Good Eats Southern Biscuits Food

SOUTHERN BISCUITS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Whisk together the 12 ounces flour, baking powder, baking soda and kosher salt in a large mixing bowl. Using your fingertips, rub the butter and shortening into the dry goods until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well in the middle of this mixture and pour in the buttermilk. Stir with a large spoon until the dough just comes together. Then knead in the bowl until all the flour has been taken up.
• Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, then start folding the dough over on itself, gently kneading for 30 seconds, or until the dough is soft and smooth. Press the dough into a 1-inch thick round. Using a 3-inch round cutter, cut out biscuits, being sure to push the cutter straight down through the dough to the work surface before twisting to "punch" out the biscuit. Make your cuts as close together as possible to limit waste.
• Place the biscuits on a half sheet pan so they just barely touch. Reroll any scraps and punch out as many biscuits as possible. Use your thumb to create a shallow dimple in the top center of each biscuit and bake until the biscuits are tall and light gold on top, 15 to 20 minutes. Turn the biscuits out into a kitchen towel-lined basket and cool slightly before serving.

GOOD EATS SOUTHERN BISCUITS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using your fingertips, rub butter and shortening into dry ingredients until mixture looks like crumbs. (The faster the better, you don't want the fats to melt.) Make a well in the center and pour in the chilled buttermilk. Stir just until the dough comes together. The dough will be very sticky.
• Turn dough onto floured surface, dust top with flour and gently fold dough over on itself 5 or 6 times. Press into a 1-inch thick round. Cut out biscuits with a 2-inch cutter, being sure to push straight down through the dough. Place biscuits on baking sheet so that they just touch. Reform scrap dough, working it as little as possible and continue cutting. (Biscuits from the second pass will not be quite as light as those from the first, but hey, that's life.)
• Bake until biscuits are tall and light gold on top, 15 to 20 minutes.
• If you do not want to use the buttermilk, use regular milk at the same volume, but omit the baking soda. This is the way that I make this recipe most of the time.

SOUTHERN BISCUITS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using your fingertips, rub butter and shortening into dry ingredients until mixture looks like crumbs. (The faster the better, you don't want the fats to melt.) Make a well in the center and pour in the chilled buttermilk. Stir just until the dough comes together. The dough will be very sticky.
• Turn dough onto floured surface, dust top with flour and gently fold dough over on itself 5 or 6 times. Press into a 1-inch thick round. Cut out biscuits with a 2-inch cutter, being sure to push straight down through the dough. Place biscuits on baking sheet so that they just touch. Reform scrap dough, working it as little as possible and continue cutting. (Biscuits from the second pass will not be quite as light as those from the first, but hey, that's life.)
• Bake until biscuits are tall and light gold on top, 15 to 20 minutes.

SOUTHERN BISCUITS

Steps:

• Mix flour and shortening in a mixing bowl.
• Using a pastry blender or a fork, cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
• Add buttermilk and stir.
• Start out with a little and add more as you need.
• The dough should be wet and gummy.
• THEN, sprinkle a little flour on top and work it in with your hands.
• Then flip the dough and do the same on the other side. Continue to do this until the dough isn't sticky on the outside, it doesn't take much.
• Then flour your hands and take a small amount of dough and roll it into a ball, then place on a greased cookie sheet or baking pan and flatten slightly into a biscuit shape. When you've finished with the dough, b ake the biscuits in a 400 degree oven for about 10 minutes, just until they start to brown, then take them out and preheat the broiler, and then stick the biscuits back in until they are brown.
• You can brush them with melted butter if you like. This may take some practice, but after a few times you will know what the consistency of the dough should feel like. I hope this works for you.