Preheat oven to 375F

Sift together dry ingredients

Add chilled butter pats to flour mixture and with a fork or pastry blender cut into flour until it resembles large crumbs then mix in raisins (be sure to pat soaked raisins gently with a cloth or paper towel before adding to remove any excess liquid - will help the dough not become too sticky)

In a separate bowl, beat eggs, cream/milk and tea with a whisk until well mixed.

Add egg mixture into flour a bit at a time, stirring with a wooden spoon or spatula. Dough will be sticky, but if it's too sticky add just a bit more flour to make it workable. If the dough is too dry, add just a touch more cream to get the right consistency.

Once the dough has come together, lightly flour working surface and dump dough out to knead gently. Just work out the cracks and smooth. Knead and turn....about 20 times or so until dough smooths out. Add more flour to working surface if the dough wants to stick...but just enough to knead without sticking. |

Make a piece of parchment paper that will just fit the pan you plan to bake your scones on. Put the parchment down on your working surface, lightly flour the paper, and put your dough on the paper. Using your fingers coax your dough into the semblance of a circle, then finish out with a floured rolling pin. You want uniform thickness and as close to a circle shape as you can get. Doesn't have to be perfectly round...it's the thickness that matters for even cooking. When finished, your dough circle should be around 9 inches round, and an inch thick or so. When you have it rolled out and behaving, move the paper to your baking sheet. Cut into 8 wedge shaped pieces. I use a pizza cutter to do this, but you can use whatever tool you prefer. Brush lightly with milk or melted butter and sprinkle coarse sugar on top (coarse sugar is optional)

Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown.