As a small child, I can remember sitting at the kitchen table and watching my grandmother make homemade buttermilk biscuits every Sunday morning. I loved to sit there and listen to her sing, as she would lovingly roll out her dough.
I could hardly wait until I was old enough to help her and that day finally came when I was about 7 years old. Finally, I could get in on the baking action. Over the years, I learned to make the perfect buttermilk biscuits which to this day, brings back wonderful memories of my now deceased grandmother.
Here are some important tips that I learnt along the way.
Biscuits will be crisp on the outside and flaky in the center if you roll the dough thin and fold it over once before cutting them out. They'll also split open easily when you're ready to butter them. I think they taste best with pure butter and not margarine on them.
To reheat biscuits, put them in a well-dampened paper bag, twist it closed and put in a 300º oven for several minutes or until warm.
When it comes to baking, if you bake them in a pan with sides and put them close together, you will get soft-sided biscuits. If you bake them on a flat cookie sheet and space them apart, you will get crustier biscuits.
Homemade Buttermilk Biscuits
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup solid shortening
1 envelope dry yeast
1/4 cup warm tap water
1 cup buttermilk
In a glass measuring cup, dissolve yeast in warm water. In a large bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients and then cut-in the shortening. Stir in the buttermilk and yeast/water mixture. Refrigerate dough for 10-15 minutes. Roll dough out on a floured cloth or dough board and cut with a round biscuit cutter. Place dough on a greased cookie sheet. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned on the tops.
