Pork Loin and Cheddar Dill Scones

These recipes are provided courtesy of Karren, as part of my ongoing feasting series (see The Feasts of Christmas at Melville). Good goo, they're delicious.

Pork Loin

The pork loin is easy to prepare:

Rub entire piece of meat in olive oil, then rub lemon pepper into the fat portion.

Broil fat side up for 20 minutes at 450 F. (This sears the meat so that it does not get too dry.)

Adjust oven temperature to 325 F. Continue baking until internal temperature is 180 F (use meat thermometer to monitor).

Remove from oven and let it sit for about 15 minutes to finish cooking.

The sauces are by American Spoon and can be purchased at Williams-Sonoma.

Cheddar-Dill Scones

2 large eggs
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon buttermilk
1/3 cup minced fresh dill
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon pepper
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 3/4 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese (about 6 ounces)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly butter two 9-inch pie pans.

Beat eggs, buttermilk and minced fresh dill in medium bowl to blend. Combine flours, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, pepper and salt in large bowl. Add butter to flour mixture and cut in until mixture and grated cheddar cheese. Stir to mix well. (Dough will be stiff and crumbly.) Knead gentrly until dough just holds together.

Divide dough in half. Pat each half into prepared pans to 1-inch thickness. Using long knife or pizza wheel, score each round into 6 wedges. Bake until toothpick inserted into each center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Transfer pans to rack and cool scones slightly. Cut into wedges.