Oat Currant Scones

This tasty regional variation of English buttermilk scones has a fascinating history which began when the Romans first imported oats to conquered Great Britain to feed their horses in the first century AD.

The healthy crop fared especially well in Scotland, thanks to its rainfall and longer daylight hours, and before too long those enslaved by the Romans began to cook the abundant grain in water or milk. This made a porridge— from the Old English word “pottage,” a thickened soup—tha