Buttermilk Biscuits

There’s much to be said about surviving through many days of lockdown and it’s best done with Buttermilk Biscuits and freshly made chocolate chip cookies being the other. This is true because those two dishes were what we kept coming back to time and again throughout twenty twenty, regardless of season.

Carbs – they are a friend and comfort when things feel a little hectic. So whilst most days there would be overtime for work that you could rely on or restrictions to see people coming and going, making these two dishes was an easy constant. Have you made buttermilk biscuits before friends?

One of the nice things about these biscuits is literally how swiftly they come together. You can most definitely make these for breakfast or brunch on a lazy day or weekend with little effort you get to enjoy them and though gravy is one way to serve, honestly, these Southern beauties are also fantastic smeared with butter and peach jam in an ode to Edna Lewis herself, who will one day be a world wide household name like another famous American cook and baker Julia Child is now.

If you don’t know who Edna Lewis is, this article is a great place to start your homework of finding out who this pioneer in American home cooking – really soul food was.

History of Buttermilk Biscuits

Buttermilk biscuits are now synonymous with American cuisine, particularly the South, however, this quick bread became particularly popular due to how difficult and expensive yeast was in the early Nineteenth Century..

The biscuit also kept it’s shape and made wiping up gravy much easier than with bread, making this pairing one that is still incredibly popular (see notes for a recipe to find traditional Southern Sawmill Gravy to top your own biscuits with).

Soft and fluffy biscuits became a Southern dish thanks to the warmer climate that helped winter wheat grow in the summers which resulted in less protein making the flour perfect for cakes, cookies and quick breads like biscuits.

How to prepare Buttermilk Biscuits

• Stir the dries: All the dry ingredients are place in a bowl and stirred together.
• Cut the butter: Add the chilled butter and cut it into the flour until the mixture resembles course breadcrumbs.
• But-ter-milk: Add in the buttermilk and stir until the dough looks shaggy.
• Press: Press the dough into the edges of your bowl and upturn onto your work surface.
• Half and half: Cut the dough in half and layer and repeat.
• Press and shape: Press the dough firmly together and shape the edges into a square.
• Roll roll roll your dough: Roll out your dough until 1 1/2 inches thick.
• Cut out: Cut into equal shapes and place on your baking tray.
• Brush: Brush the tops of the biscuits with milk.
• Bake: Bake until golden.
• Serve: Serve smeared with butter and drizzled with honey whilst warm. Enjoy!

Tips for the best Buttermilk Biscuits

The great lard/butter debate: Traditional recipes for biscuits call for lard which is not as frequent an ingredient found in homes nowadays. Additionally, some bakers who have made traditional biscuits with either ingredient cannot tell a large difference in the final result which means that if you have lard on hand, simply sub the butter in this recipe in equal measure.

Keep your ingredients chilled: When preparing the butter, it’s best to measure out and cube into equal portions and return to the fridge until required, this helps in the final result of fluffy and layered biscuits.

Serving your buttermilk biscuits with gravy: If you want to make more traditional biscuits and gravy, Sawmill Gravy is a great and traditional place to start as this is often the way they are served in the South and this recipe is a great one to top your biscuits with.

Best served: Biscuits are best served the day they are made, but will keep covered for up to 3 days, however, will be better served toasted at this time.

More quick breads you’ll enjoy

Scones

Banana Bread

Bazlama – Turkish Flatbread

Buttermilk Biscuits
Adapted from Edna Lewis via New York Times
Makes 9 large biscuits

Ingredients:
340 grams / 3 cups sifted plain flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon sea salt
160 grams / 5.6 ounces butter, chilled and cubed
250 grams / 1 cup + 2 tablespoons buttermilk
1 tablespoon milk

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 230C/450F and greaseproof a baking tray.

Place the sifted flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a bowl and stir to combine.

Add in the cubed butter and begin cutting it into the flour with a pastry blender or knife until the pieces of butter are no larger than a pea and the mixture resembles course breadcrumbs.

Make a well in the center and add in the buttermilk.

Stir the buttermilk through the flour mixture until no dry patches remain and the dough looks shaggy.

Press the shaggy dough into the edges of your bowl to form the dough and upturn onto a work surface.

Press firmly together and shape into a rough square with your hands.

Cut the dough in half with a bench scraper and lay one half on top of the other.

Press down firmly and lightly flour the bench scraper, press the edges of the dough to shape into a square.

Lightly flour a rolling pin and roll out into a rectangle that is 1 1/2 inches thick.

Cut into 9 equal squares and place on your baking tray.

Brush the milk over the top of the biscuits.

Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes or until really golden on top and the edges.

Remove and allow to cool.

Serve warm, with butter, peach jam or drizzles of honey.

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