Instructions: Stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt into a large bowl. Cut the butter and cheese. Stir in the pepper. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and set a rack on the upper-middle level. Grease a heavy baking sheet or line it with parchment paper.

Gently stir enough buttermilk or yogurt into the flour mixture to make a soft, sticky dough. Gather the dough into a ball with your hands. On a well floured surface, roll or pat the dough into a 12 x 8-inch rectangle approximately 3/4 inch thick. Try not to handle the dough too much, and dont worry if it looks rough. Transfer to a cookie sheet. Cut into desired number of pieces. Separate the pieces, slightly. Brush each piece with a little milk.

Bake 15 to 20 minutes, or until they are brown on the bottom and very lightly brown on top. Dont overbake; break one open to test for doneness. Transfer to cooling racks to cool briefly and then serve as soon as possible.

Yield: 5 pieces

NOTES : REVIEW: With Buttermilk. Moist, soft scones. Made an excellent top crust for two pot pies and two scones. -Hannemans 2001-Mar-14

If you would like to email yourself the recipe for later use, or share the recipe with your friends or family, enter the email addresses below and this recipe will be emailed to you and others as well.