Dusk
Well here is the official reason I found…
'The acid in the buttermilk neutralizes the baking soda, making a scone dough rise. Plus, the reaction between the sour milk and the bicarbonate composition of the baking soda makes a better leavener than baking powder.
Another great thing about buttermilk is it can break down gluten strands in the dough, which creates more tender and fluffier scones.'
I use it because I saw a recipe and thought I would give it a try and it has never let me down and they do seem to have a lighter texture. Also, I always buy a tub of buttermilk which is easily available from Sainsbury’s and the like because I make soda bread (cheesey and fruit) at least once a fortnight
But I have also made scones without using buttermilk and they are in my opinion just as lush. For me, to get less dence scones the idea is more to work the dough as little as possible, bring together quickly and gently (not kneading) and pat into a round or square rather than roll with a rolling pin so as not to compress the dough too much, have a really good thickness (certainly no less than 1 and a half inches but I go for two) and straight cuts no twisting….works for me.
