Eaten as sweet or savory, I love a good biscuit. Not the UK type of biscuit, which is a cookie, but the American type, which is a soft, fluffy quick bread with a buttery flavor and flaky, layered texture. These are leavened with baking powder and/or baking soda rather than yeast, so they are very quick to prepare.
Biscuit recipes are a dime a dozen and are nearly identical spread across the worldwide web and in cookbooks. What makes the difference between a good or a great one is the technique. From nearly frozen, grated butter to quick folds like laminated dough, as well as tips for soft or crispy edges, use the recipe below for guaranteed success and deliciousness every time.
I never knew exactly what the expression meant so I looked it up… “Butter my butt and call me a biscuit” is a Southern US expression of astonishment upon learning something unbelievable (usually positive). Example: “You got a job that pays you a million dollars a year? Well butter my butt and call me a biscuit!!” Or somesuch nonesense. 🙂 This is similar to other examples I found such as, “Paint me green and call me a cucumber.” Or even, “Slap me with bread and call me a sandwich!” I think we should all start saying things like this daily, don’t you?
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Ingredients
* 2 cups (250 grams) all-purpose flour
* 1 Tablespoon baking powder
* 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
* 1 Tablespoon regular granulated sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt or Kosher salt
* 8 Tablespoons (115 grams, or 1 stick) unsalted butter
* 3/4 cup (177 ml) whole milk
* OPTIONS: The above recipe is for basic biscuits. Consider mixing in a teaspoon of herbs, or a 1/3 cup of grated cheese. For buttermilk biscuits, substitute buttermilk for the whole milk but cut the baking powder in half and double the baking soda
Directions
- Pre-heat the oven with the rack in the center to 425F (220C)
- Measure and place the butter in the freezer. It doesn’t need to be frozen solid, just firm enough to be gratable
- Whisk together all the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl
- Using a box grater, grate the butter into the bowl with the flour mixture. Gently fluff the butter into the flour with a rubber spatula or spoon
- In batches, pour and fold the milk into the bowl with the flour mixture until it forms a shaggy dough
- Generously flour your working surface and turn the dough onto it. Sprinkle some flour on top of the dough and pat it out to a roughly 8-inch x 5-inch (20 cm x 12.5 cm) rectangle. Using floured hands or a bench scraper tool, fold each long-end of the dough toward the center so that it is now one-third of its original size. Turn the dough a quarter of a turn then gently re-flatten the dough to the 8 x 5 size. (Note: you may need to sprinkle a little more flour on the dough so that it doesn’t stick). Repeat the “fold, fold, flatten, turn” process two more times. This is known as laminating the dough, which helps create buttery layers when baked
- Cut the final 8 x 5-inch rectangle into 8 equal rectangles and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. CHOICES: Do you want soft edges on your biscuits? If so, place them very close to each other on the baking sheet. Do you want crispy edges on your biscuits? If so, place them a couple of inches apart on the baking sheet to allow the heat to surround them while baking. Eat these while still warm. That said, they freeze well once fully cooled. Simply place them in an airtight freezer bag and they’ll keep for several weeks. These are so good you’ll want to exclaim, “Fry me in butter and call me a catfish!”
Greg Nelson Cooks 