When Ruth Trevella started cooking 30 years ago "it was all about muffins". Now Kiwis are all about cheese scones.
At Christchurch Library's Foundation Café, which Ruth co-owns, they sometimes sell 150 of their famous scones on a busy day.
Photo: Pravda Cafe, Wellington
Ruth thinks sugar avoidance might be part of New Zealand's insatiable hunger for cheese scones.
"It's definitely a comfort food… we're all afraid of eating too much sugar these days so a cheese scone is something we feel like we are allowed to have with a coffee, it's not a big deal."
Foundation Cafe's signature scones – which sell for $6 – are made with buttermilk instead of milk and steam-baked, Ruth says.
"The sensation of our scones is in the crispiness of the outside and the fluffiness and the cheesiness of the inside. We achieve this by using a lot of parmesan and tasty cheddar," she tells Charlotte Ryan.
Foundation Cafe staff are happy to jazz up their cheese scones, too - some people like to add jalapenos, bacon and extra cheese.
Listen - How to make a fabulous cheese scone
