Buttermilk biscuits

Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and kosher salt together until homogeneous.

Grate two sticks of frozen butter on the larger holes of a cheese grater, giving thin long strands for layering.

Mix the butter through the flour so all the pieces are coated, add one and a quarter cups of buttermilk and stir just enough to hydrate the flour; it will not come together into a ball.

Turn out onto a generously floured worktop, coax into a rectangle and roll out. Do not add liquid of any kind even though the dough looks too dry.

Roll to about a 16 by nine inch rectangle and fold in thirds like a letter.

Roll and fold in thirds again, five times in total.

Place the dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet, cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate 30 minutes to firm up.

Turn out onto a re-floured surface, roll to a roughly nine inch square, and trim the edges with a very sharp floured knife using clean downward cuts, no sawing.

Cut into nine square biscuits, place back on the parchment-lined baking sheet and brush with butter.

Bake at 400F for 20 to 25 minutes.

Cool on a wire rack about 10 minutes before eating.