Recipe Background
Homemade biscuits bring comfort with buttery aroma and flaky layers.
Warm, flaky clouds with a crisp golden edge—these homemade biscuits are all about comfort. As they bake, a buttery aroma fills the kitchen, promising a cozy treat that melts in your mouth. The memory of tapping your spoon against sweet, tangy buttermilk has just enough nostalgia to pull you back to childhood mornings. Sharing these biscuits with family or friends can create a shared moment of ‘mmm’ that speaks louder than any conversation.
Crafting the dough is a gentle dance. Each fold, known as laminating, creates those cherished flaky layers. Cold butter is crucial here—too warm, and you lose that divinely tender crumb. When handled with care, the dough responds with gratitude, rising in the oven to lofty heights.
Biting into one hot from the oven releases a puff of steam, a signal of their freshness. A swipe of melted butter across the top adds a sheen and extra indulgence. Serve them fresh and warm, and watch faces light up with the first taste. Whether with morning coffee or alongside dinner, these biscuits never feel out of place.
Ingredients
- 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon aluminum-free baking powder
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 7 tablespoons unsalted butter very cold
- 1 cup buttermilk cold
- 1 tablespoon butter optional, melted
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
- Prepare a baking tray using either parchment paper or a reusable silicone baking mat, if you have one.
- In a mixing bowl or stand mixer, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until all of the ingredients are thoroughly mixed.
- Next, cut the 7 tablespoons of cold butter into cubes. Try to keep the butter as cold as possible, as cold butter will impart a better texture and flavor to the dough and more flaky layers to the biscuits. If it starts to soften too much, pop it back into the fridge or freezer until it cools down again.
- Add the cold butter cubes into the flour mixture and mix with a pastry cutter until there are only small clumps, around the same size as peas.
- Create a small well in the center of the flour mixture, and pour the buttermilk into the well.
- Fold the buttermilk into the mixture using a spatula until just combined.
- Lightly press the dough to bring it together completely and then drop it onto a lightly floured flat surface.
- Roll out the dough into a large rectangle shape, about 10x9 inches.
- Next, fold the dough in half and repeat the process a few more times. This folding, called laminating the dough, helps layer the butter to ensure a rich, flaky taste throughout. The shape of the final rectangle should be around 9x4 inches and about 1 inch in thickness.
- Using a round cutter, punch about 8 rounds in the dough.
- Transfer the biscuit dough to your previously prepared baking tray, leaving enough room between them for the biscuits to expand in the oven.
- Use the dough scraps to roll and fold out more biscuits, placing them on the baking tray in the same way.
- Then, bake the biscuits in the oven until they are golden-brown, about 11-13 minutes.
- Brush the tops of the biscuits with melted butter for some added flavor.
- Serve warm.
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