Biscuit. I can’t really think of a more confusing food word. I mean really. Think of it. A biscuit. What comes to mind? Depends on where you’re from it seems.
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Biscuits are the perfect thing for when you want something homemade, fresh out of the oven, with very little effort involved at all. And the best part? You can add things to biscuit dough. Like what, you ask? Shredded cheese. Toasted seeds. Cracked black pepper. Fresh chopped herbs. Minced caramelized onions or shallots. Roasted garlic. Anything you have on hand you can add to a biscuit dough. Just make sure whatever it is, it’s on the dry side. Adding a softer cheese like, say, goat cheese, might make the batter more moist, so then you’d have to use less milk. Get it?
This weekend there was a chunk of Heritage Ham in the fridge. Also there happened to be the rest of some potatoes I made with caramelized onions, shallots, wine and two cheeses – Emmenthaler and Gruyere. These were leftover from Easter dinner, and sounded like the start of a yummy soup, no? Well, I agree. And nothing goes with a bowl of homemade soup better than a biscuit.
These babies are great with butter hot out of the oven, with butter and jam hot out of the oven or plain hot out of the oven. If you still have some the next morning, which I seriously doubt you will, I suggest splitting and toasting them, then slathering the tops with butter and jam. I just have to warn you. Don’t eat these biscuits in the car on your morning commute. There will be several crumbs.
To shape these biscuits, I follow the recipe just as it’s written, bringing the dough together very quickly and lightly, then pat out into a square like my grandma Dot. Using a floured butter knife, cut in half lengthwise, then cut into eight rectangles, dividing evenly from the middle.
Here is the trick part to get that ridged folded-over look: you fold the rectangle almost in half, like a little blanket. Then you pat just a bit to keep the dough folded. And that’s it. Nothing is brushed on top. There is no rolling, cutting, then rerolling. Just send these eight little guys into a very hot oven. As you hover they will puff, turn a little bit brown on top, and end up just this side of done. If you like a crunchier, browner biscuit then by all means leave them in the oven a minute or two more. You will love these. Remember, handle the dough as little as possible to make a light, tender biscuit. Don’t manhandle it! Make them soon and let me know what you think!
Mom’s Sunday Biscuits (makes eight)
(I got the recipe from my baker who worked at a cooking school in Seattle.)
2 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
dash kosher salt
1 tablespoon sugar
6 tablespoon shortening (I use Spectrum, which is organic and free of trans fats)
1 egg
about 2/3 cup milk (tonight I used 1/2 cup non fat, the rest shaken buttermilk)
Preheat the oven to 475 degrees. Lay a sheet of parchment paper on a cookie sheet or spray the sheet with cooking spray.
Sift the dry ingredients in a bowl. Cut in the shortening with two butter knives. Add the egg to the milk in a glass measuring cup and beat with a fork. Add to the dry ingredients and quickly bring together with a fork. The dough will be quite wet and sticky. Sprinkle flour on the counter or board you’re using for this project. Flour your hands, and scrape the dough from the bowl. Give the dough a very quick turn or two (meaning knead it, but very, very gently). Pat out into a square about 1/2 an inch thick. Cut in half lengthwise with a floured knife, then cut into eight rectangles. Gently fold each rectangle into a square and pat lightly. Place a few inches apart on the cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes or a bit longer for a crunchier, darker biscuit.
I have to tell you three were gone within minutes of taking the first batch out of the oven. You try to keep them intact until dinner. It’s not gonna happen.
Posted in Baking, comfort food Tagged: Baking, baking powder, biscuit, buttermilk, cookie cutter, cooking, drop, food, grandma 
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