that make the pancakes light and fluffy.

She also uses the term "teacup." A teacup in the recipe is ½ cup in an American kitchen. So 2 teacups equal 1 cup in American terms. 4 teacups is 2 cups in American terms.

Have you ever heard of Drop Pancakes? Kindly let us know in the comments.

The queen also advised in her letter to Eisenhower, “when there are fewer, I generally put in less flour and milk but use other ingredients as stated. I have also tried using golden syrup or treacle instead of only sugar, and that can be very good too.” Golden syrup and treacle are syrups made during the refining of sugar. The most common form of treacle is golden syrup. Golden syrup is a pale variety, and black treacle is a darker variety similar to molasses. Golden syrup treacle is a common sweetener and condiment in British cuisine.

Cooking Drop PancakesPhoto byColorado Martini

Queen’s Drop Scone Recipe

• 4 teacups flour (2 cups)
• 4 tablespoons caster sugar (baker’s sugar)
• 2 teacups milk (about 1 cup)
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons bi-carbonate soda (baking soda)
• 3 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 2 tablespoons melted butter

Queen’s Instructions

“Beat eggs, sugar, and about half the milk together, add flour, and mix well together, adding the remainder of milk as required, also bicarbonate and cream of tartar, fold in the melted butter.

The mixture needs a great deal of beating while making and shouldn’t stand about too long before cooking.

Serves 16."

My Cooking note:

• The queen left out how to cook the drop scones. You will find that this recipe is very similar to cooking American pancakes. As you cook, they will rise taller than an American pancake. But cook the same.
• As soon as you add the cream of tartar and baking soda, have the griddle ready to go. Do not store the batter. It will lose its fluffiness. For the same reason, anytime you cook with these two ingredients, always make them your last ingredient, just before you start to bake in the oven.
• Rub a frying pan with a little oil. Heat the pan over a medium heat. Drop a tablespoon of batter onto a hot frying pan.
• Flip when bubbles start to appear and pop on the surface. Cook until golden brown.

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Do you have any suggestions for ingredients? How do you make this recipe? Kindly let us know in the comments.

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References

• Arm and Hammer
• Wikipedia Cooking Weights and Measures
• Wikipedia: Treacle