PREHEAT the oven to 425˚F/210˚C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, or coat with cooking spray.

WHISK together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.

RUB the butter into the flour with your fingertips until mostly combined—it’s ok if a few pea-sized lumps remain.

STIR in 1 cup (230 ml.) of the buttermilk or sour milk with a spatula or wooden spoon until a thick dough starts to come together. Add just enough of the remaining liquid to have a soft but not sticky dough that picks up all the flour in the bowl. Stir in the raisins or dried fruit.

TURN OUT the scone dough onto a well-floured work surface, and pat flat. Fold the dough in half, pat flat again, then repeat this folding and patting process 3 more times (4 total). This helps distribute the raisins without overworking the dough.

PAT or roll the dough out to a disk or square that is 1 inch (3 cm.) thick. Cut the dough into 12 large or 16 small scones using a round cutter—or you can cut the dough into triangles or small squares. Place the scones on the prepared baking sheet, and brush with the egg, if desired.

Bake 10 to 12 minutes for small scones, 12 to 15 minutes for large scones, or until they are golden brown on both top and bottom. Serve hot from the oven or cold. The scones will keep well up to 1 day. After that, they can be split and toasted if they get too hard.

TO FREEZE SCONES: Place cut scones on a parchment-lined baking sheet, then place the baking sheet in the freezer until the scones are frozen solid. Transfer the frozen scones to a resealable plastic bag or container, and store 1 to 3 months in the freezer. To bake off the scones, simply remove them from the freezer and place them on the baking sheet just before preheating the oven to 400˚F/200˚C, then add about 5 to 10 minutes to the baking time.