Adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s Buttermilk Scones recipe in Baking with Julia.
Makes 12 scones
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon salt
1 ½ sticks (6 oz) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup buttermilk
Additional ¼ cup buttermilk (or milk or cream), for brushing scones before baking
¼ cup coarse sugar
Position oven racks to divide the oven into thirds, and preheat oven to 425.
In a medium bowl, stir the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together with a fork. Add the cold butter pieces, and, using your fingertips or a pastry blender, work the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal.
Add the buttermilk, and mix with a fork until the ingredients are just moistened – the dough will be soft with a rough look. Gather the dough into a ball, pressing it gently so that it holds together. Turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface, and knead it very briefly. Cut the dough in half.
Flatten dough each section of the dough into a ½ inch-thick circle about 7 inches across. Brush the top of the dough with buttermilk (or milk or cream), and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Cut the circle into 6 triangles, and place them on an ungreased baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining half of the dough, placing the other 6 scones on a second baking sheet.
Bake the scones until both the tops and bottoms are golden (12 – 20 minutes). Transfer scones to a rack to cool slightly. These are best served warm.
