Country Biscuits Recipes

COUNTRY BISCUITS

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and place rack in center of oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large mixing bowl, sift or whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs (use pastry blender, two knives, or fingertips). Add the milk and slightly beaten egg and stir until just combined. (The texture should be sticky, moist and lumpy.) Place mixture on a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough gently until it comes together and is a smooth dough. Roll out dough to about a 1/2 inch thickness. Cut out biscuits with a lightly floured round cookie cutter. Place on prepared baking sheet and brush the tops with the beaten egg and milk mixture and bake for about 10 - 15 minutes or until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center of the biscuit comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool.

FLUFFY SOUTHERN BUTTERMILK BISCUITS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Sift together the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
• Cube the butter or shortening then cut it into the dry ingredients using a pastry blender or pulse in a food processor. Cut until it becomes crumbly and resembles peas.
• Mix in 1 cup cold buttermilk, just until the crumbs are thoroughly moistened. Add up to 1/4 cup additional buttermilk, if needed. The dough shouldn't be overly wet but, slightly sticky.
• Roll or pat out on a lightly floured surface about 3/4-1 inch thick. Cut into rounds using a 2-inch cookie cutter dipped in flour. Do not twist the dough with the cutter. Cut the dough, then lift the cookie cutter up. Re-roll any scraps and repeat.
• Place biscuits 2 inches apart on the baking sheet. Brush the tops with melted butter or heavy cream.
• Bake biscuits at 450°F for 13-15 minutes until lightly golden and puffed.
• Brush with melted butter after removing from the oven. Serve immediately.

BISCUITS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 °F.
• In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together. Cut butter into mixture until it begins to look like cornmeal.
• Make a well with flour mixture and slowly add milk into the middle. Knead dough with your fingers and add milk when necessary. Roll out dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll out to desired thickness. Cut with small biscuit cutter.
• Butter bottom of skillet and place biscuits in pan. Bake for 12 minutes or until golden brown.

COUNTRY BISCUITS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. Gently cut in butter then add yogurt. Mix with hands without overworking dough. Dough should be slightly sticky. Pour onto lightly floured counter and roll to 1-inch thickness. Cut out 2-inch rounds and place on unlined non-stick baking tray. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Brush tops with heavy cream and bake 10 to 12 minutes.

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.

COUNTRY BISCUITS

Steps:

• 1. Add flour, baking powder, and salt to a bowl.
• 2. With a pastry blender or fork (mom uses her fingers), mix in shortening.
• 3. Working quickly with a fork, mix in milk.
• 4. The dough should not be sticky. If it is sticky incorporate a little more flour.
• 5. Lay dough on a lightly floured surface and knead about 15 to 20 times. Roll to 3/4 inch thick and cut with a biscuit cutter or a jar opening dipped in flour.
• 6. Mom said she adds a little melted shortening in the baking pan and lays the biscuit in the oil, then flips it over to lay on the other side in the oil. She likes to place the biscuits close together in the pan. She says it will make softer biscuits and if you want crusty biscuits do not add oil to the pan and place them apart from each other. I was surprised to see her prick each biscuit with a fork. She said it helps the steam escape and will make the biscuit flaky.
• 7. Bake in 450-degree oven 15 minutes until or until lightly browned on top.

REAL, "DOWN HOME" SOUTHERN COUNTRY BISCUITS AND GRAVY:

Steps:

• FOR THE BISCUITS:.
• Wash Hands.
• Sift flour into a medium or large mixing bowl. Shake the bowl side-to-side lightly to even out the flour.
• Beat the eggs slightly to blend yolks and whites.
• Combine oil and egg with half the buttermilk and pour into the flour. Mix thoroughly with a large spoon or fork, or use your hand to squeeze the dough through your fingers, until the dough is well blended.
• Add the remaining buttermilk, a little at a time, blending into the dough after each addition, until the right consistency is achieved.
• The dough should be just firm enough to form into balls but light enough to slump slightly when placed onto the baking sheet. Experience will enable you to tell from the feel of the dough. If dough is too light, add flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing thoroughly each time, until the dough is the right consistency. If dough is too dense (stiff), add buttermilk, 1 tablespoon at a time, blending well into the dough after each addition, until the dough is the right consistency.
• Clean the dough off your hands, then rinse and dry them. Flour the palms and fingers of both hands to prevent the dough from sticking to them.
• Pinch off a handful of dough roughly 2/3 the size you want your biscuits to be and roll it between your hands in a circular motion, using just enough pressure to form a ball. Shaping the dough will flour the outside of the biscuit.
• Place the ball of dough onto an ungreased baking sheet and press down with fingers just enough to flatten the dough slightly and form the biscuit shape. Repeat, flouring hands after each dough ball is formed and placing biscuits about 1/2-inch to 3/4-inch apart, until all the dough is used up.
• Cathead Biscuits.
• For cathead biscuits, use about half again as much dough for each biscuit as you would use for regular size biscuits, leaving them thicker than for regular biscuits. Place cat-head biscuits about 3/4-inch apart on the baking sheet.
• Place the pan of biscuits as close to the vertical center of the preheated 350-degree oven as your rack guides will allow and bake for 20-30 minutes. Check biscuits after 20 minutes and periodically thereafter until done. Biscuits will be done when the tops are golden brown. Cathead biscuits will take longer to bake. The lower edges of the biscuits may be slightly lighter than the center.
• Remove biscuits from oven when done. Serve hot.
• Makes 8 to 10 biscuits, or 4 to 5 cathead biscuits.
• FOR THE GRAVY.
• Mix evaporated milk and water and set aside within reach.
• In a large, cast iron skillet, combine oil (or meat fat), flour, salt, and pepper.
• Over medium-high heat, stir in flour until blended with oil. With a fork, tines flat against the skillet's bottom, stir the mixture constantly, using a back-and-forth motion, until it begins to brown very slightly. Do not allow the flour to scorch or burn.
• When flour has browned slightly, pour in milk, all at once, stirring constantly.
• Continue to stir, scraping the bottom of the skillet as you stir, in the manner previously described, to keep flour and milk from scorching and to keep lumps from forming. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
• As soon as the mixture boils, marked by a sudden foaming up of the mixture, reduce heat to medium so that mixture simmers but does not boil over. Briefly lift pan from heat if necessary to keep contents from boiling over. Don't forget to use a pot holder to avoid being burned.
• Continue to stir vigorously, as described above, until gravy achieves desired thickness, usually within a minute or two after boiling. When the gravy is the desired thickness, immediately remove from heat. Serve from the skillet or pour into a serving bowl.
• Add additional salt and pepper if needed.
• Serves 4.