Ham Tea Biscuits With Blackberry Mustard Or Lemon Herb Butter Food

VIRGINIA COUNTRY HAM BISCUITS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet or round cake pan with parchment paper; set aside.
• In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar. Use a pastry cutter or two forks to cut the butter and shortening into the flour mixture until incorporated and the mixture resembles coarse meal. You will still see flakes of butter and shortening throughout, which is good!
• Gradually add the buttermilk, stirring with a wooden spoon until a fairly wet, sticky dough forms. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 1 minute, adding flour to the counter and your hands, as necessary, to prevent sticking. Roll or pat to ¾-inch thickness. Use a small biscuit cutter to cut out rounds (I recommend a 2-inch cutter or smaller for ham biscuits). Firmly press the cutter down into the dough, but do not twist. Twisting the biscuit cutter seals off the edges of the biscuits and they therefore will not rise as high.
• Arrange biscuits (with sides touching) on the parchment-lined baking sheet or round pan. Brush the tops of the biscuits with a little bit of the melted butter. Place the tray of biscuits in the refrigerator for about 5 minutes (if you have time) to chill before popping them in the oven.
• Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until tops are golden brown. Brush the tops with additional melted butter, transfer to wire rack to cool slightly, and assemble sandwiches.
• Once the biscuits are cool enough to handle, split each biscuit in half (don't slice the biscuits with a knife -- use the tines of a fork to poke holes around the edge and then gently pull apart).
• Spread a dollop of your preferred condiment (butter, mustard, etc.) on each side of the biscuit, add a couple of thin slices of country ham, and then close the sandwich and enjoy!

HAM TEA BISCUITS WITH BLACKBERRY MUSTARD OR LEMON HERB BUTTER

Steps:

• Bake the tea biscuits according to the directions on the package.
• Brown the ham in a hot skillet 1-2 minutes on each side. Cut into small pieces (about the size of the biscuits).
• Split the biscuits in half and fill with the hot ham.
• Place a small amount of either the Blackberry Mustard or Lemon-Herb Butter on top of the ham and replace the biscuit tops.
• Serve while still warm.
• Blackberry Mustard: Stir together the preserves and mustard. Yields about 2/3 cup.
• Lemon-Herb Butter: Combine all ingredients; mix well. Yields about 1/2 cup.

LEMON TEA BISCUITS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in milk and lemon juice just until moistened. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; knead 8-10 times. , Roll out to 1/2-in. thickness; cut with a floured 2-1/2-in. biscuit cutter. Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 450° until golden brown, 8-10 minutes., Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine lemon butter ingredients until blended. Serve with warm biscuits.

MUSTARD-HERB BUTTERMILK BISCUITS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda for 30 seconds. Toss butter into dry mixture to evenly coat, then press between your fingers to create flower-petal shapes and return to bowl. Stir in herbs.
• Whisk mustard into buttermilk, then slowly drizzle over flour-butter mixture (to evenly distribute) while stirring with a fork. Stop stirring when dough begins to form but mixture is still crumbly. Transfer to center of a parchment-lined baking sheet. Gather dough with your hands, pressing firmly to bind, and flatten it into a 6-by-10-inch rectangle. Lift parchment along a short end of dough and fold in half, forming a 6-by-5-inch rectangle. Turn dough 90 degrees; gently reflatten to 6 by 10 inches. Fold in half again and flatten slightly into a 6-inch square.
• To keep things easy, form the dough on the same tray it's baked on. Cut it into thirds in both directions with a large, sharp knife, to form 9 biscuits. Brush tops with buttermilk. Bake until puffed, golden brown on top, and hollow-sounding when tapped on bottom, 16 to 18 minutes. Transfer to a kitchen towel-lined basket; cover to keep warm. Serve with mustard and ham.

HAM-STUFFED BISCUITS WITH MUSTARD BUTTER

Steps:

• Spray cookie sheets with cooking spray. In 4-cup glass measuring cup, mix yeast and warm water; let stand 5 minutes. Stir in buttermilk.
• In large bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda; cut in shortening with pastry blender or fork until mixture looks like coarse meal. Add buttermilk mixture, stirring with fork just until dry ingredients are moistened.
• On well-floured surface, knead dough 4 to 5 times. Roll dough to 1/2-inch thickness; cut with 2-inch round cutter. Place on cookie sheets. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and cloth towel. Let rise in warm place (80°F to 85°F) 1 hour or until doubled in size.
• Heat oven to 425°F. Uncover biscuits. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden.
• In small bowl, stir butter, onion and mustard until blended. Split warm biscuits; spread cut sides with butter mixture. Fill biscuits with ham.