Old-Fashioned Biscuits

Makes 12 biscuits.
Ingredients
- 2 cups soft winter-wheat flour, such as   White Lily flour
- 1 Tbs. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 12 Tbs. (1 1/2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter,   cut into small pieces
- 1/2 cup half-and-half
Directions
Preheat an oven to 500°F.Over a sheet of waxed paper, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt and sift again. Put the flour mixture in a large bowl and add the butter. Using a pastry blender or your fingertips, mix the flour and butter together until the mixture resembles small, coarse crumbs. Add the half-and-half and, using a fork, stir to form large, moist clumps.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. With floured hands, press the dough together to form a large ball. Roll out the dough to 1/2-inch thickness, dusting with more flour as needed. Using a 3-inch round cookie cutter, cut out the dough and transfer the rounds to an ungreased baking sheet; gather the scraps and repeat.
Bake, rotating the pan once halfway through baking, until the biscuits are golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes.