Sunday Morning Buttermilk Biscuits

It's Sunday morning, and in this house, that means biscuits. There's a million ways to make them and a million ways to serve them, but I'm going to share how they are properly made and eaten in Texas.

Keeping the ingredients simple is key to making an authentic Texas biscuit. Adding cheese, rosemary or any other embellishment is optional and entirely your choice, but it won't be what you've come here looking for. Food preparation in rural areas is by definition and by necessity a "use what you have" and "don't waste anything" situation.

One thing you will notice is that shortening is king in making breads and pastries in Texas. Butter is tasty, but in my childhood, it was considered just too darn expensive to use as in ingredient. It's used for flavor once the food is done. Shortening also yields a more tender, flaky result than butter. It's no contest. Save the butter for after.

Let's get mixing. You'll need:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shortening (yes, you may use butter-flavored)
1 cup buttermilk (low fat is fine)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

 

Shhhhhh!

Sift all dry ingredients into a bowl. Okay, here's my dirty little secret. When I was a kid, we had buttermilk handy all the time. My parents drank it. Yech. If, like me, you don't happen to have nasty spoiled milk in your fridge, keep a can of this stuff around. Substitute the buttermilk for 1/4 cup of powdered buttermilk and 1 cup water. Sift the powder in with the dry ingredients and don't add the water until the recipe calls for liquids.

Like so.

Cut in the shortening with a fork or pastry blender (for Pete's sake, put away the Cuisinart for once) until it's pretty integrated and the mixture looks mealy and pebbly.

Add the liquid at this point and mix with a fork. You'll get a sticky dough that you will want to turn out on to a well-floured board and knead lightly, maybe five or six times. This is a quick bread, be gentle.

Ahhhh. There we are. Take your grandmother's wooden rolling pin or your own two hands and roll or pat the dough out to 1/2 inch thickness. Some people prefer a flatter biscuit, so I rolled some out to 1/4 inch to compare. I prefer my biscuits high and proud. 

Cut out with a biscuit cutter or a round cookie cutter. Don't get cute and use a mason jar. Your dough will get stuck, and yes, we did have a biscuit cutter on the farm. We weren't heathens.

Cut close and don't twist. Place on a lightly greased baking sheet. Some people like to place them clustered so they're touching to get a softer-sided biscuit. I have no preference. Take the small scrap of dough that is left and gently shape into your last biscuit. Don't work it too hard or it will be tough.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, depending on the personality of your oven. The number of biscuits you get depends entirely on how thick or thin you roll them. But this should yield 6-9.


If you could only smell them.

Oh, my my. See how flaky and light? See that split right down the center? That happens naturally if you don't over knead.

Now add the butter. We used to pour syrup or milk gravy* over them, but I suppose you can add jam or whatever your preference is.

This is a soft, moist, flaky biscuit with a sturdy bottom meant to "sop up" whatever is poured on top.

Hey, y'all. Come on. Breakfast is ready.


*NOTE: Milk gravy, well, that's another day.