Singing Hinnies {Griddle Scones from Northern England}

Singing Hinnies are a traditional griddle cake from Northumberland in northern England. They are typically made with flour, butter, lard, salt, baking powder, milk, and dried currants.

How did Singing Hinnies get their name? 

Hinnie is supposed to be a term of endearment (like "honey") in the dialect of the region, and "singing" is supposed to represent the sound they make as they are cooking on the griddle.

Did I hear any singing when I made these? 

Not exactly. I cooked these over a very low flame to ensure that they are cooked through before they turned too brown, so they didn't have much of chance to sizzle or sing.

Singing Hinnies taste to me like a cross between scones and American biscuits. They are very easy to make and are delicious straight from the griddle and slathered in salted butter. I know this because I personally tested one to make sure they were good enough to serve (someone had to make the sacrifice).

The dough does not have any sugar, and, as I mentioned, the flavor reminds me of flaky biscuits, but a little softer. The dried fruit adds just the right amount of sweetness.

This recipe makes eight griddle cakes. Leftovers can easily be frozen and reheated.

Instead of the currants, I used dried blueberries, my new favorite dried fruit ever since I tried them in this Oatmeal Blueberry Bread and this Pain au Levain. Hopefully the Northumberland food police won't come after me for messing with their traditional Singing Hinnies. The blueberries were wonderful in these.

The Bread Baking Babes are making Singing Hinnies this month, from a recipe chosen by Elle of Feeding My Enthusiasms. She thoughtfully chose this recipe so we would not have to turn on our ovens in the July heat. Her rules were: "that they are scone-like and contain a fruit like currants or raisins and that they are cooked by griddling."

scones, hinnies

breakfast, scones, tea

British

Yield: 8 servings

Singing Hinnies Recipe

prep time: 10 minscook time: 18 minstotal time: 28 mins

ingredients

• 225 grams (8 ounces) unbleached all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 100 grams (4 ounces) cold butter (or half butter, half lard), cut into cubes
• 50 grams (2 ounces) dried currants (I used dried blueberries)
• 4 to 6 tablespoons milk or buttermilk

instructions

1. Add the flour, salt, and baking powder to the bowl of a food processor, and pulse to combine all of the ingredients. 
2. Sprinkle the butter cubes over the flour mixture, and pulse until the mixture is crumbly (alternatively, you can cut the butter into the flour with your fingers or a pastry cutter). 
3. Remove the mixture to a bowl and toss in the dried fruit. Add in the milk and mix by hand until you have a firm dough. 
4. Roll the dough out to about 1/2 inch wide, and cut with a 3 inch round biscuit cutter. You can also make 2 larger rounds and cut them into 4 wedges. 
5. Heat a griddle or large cast iron pan over very low heat. Lightly butter the griddle/pan, and cook the rounds on one side until browned. This took me about 8 minutes. Turn the scones over, and cook on the other side, again, over very low heat. To check to see that they are done, pick one of them up and tap it lightly - it should sound hollow. Each side should be browned as pictured. 
6. Serve with butter and/or jam. 

https://www.karenskitchenstories.com/2018/07/singing-hinnies-griddle-scones-from.html

Recipe adapted from Hello Eco Living

The rest of the Bread Baking Babes:

• Blog from OUR Kitchen – Elizabeth
• A Messy Kitchen – Kelly
• Judy’s Gross Eats – Judy
• Karen’s Kitchen Stories – Karen
• Bread Experience - Cathy
• Thyme for Cooking - Katie
• My Kitchen in Half Cups - Tanna
• Feeding My Enthusiasms - Elle