Oregon Fruit presents The Queen of Tarts

Makes 15 large scones or 40 small ones

Ingredients

3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter

1 cup grated cheddar cheese (4 ounces)

1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper, or to taste

¾ cup buttermilk

Instructions

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt

into a large bowl. Cut in the butter and cheese-a food processor is a great tool for this. Pulse until it looks like cottage cheese. Stir in the pepper.

Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400°F and set a rack on the upper-middle level.

Grease a heavy baking sheet or line it with parchment paper.

Gently stir enough buttermilk 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 an 12-x-8-inch

rectangle approximately 3/4 inch thick. Try not to handle the dough

too much, and don’t worry if it looks rough.

Using a large spatula or a couple of spatulas, transfer the dough to

the baking sheet. Use a dough scraper or knife to cut the dough into

40 squares, each 1 1/2 inches. Separate the squares slightly on the

baking sheet.

Bake the scones for 15 to 20 minutes, or until they are brown on the

bottom and very lightly brown on top. Don’t overbake; break one open

to test for doneness. Transfer to cooling racks to cool briefly and

then serve as soon as possible.

Adapted from King Arthur Flour.