This recipe is a gem I tweaked over the course of a year or so. I finally got it perfected.
This detailed recipe should be pretty easy to follow.
Before you ever start, make sure you have a stick of frozen butter in the freezer. I always keep a stick in there just for these. I keep this entire mix as cold as possible until the minute it hits that hot oven. Those frozen pieces of butter create nice little pockets if done right.
Preheat your oven with a cast iron skillet inside to 450°.
Next, whisk 2 cups of bread flour, 3 tspn baking powder, and 1 tspn baking soda in a bowl. Once that is mixed thoroughly, shred 1/2 stick of butter (4 tbsp) and work into the mixture using your fingers. Eventually you should end up with a gritty, lumpy mix.
Go ahead and dust your workspace lightly with flour before you go mixing this dough.
Now add 1 cup of cold buttermilk to the dry mix. Work it in with your fingers. It will be a sticky mess, but that’s okay.
*Tip: If you don’t have buttermilk, just stir a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar into a cup of milk and let it sit for about 10-15 minutes. The big reason people use buttermilk is because of the acid in it anyway. Acid in baking helps tenderize the gluten giving you a way softer and more full product. This is also why you might see recipes with mayo, sour cream, or yogurt added in. Plus who doesn’t love that tang?
Once everything is mixed evenly, dump it out onto your floured workspace. Fold the dough over itself multiple times, flipping the dough each time. Use the extra flour to clean your fingers, keep the dough from sticking, and make the dough more workable.
Don’t get frustrated, you got this!
Once the dough is good, flatten to about an inch. Using a small glass, or biscuit cutter, cut out your biscuits. Depending how big you want them, you will get 5-6 biscuits
Carefully place them in your preheated skillet, cover with a lid, and bake at 450° for 5 minutes. Remove the lid and bake uncovered at 400° for another 10 minutes, or until golden brown on top.
Pull them out, brush with some butter, and enjoy!
PJ’s scratch-made biscuits
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour all purpose or bread flour
- 3 tspn baking powder
- 1 tspn baking soda
- 4 tbsp butter (1/2 stick) grated or shredded
- 1 cup buttermilk
Instructions
- Preheat oven with a cast iron skillet inside to 450°.
- Whisk 2 cups of bread flour, 3 tspn baking powder, and 1 tspn baking soda in a bowl.
- Shred 1/2 stick of butter (4 tbsp) and work into the mixture using your fingers until you end up with a gritty, lumpy mix.
- Dust your workspace lightly with flour.
- Add 1 cup of cold buttermilk to the dry mix. Work it in with your fingers.
- Dump mix out onto your floured workspace. Fold the dough over itself multiple times, flipping the dough each time. Use the extra flour to clean your fingers, keep the dough from sticking, and make the dough more workable.
- Flatten dough to about an inch. Using a small glass, or biscuit cutter, cut out your biscuits.
- Place biscuits in a preheated skillet, cover with a lid and bake at 450° for 5 minutes.
- Remove lid, and bake uncovered at 400° for another 10 minutes, or until golden brown on top.
- Pull them out, brush with some butter, and enjoy!