Preheat the oven to 220°C/425F/Gas Mark7. Line a baking tray or baking sheet with parchment paper or baking paper.
Grate the cheddar cheese, keeping aside approximately 40 grams to place on top of the scones before baking.
160 grams cheddar cheese
n a large mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, salt, and black pepper).
300 grams plain flour, 3 teaspoons baking powder, ¼ - ½ teaspoon of table salt, ½ teaspoon cracked black pepper
Either grate the butter or cut it into small blocks. Rub the butter into the flour until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs with small pea-sized pieces of butter in the flour. This can also be done using a pastry cutter.
60 grams butter
Add the grated cheese and chives to the flour mixture, and stir through until well-distributed.
⅓ cup finely sliced chives
Pour the milk into the flour mixture, using a fork, and stir to make a rough dough.
200 mL milk
Lightly flour a clean surface. Place the scone dough in the middle of the lightly floured surface and bring the dough together into a rectangle. Using a knife or bench scraper, cut the dough into thirds and fold the outer edges on the middle section. Press down using your hands or a rolling pin until the dough is about 3cm thick. Repeat the process twice more. This laminates the dough.
Either using a cookie cutter or knife, cut 6 to 8 large scones. If using a round cookie cutter, bring together the left-over dough, by gently kneading the dough together and forming a disk or square to cut out additional scones. Try to work with the dough as little as possible.
Place the scones onto the prepared baking sheet. Then brush the tops of the scones with milk using a pastry brush, and sprinkle the leftover cheddar cheese on the tops of the scones.
3 tablespoons milk
Bake the scones in a preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes. The scones would have risen and be a nice golden brown when they were done. Remove from the oven, and place the scone on a wire rack to cool down slightly before serving.