2-3tablespoonsbuttermilkI've used regular milk too
Lard for cooking
Instructions
Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, orange zest, nutmeg and salt in a medium bowl. Mix in the butter and lard with your fingertips until the mixture looks sandy. Stir in the currants. Beat the eggs and 2 tablespoons of the buttermilk together. Stir into dry ingredients to make a shaggy dough, adding more buttermilk if dough is dry. Gather dough into a flattened ball, wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour.
Roll the dough on a floured counter into a piece about 1/4" think. Cut into 2 to 3" rounds. You can also separate small balls and roll out into small 2 to 3" flat rounds by hand individually.
Heat a griddle or cast iron skillet over medium-low heat. Brush the pan with lard. Cook the cakes until a pale golden brown and cooked through, about 4 or 5 minutes on each side. Low, slow and steady wins the race with these. Move to a cooling rack, dust with sugar and cool.
Recipe Notes
Cooking time is for the entire batch using a medium sized cast iron skillet. A larger griddle means a shorter cooking time because you could do more at once.