Buttermilk biscuits are not so much a recipe, as they are a mythology. Secret knowledge passed down from generation to generation, mother to child, blogger to people like you.
This deceptively simple recipe can come out a million different ways with some very minor variations on the ingredients and amounts.
Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into thin slices, chilled in freezer
3/4 cup cold buttermilk
I tried to make biscuits with some leftover plain yogurt and they would have been perfect but I used too much baking soda. Therefore, nothing is critical in this recipe but there are limits and the cook’s hand will show.
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour , plus more for dusting the board (if you can get White Lily flour, your biscuits will be even better)
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon baking powder (use one without aluminum)
1 teaspoon kosher salt or 1 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter , very cold
1 cup buttermilk (approx)
Directions:
- Preheat your oven to 450°F.
- Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl, or in the bowl of a food processor.
- Cut the butter into chunks and cut into the flour until it resembles course meal.
- If using a food processor, just pulse a few times until this consistency is achieved.
- Add the buttermilk and mix JUST until combined.
- If it appears on the dry side, add a bit more buttermilk. It should be very wet.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured board.
- Gently, gently PAT (do NOT roll with a rolling pin) the dough out until it’s about 1/2″ thick. Fold the dough about 5 times, gently press the dough down to a 1 inch thick.
- Use a round cutter to cut into rounds.
- You can gently knead the scraps together and make a few more, but they will not be anywhere near as good as the first ones.
- Place the biscuits on a cookie sheet- if you like soft sides, put them touching each other.
- If you like”crusty” sides, put them about 1 inch apart- these will not rise as high as the biscuits put close together.
- Bake for about 10-12 minutes- the biscuits will be a beautiful light golden brown on top and bottom.
- Do not overbake.
- Note: The key to real biscuits is not in the ingredients, but in the handling of the dough.
- The dough must be handled as little as possible or you will have tough biscuits.
- I have found that a food processor produces superior biscuits, because the ingredients stay colder and there’s less chance of overmixing.
- You also must pat the dough out with your hands, lightly.
- Rolling with a rolling pin is a guaranteed way to overstimulate the gluten, resulting in a tougher biscuit.
- Note 2: You can make these biscuits, cut them, put them on cookie sheets and freeze them for up to a month.
- When you want fresh biscuits, simply place them frozen on the cookie sheet and bake at 450°F for about 20 minutes.
Read more: http://www.food.com/recipe/southern-buttermilk-biscuits-26110#ixzz1gX1dWGN3