Melanies Southern Biscuits Food

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 HOMEMADE BISQUITS AND GRAVY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 500 degrees F.
• In a mixing bowl, cut the shortening into the Self-Rising Flour with a pastry blender or fork or your fingertips until it resembles coarse crumbs.
• Blend in buttermilk with fork just until the dough comes together. The dough will be sticky.
• Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Knead gently by folding the dough 8 to 10 times.
• Press into a circle that's 1 inch thick.
• Cut out biscuits with a 2-inch cutter, being sure to push straight down through the dough. Do not twist the cutter until the dough has been cut all the way through (twisting the cutter will cause the biscuits not to rise straight up.
• Place the biscuits on baking sheet so that they barely touch. Gather up the scrap dough, press it into a circle, working it as little as possible and continue cutting until all dough has been used.
• Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown.
• In a large heavy skillet (preferably cast iron), brown the sausage breaking it up with a spatula over medium high heat. Do not drain.
• Add the shortening, flour, salt and pepper.
• Cook stirring constantly until flour begins to brown.
• Slowly add milk while continuing to stir.
• Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook for one minute stirring occasionally. As the gravy cools it will thicken so if you want thinner gravy, add a little more milk.
• Cut the biscuits in half and pour the gravy over the biscuits.
• If you want just a plain milk gravy recipe, form the sausage into patties and brown. Remove them from the skillet to use to make sausage biscuits and continue the recipe the same way.
• I hope you enjoy this southern biscuits and gravy recipe!

MELANIE'S SOUTHERN BISCUITS

Steps:

• Mix the dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl.
• Blend in the 2 Tablespoons Crisco until the mixture is coarse and grainy, using a fork or pastry blender.
• With a fork, stir in the buttermilk.
• DO NOT OVERMIX.
• On a floured board pour dough out and knead 4-5 times.
• Pat the dough out to about 1/2-inch thick.
• Cut with biscuit cutter or a floured dipped glass into rounds or pizza cutter for squares.
• It is very important not to handle the dough too much as it will get tough.
• Place 1 Tablespoon Crisco in heavy black cast iron skillet; place in pre-heated 500º oven for 5-6 minutes.
• Crisco and skillet should be very hot.
• Remove skillet from oven and place the biscuits in the skillet, turning each once in the oil.
• Bake for 10 minutes or till light brown.

TRADITIONAL SOUTHERN BISCUITS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Mix well. Add 2 tablespoons of the cold butter and the cold shortening and work it into the dry ingredients, using your hands, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in the milk. The dough will be sticky.
• Dust your work surface with some flour. Turn the dough onto the floured surface. Gently fold each side toward the center. Pick up the dough and dust the work surface with additional flour. Return the dough to the floured surface and fold each side towards the center again. Turn the dough over and press it out to 1-inch thickness. Cut the biscuits, straight down, do not twist the cutter, with a 2 1/4-inch round cookie cutter. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and add to a 10-inch round cake pan. Place the biscuits in the pan, turning once (to coat both sides with butter), about 1/4-inch apart. Let the biscuits rest for 15 minutes before baking. Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Mix well. Add 2 tablespoons of the cold butter and the cold shortening and work it into the dry ingredients, using your hands, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in the milk. The dough will be sticky.
• Dust your work surface with some flour. Turn the dough onto the floured surface. Gently fold each side toward the center. Pick up the dough and dust the work surface with additional flour. Return the dough to the floured surface and fold each side towards the center again. Turn the dough over and press it out to 1-inch thickness. Cut the biscuits, straight down, do not twist the cutter, with a 2 1/4-inch round cookie cutter. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and add to a 10-inch round cake pan. Place the biscuits in the pan, turning once (to coat both sides with butter), about 1/4-inch apart. Let the biscuits rest for 15 minutes before baking. Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes.

MELANIE'S CHICKEN BISCUITS CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish with butter.
• Mix cooked chicken, sour cream, onion, cream of chicken soup, and milk in a large bowl; pour into the prepared baking dish.
• Bake in the preheated oven until hot, about 15 minutes.
• Stir 1/2 cup Cheddar cheese into the mixture and arrange unbaked biscuits over top of casserole. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup Cheddar cheese over biscuits.
• Return to oven and bake until biscuits are done in the middle and the chicken mixture is bubbling, 25 to 30 more minutes.