Monday, February 2, 2015

From the Kitchen // Our Biscuit Recipe

FTK Biscuits
Hi all! And happy February to you! I thought I'd set aside Peek in the Past this week and do something a little bit new and different! I hope you don't mind... I thought it high time we start sharing some of our family recipes here on the Blog with you all! Being the make-it-from-scratch enthusiasts we are. And what better recipe to start with than our basic biscuit one?

So ready? I know a bunch of you live in the South. That being said, this recipe is our Northern take on them. We tend to make them with flaky layers than y'all (couldn't help myself heehee) do, yours being more bread-like and thinner. So if you've been looking for a good tried and true light, fluffy, buttery biscuit how-to recipe, it's your lucky day!

// Step 1// Get your ingredients together. You will need:

6 Cups of flour
2 T. baking powder
2 T. sugar
2 t. salt
1.5 t. cream of tarter
1 Cup (2 sticks) butter softened
1/2 Cup shortening or lard (optional)
2 Cups of milk

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// Step 2 // 
After gathering all your items together, dump your 6 cups of flour in a mixing bowl. (We were doubling the recipe while taking these photos, so if the amounts of ingredients given don't match with the photos, this is why.)
 
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// Step 3 // Next you are going to add all your dry items to the flour. Go ahead and add; 2 T. baking powder, 2 T. sugar, 2 t. salt, and 1.5 t. of cream of tarter to your bowl.

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// Step 4 // Once done with that, go ahead and soften your butter (preferably on the stove rather than a microwave), but make sure you don't melt it, there is a difference. Softened means it is soft enough that you could push your finger through it easily, melted means that it turns to a liquid-y puddle. So add your 2 softened butter sticks.This is also the time you will add your 1/2 cup shortening or lard. Though we know how yummy these ingredients make biscuits taste they are not ideal for cooking healthily (or if you eat "kosher" like I do-- lard is from pigs) so we try not to use them all the time. :)

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// Step 5 // Now that our butter (and/or lard/shortening) have been added, we're going to cut in the butter, which basically means what it implys, cutting up/through the butter chunks and mixing them through the other ingredients. Also- this is a good time to preheat the oven to 450*.

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// Step 6 // Make a little 'gravy bowl' in your flour/butter mixture, and add your 2 cups of milk.

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// Step 7 // Go ahead and mix the milk to make a nice sticky, but smooth batter, making sure to only stir for as long as needed (to have the milk soak through all the dry). We use a granny fork (one of those big fork looking servers) for this step.

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// Step 8 // Okay! So now, dump out your mixture onto a floured surface and pat the dough into a rectangular shape.

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// Step 9 // Now fold that shape right in half (on top of it's self), then turn it as shown above. Fold it over and then smash/pat down repeating about 4-7 times. Remember, we are making the buttery layers now not a cakey lump.

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// Step 10 // Yay! Now smooth out your last fold by spreading it out with either a rolling pin or just by using your hands into an all around 1/2" thickness or so. Begin cutting out your buscuits with your cutter and placing them on a baking sheet or stone. (As you will see, I used stones rather than baking sheets as is our usual habit.)

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// Last Step // Okay, now all you have to do is make sure your oven is up to temp (450*) and pop them in the oven for 14 minutes, switching pans/stones from top to bottom if needed (depending on the amount you make).

FTK Biscuits the end
So break out the honey, butter, or your favorite jams & jellies! What do you like eating on biscuits?

Thanks for stopping by all! I hope you try out our recipe soon! Now that I've made myself hungry with typing this up and all, I'll be making myself a cup of tea or hot cocoa. We got in a snow storm last night, so it is fitting, no? 

What is your biscuit recipe like?
 Shortening or no?
Do you plan on giving this a go?

With love,
Cassie,
the Elder Sister

4 comments:

  1. Oh, these look delicious! Hm...I might have to start collecting some recipes for use when i have my own kitchen. I'm ashamed to say that my biscuit recipe right now consists of popping open a tube and pulling the dough apart. Oh, I am definitely a butter and honey person. Lots of butter and a little drizzle of honey. :)

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  2. These look amazing! There's just something about flakey golden biscuits that I just love. Once I get home from school, I'm definitely going to try this recipe. I've only had luck on drop biscuit recipes, but I'd really like to try baking a kind like this.

    As to what I like eating on biscuits? That would have to be sausage gravy....Yummy! Ok, now I'm hungry. :)

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  3. These look terrific! Thank you for sharing your recipe. : )

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  4. Oh, those look delicious! We have a very simple biscuit recipe that we usually follow, though somehow we haven't made it up recently. Now your making me hungry!

    Brigid
    the Middle Sister and Singer

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