Biscuits from Scratch

There are few foods quite as comforting or satisfying as a good biscuit. While you can easily buy a tube of biscuit batter from the grocery store, making biscuits from scratch is easy.

The Story

Around two years ago I was up most of the night to nurse my newborn daughter. Day and night melded together in an endless string of exhaustion that is very familiar to any mother reading this.

My daughter wasn’t the best at nursing right away so we would be up for at least an hour working on getting her fed and back to sleep.

To keep myself awake during this time I watched plenty of Netflix and, from time to time, PBS. One morning around 4:00 a.m. I caught a documentary film called Farmsteaders. It follows a family of dairy farmers/cheesemakers in their day to day life on the farm and running their business.

It is a beautiful documentary. After finishing it I looked up their farm to see where it was, hoping someday I might be traveling close enough to buy their cheese (they live in Ohio).

Their website had a mailing address and I, a sleep deprived crazy person, decided to send a note to the main cheesemaker/mom/wife, Celeste. I thanked her for sharing their story, told them about our little farm, complimented the biscuits she makes in the documentary, and sent along some of my favorite flower seeds.

I mailed the letter and forgot all about it. Then a few weeks later my husband, sorting through the mail asks, “Who do you know in Ohio?”

I was surprised and touched that Celeste had not only written back, but included her biscuit recipe.

The documentary is well worth watching and the recipe is well worth making.

Ingredients for Biscuits from Scratch

• 1/2 Cup Frozen Butter
• 2 1/4 Cup Flour
• 1 Tbsp Baking Powder
• Salt
• 1 Cup Milk or Buttermilk

Buttermilk vs. Milk in Biscuits

Buttermilk will give the biscuits a bit more tang and also help them rise more effectively. If you don’t have buttermilk but you have plain milk and vinegar handy you can easily make your own. Just add one tablespoon vinegar to one cup of milk and stir it in. Allow it to sit for about ten minutes.

Or if plain milk is all you have they’ll still turn out tasty.

Supplies to make Homemade Biscuits

• Mixing Bowl
• Box Grater
• Wood Stir Spoon
• Rolling Pin

How to Make Biscuits from Scratch

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Start by taking the frozen butter and grating it into a wide bowl.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the the flour, salt, and baking powder.

Sprinkle this mixture over the top of the butter. Using the wood spoon, toss the grated butter until it is coated in the flour mixture.

Next, make a well in the center of the floured butter and pour in the milk or buttermilk.

Fold the dry ingredients into the liquid, mixing until it is just combined.

Scoop out the dough and roll it into a rectangle-ish shape on a floured surface.

Once in a rectangular shape, imagine the rectangle is split into three sections. Fold the left side over the middle, then fold the right side over the middle so you have a rectangle that is 1/3 the size of what you started with.

Roll it out again, and repeat the process. Do this once more for a total of three times. Make sure to keep your pin and counter well floured.

Finally, cut the biscuits out using a cookie cutter or canning jar lid. Press straight down, do not twist! Twisting seals the edge and makes it harder for them to puff up and rise.

Place the biscuits on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for about twenty minutes. They can also be baked in a greased cast iron skillet.

If you place the biscuits on the sheet so they touch each other they will help each other to rise into a bigger, flakier biscuit.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Allow to cool on a wire rack.

How long do biscuits keep?

Personally I think biscuits are the best when they are fresh and their quality goes downhill quickly once you try to store them.

If you do have leftovers, I recommend letting them cool completely and storing them in ziploc bags in the freezer.

Adding Herbs to Biscuits

You can certainly add more flavor to your biscuits by including fresh or dried herbs. 1-2 Tbsp of fresh rosemary, sage, or parsley would be delicious. If using a dried herbs I’d recommend 1-2 tsp depending on how potent the herb is.

What to serve with biscuits?

Biscuits can easily be a meal all by themselves. Here are some ideas for how to use them.

• Served with chicken soup
• Fresh butter and dandelion jelly
• Covered with whipped cream and strawberries
• Butter and raw honey
• Butter. Just lots and lots of butter on a warm cut biscuit. Oh my.
• Sausage Gravy
• As a sandwich with bacon, eggs, and cheese
• Clotted Cream – This is more of a UK thing but if you have extra cream it is WELL worth making.

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Biscuits from Scratch

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Equipment

• Mixing Bowl
• Box Grater
• Wood Stir Spoon
• Rolling Pin

Ingredients

  

• 1/2 Cup Frozen Butter
• 2 1/4 Cup Flour
• 1 Tbsp Baking Powder
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 Cup Milk or Buttermilk

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Start by taking the frozen butter and grating it into a wide bowl.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the the flour, salt, and baking powder.
• Sprinkle this mixture over the top of the butter. Using the wood spoon, toss the grated butter until it is coated in the flour mixture.
• Next, make a well in the center of the floured butter and pour in the milk or buttermilk.
• Fold the dry ingredients into the liquid, mixing until it is just combined.
• Scoop out the dough and roll it into a rectangle-ish shape on a floured surface.
• Once in a rectangular shape, imagine the rectangle is split into three sections. Fold the left side over the middle, then fold the right side over the middle so you have a rectangle that is 1/3 the size of what you started with.
• Roll it out again, and repeat the process. Do this once more for a total of three times. Make sure to keep your pin and counter well floured.
• Finally, cut the biscuits out using a cookie cutter or canning jar lid. Press straight down, do not twist!
• Place the biscuits on a parchment lined baking sheet so the edges all lightly touch and bake for about twenty minutes until golden brown.
• Cool on a wire rack.