In Search of the Best Scone in Edinburgh, Scotland, April 2021

Feasgar math mo charaidean!

What's better than a perfectly baked scone, clotted cream and freshly made jam? Not much I'd wager!

My love affair with scones started before I could walk. I'm not sure if anything in my lifetime will compare to the satisfaction of jam dribbling down my chin while I devoured Mrs Donelly's scones from my pram on the croft. Food can hardly be separated from our emotional connection to the people who make it, and I did LOVE Mrs Donelly. As an adult however, the best scone I ever had was made by a Cameron on the Achnacarry estate. My best friend and I had decided to tour some of Cameron country whilst I was eight months pregnant with my first baby. I was going to live in Italy for a few years so wanted to take my daughter (in utero) to Lochaber to visit my home there. We were privileged to have an elderly Cameron serve us fresh scones in the morning, directly from the oven, with fresh clotted cream and freshly prepared jam. It is a moment of culinary perfection I will remember for as long as I live... However, I made the faux pas of asking for the recipe, which can be highly guarded in highland communities; I will remember to NEVER make this mistake again! Her demeanor changed in an instant, like she had discovered I was a Campbell infiltrator trying to uncover the secrets of her magic for the next village bake-off. We left promptly!

I must return to the USA in August for a time, so I have been making a list of things I haven't been able to do due to lockdown restrictions in Scotland. Top of the list was "find the best scone in Scotland" So that's what I am going to do, and I will start in our capital, Edinburgh.

Commencing Monday April 13th, and continuing throughout the month of April, I will be judging local Edinburgh bakes based on ten categories and a 100 point scale that I have used my experience to construct. Revealing for you May 1st, the baker and the bakery that I feel warrants the appointed "Locheil's Best Scone in Edinburgh".

That way, when you visit, you can make it an essential stop, because you should never miss the opportunity to have good jam running down your chin!