My Biscuit Background
My mother-in-law was a marvelous cook. She was also by necessity a frugal one. She counted it an economic victory if she could keep her grocery expense down to ten dollars a bag. While meat was a treat, many of her meals would include rolls or biscuits. I follow her recipe for fruitcake successfully, and have tried to replicate her heavenly version of Southern Ice Box Rolls (so far a fail) and her scrumptious biscuits (some modest successes along with some hockey pucks). Dorothy Remington Pollard used Crisco, which of course, having read the ingredient label, I prefer not to purchase. I keep lard in the fridge instead. My most recent online supplier is South Chicago Packing.
It Takes Two
I actually have two favorite recipes for biscuits, one for slathering butter and jam on at breakfast and another for berry shortcakes. Berries need a more mellow, gentler, and sweeter biscuit than the one that can support loads of melting butter, dollops of jam or a piece of pork.
this course, Brian enrolled in the professional pastry program at the now closed L’Academie de Cuisine in Gaithersburg, MD. But he also badgered cooks throughout his travels for their techniques and recipes. And his biscuit recipe is a beneficiary of his badgering and baking. I bake these on the sheet as recommended but I also bake them in a cake pan, as in my oven the cast iron skillet alternative gets them too brown for our liking. I slavishly follow his biscuit placement technique, which is to push them close to each other so that they rise up with one another to soaring heights.
Recipe
Rise and Shine Biscuits
A little extra work makes this biscuit my favorite for breakfast.nThey even freeze well!
Yield
18
Ingredients
- 5 1/4 cups (656gr) all purpose flour, sifted, plus more for dusting
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 tablespoon plus 3 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 cup (2 sticks or 227gr) unsalted butter, chilled and cubed plus 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) melted
- 1/2 cup (120ml) heavy cream
- 3 cups (710ml) buttermilk
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons of the salt and the sugar.nCut the chilled, cubed butter into the flour mixture with your fingers, two knives, or a pastry cutter (do not use a mixer) until broken down into pea size pieces.nCombine the heavy cream with the buttermilk in a measuring cup and add it to the dry mixture all at once.nUsing a spatula or a plastic scraper, fold in the buttermilk as quickly and as gently as possible.nFlour your hands and reach into the bowl and under the dough, flipping it around.nMix it up without being too tough on the dough.nThe dough will be very wet, but manageable.nTurn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and working lightly, use your hands to pat it into a roughly 9×12 inch rectangle, about 1 inch tall.nLightly sprinkle flour across the top of the dough and pat it with your hands until the flour has been absorbed (if you leave it atop the dough, your biscuits will have unwelcome flour pockets).nFlour the bottom of the dough and your work surface.nWith a scraper, fold the dough in half lengthwise and repeat flouring it and patting it out with your hands.nRepeat the process a total of four times.nThe dough will still be wet but much more manageable.nDon't add flour, but again pat the dough into a roughly 9×12 inch rectangle about 1 inch tall.nDip a 3 inch biscuit cutter into flour and cut as many biscuits as you can from the dough, pressing straight down with the cutter each time (don't twist the cutter or the biscuits won't rise as well).nReroll the scraps as needed.nUsing a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a cast iron skillet, place the biscuits so they are touching one another.nRefrigerate the biscuit dough for at least 1 hour and up to 3 hours.nPreheat the oven to 400F (205C)nLine a portion of your workspace with newspaper and set a raised wire rack on top.nRemove the biscuits from the refrigerator and bake for 14 minutes, turning the pan halfway through, until the tops are a light golden brown.nMeanwhile, in a small bowl, mix the 4 tablespoons of melted butter with the remaining teaspoon of salt.nImmediately transfer the biscuits to the wire rack and brush their tops with the salted melted butter.nServe warm slathered with butter and/or jam.nThe biscuits will keep in a tightly sealed plastic bag at room temperature or in the freezer for up to six months.
A Sweeter, Gentler Biscuit
rethink the muffin scenario. I make these in a food processor, but you can do it by hand. Although there is no almond flavoring, you could swear it exists when you bite into these. And they also have a bit of a shortbread texture too. These are best when used the day they are made. I don’t think they freeze well, so I never make more than six at a time. You can gently and quickly pat together the trimmings, turn the “scrap biscuit” over to bake with the other or simply cut the dough into sections, like brownies and then you don’t have “scraps”. In this case, allow the biscuits to cool thoroughly before splitting them for shortcake.
Recipe
Strawberry Shortcake Biscuits
Aromatic, almost like a soft shortbread, these are my favorite shortcake biscuits
Yield
6
Ingredients
- 1 2/3 cup (208gr)all purpose flour
- 3 1/2 tablespoons sugar – I use more – 50grams
- 1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
- 6 tablespoons (85gr) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
- 2/3 cup(158ml) + 1 tablespoon heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon (or more) turbinado or raw sugar
Instructions
- Either in a food processor bowl, or an electric mixer bowl outfitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.nPulse briefly or mix to combine.nAd the butter and pulse or mix until the flour resembles coarse meal.nAdd the 2/3 cup of cream and pulse or mix together JUST until the dough barely comes toget her – you may have to scrape the sides of the bowl.nTurn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and gently pat it into a 6 inch square, 1 inch thick, incorporating any stray crumbs.nWrap in cling film and refrigerate for one hour.nPreheat oven to 350F(175C) and cut the dough into 6 biscuits (she gets 9 small ones).nBrush the tops of the biscuits with the remaining tablespoon of cream and sprinkle the tops with the sugar.nPlace the biscuits on a parchment lined baking sheet- she places them 2 inches apart, I place mine close together in a round cake pan.nBake until the biscuits are golden brown, 20-25 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.
Do you use a ‘southern’ all purpose flour, like White Lily or Southern Biscuit? The protein content is much lower than King Arthur AP, and lower than even beached Gold Medal.
Hello Deb,
I used to use White Lily but I still couldn’t make a biscuit like my mother in law, and she used all purpose flour. So I gave up. I now use a good quality organic flour. I have read that since White Lily was bought by another corporate, the flour has changed, but I have not used it. I have also used a 00 Italian white flour and that has worked well too. – same one I use for making egg pasta.
Nancy
Biscuits are a struggle for me. They crumble, they don’t rise. All kinds of reasons. But lard isn’t an option either (no pork) so I’ve always used Crisco. I tried some organic shortening from Mom’s but couldn’t get some cookies to come together the right way that I’ve always used Crisco for so that wasn’t a good option either. I think my technique is just off and recipes just never seem to help with that. I need someone standing next to me smacking my hand.
Hello Jennifer
Never tamper with success! If Crisco works, I would stick with it. I clearly was very heavy handed and i also patted or rolled out the dough too thinly. I must admit, that I had better luck with the Bakewell Cream baking powder, but that may not have been only one of the issues.
Nancy