Homemade scones cook perfectly in 15 minutes using just 3 ingredients

Scones are undoubtedly a firm favourite British dessert that are best enjoyed served with copious amounts of jam and cream.

They're the sweet treat that will be the star feature of any afternoon tea, but you don't have to take yourself out to a fancy cafe to enjoy them as they're actually really easy to make yourself at home. Baking can be a little daunting, especially if you've never made scones before, but it's possible to create deliciously light and fluffy scones using just three ingredients - and they'll be prefectly cooked and ready to eat in a mere 15 minutes.

To create your scones, baking experts at Taste.com.au say all you need is self-raising flour, thickened cream and some chilled lemonade.

Lemonade might sound like an odd addition to a scone recipe, but it's actually the secret to create that wonderfully light texture.

Lemonade and cream are used instead of butter and milk which feature in most traditional recipes. The cream is actually much easier to combine with the flour than cold butter, so it'll save your arm muscles, and it contributes a lovely richness to the overall flavour. Cream also helps to give the scones a softer and more moist texture, and will create a beautiful brown crust when baked.

As for the lemonade, this is what gives scones their lightness as the carbon dioxide in the drink acts as a leavening agent in a similar way to baking powder or yeast.

The carbonation in the lemonade forms bubbles which get trapped in the dough as it's mixed together, creating tiny air pockets which then expand as the scones bake, aerating the dough and making them rise, resulting in a light and fluffy texture.

Georgia Mahood, food expert at Taste.com.au, explains: "The carbonation in lemonade helps to aerate the dough to create light and fluffy scones that rise evenly.

"In a traditional scone, butter provides the scone with fat, which blocks gluten development and results in tender and flaky scones.

"But because butter is too much faff, we've swapped it to cream, which essentially does the exact same thing as the butter, but there's no need to get your hands dirty - just stir the cream into the flour!"

The experts recommend using 500g of self-raising flour, 250ml of chilled lemonade and 300ml of thick cream to make the scones. Simply place the flour in a large bowl and make a well in the centre using your fingers.

Pour the lemonade and the cream into the well and stir the mixture until you have a soft, sticky dough. Once your dough is made, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead until it's smooth, before cutting out your scones.

Place your cut out scones onto a greased baking tray and lightly brush the tops with some cream and then bake in the oven at 200C for around 15 minutes, until the scones have risen and turned golden brown.