Moving through Britain’s Top 10 Bread choices is #9 The Potato Scone or Farl, which is an essential part of every full Scottish breakfast, is served most often with fried eggs, bacon, and Lorne sausage. These scones are traditionally fried in 6-inch circles (15 cm across) and then cut into quarters, or farls, but may also be baked on a sheet pan.

Also known as a tattie scone, or tatties in Scotland, this is a variant of the savory griddle scone my mom made with leftover mashed potatoes, butter, and flour as I grew up. We called them potato pancakes and we loved them alongside sunny side up eggs with toast.

“Even though tattie scones are most often served with fried eggs, porridge, bacon, sliced sausage, or the oat-studded black pudding, they can alternatively be enjoyed with jam and a cup of tea,” explains the TasteAtlas. These breakfast staples are usually served hot, but cold ones can be reheated either by toasting or frying.

Tattie Scones may also be baked in the oven and cut into squares (see note below)

Potato Scone or Farl

Serving Size:
6
Time:
50 minutes
Difficulty:
Easy

Ingredients

  • 1 scant cup / 200 g active sourdough starter
  • ⅓ cup / 100 ml water or milk
  • ½ scant cup /100 ml sour cream
  • 1⅓ cup / 200 g potatoes (boiled and grated)
  • 2eggs
  • 4¾ heaping cups / 600 g all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup / 150 g butter, lard, or vegetable oil
  • 2½ tsp / 15 g salt and pepper

Directions

  1. Mix the active sourdough starter with warm water and sour cream.
  2. Add the grated potatoes, eggs, and mix everything together
  3. Then add the flour, mix, and let stand for 20 minutes.
  4. Then add salt, pepper, and softened fat; thoroughly stir these into the mix.
  5. Leave the dough in a warm place to rise to double, preferably overnight.
  6. In the morning, on a floured board, fold the dough top-down, bottom-up, from right to left and left to right.
  7. Cover the dough and let rest for half an hour.
  8. Divide into 6 portions.
  9. Heat frying pan and spray with oil, lard, or butter.
  10. Place one portion into the heated pan, and push the dough into a 1 inch thick / 2 cm circle.
  11. Fry each side for 5–8 minutes in a medium-hot pan
  12. Cut into quarters and serve warm from the skillet

NOTE: This dough can also be baked on a parchment-covered cookie sheet by spreading the dough out and pressing it to an inch-thick pancake. Cut this into squares and let this rest let rise for 30-40 minutes. Then top with cold water or milk and sprinkle with seeds or grated cheese. Bake at 395°F / 200 ° C for about 25 minutes.