Buttermilk Biscuits (from Southern Living)
Ingredients
1/2 C cold butter
2 1/4 C self rising soft-wheat flour
1 1/4 C buttermilk
Self rising soft wheat flour
2 T melted butter
Directions
1. Cut butter with a sharp knife or pastry blender into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Sprinkle butter slices over flour in a large bowl. Toss butter with flour. Cut butter into flour with a pastry blender until crumbly and mixture resembles small peas. Cover and chill 10 minutes. Add buttermilk, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened.
2. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead 3 or 4 times, gradually adding additional flour as needed. With floured hands, press or pat dough into a 3/4-inch-thick rectangle (about 9 x 5 inches). Sprinkle top of dough with additional flour. Fold dough over onto itself in 3 sections, starting with 1 short end. (Fold dough rectangle as if folding a letter-size piece of paper.) Repeat entire process 2 more times, beginning with pressing into a 3/4-inch-thick dough rectangle (about 9 x 5 inches).
3. Press or pat dough to 1/2-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface; cut with a 2-inch round cutter, and place, side by side, on a parchment paper-lined or lightly greased jelly-roll pan. (Dough rounds should touch.)
4. Bake at 450° for 13 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven; brush with 2 Tbsp. melted butter.
The cast of characters, including that bottle of buttermilk that had no immediate plans.
Slice the butter into one tablespoon-thick slices and add to the flour. I used a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the flour until it was well mixed and in pea-shaped pieces. I really like how my camera flash is creating that aura in the bowl.
Pour in the buttermilk and mix well. This is going to be pretty wet and loose.
That's what I was talking about. I thought for sure this would never, ever become something I could roll out, but with enough flour, anything is possible. I used a pretty good amount of flour here.
After it became something I could roll out flat, I cut as many rounds as I could. Something interesting I learned recently is that when you're cutting biscuits, don't push down the cutter and twist. That effectively seals the edges of the biscuits and prevents them from rising as much. Instead, push down on the cutter and then pull up. I learned this after I make this batch of biscuits, so you'd better believe I will be making another batch soon with my new found knowledge.
Here we go! Biscuits on the parchment and ready to go into the oven.
Melted butter to brush on the biscuits. Prepare to have this ready when they come out of the oven.
And the final, piping hot product! Brush the melted butter over the tops, being sure to use up all of the butter. Does it look like the biscuits have enough butter? No, keep brushing, for it is a cardinal sin in the South to not have food swimming in butter. Trust me. Eat these with apple butter or make ham biscuits the day after Thanksgiving or Christmas, or just enjoy them with butter and/or honey. So good.
