Improve my Buttermilk Biscuits

[DeanRIowa]

Below is the recipe I have put together combining other recipes for Buttermilk Biscuits. I would like to get a little more lift in the biscuits. Flavor is pretty good, but always wiling to improve.

Do you have any try and tried recipes to improve lift and/or flavor?


My combined recipe I use:

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup cold butter, frozen shredded
• 2 1/4 cups self-rising flour
• 1 cup buttermilk, add more if needed.
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp Baking Powder
• 2 tb Melted butter for basting

Directions

• Mix frozen shredded butter and Flour
• Mix in buttermilk
• Make into a ball
• Roll out on well floured counter to 3/4" thick
• Cut to 3 1/2" biscuits shape
• Bake on greased parchment paper at 425 for 12 minutes or till golden
• Baste with butter.

A few things I do is, use cold ingredients, quickly prepare and try to get into oven while still cold, and try not to turn the biscuit cutter as someone said that could stop lift.

Looking forward to your versions.

thanks,
Dean

[magnusfide]

Tom Trostel wrote:
Southern Living suggests that you stir the wet with the dry 15 times with a spoon. Also, that when you roll out the dough that you flatten and fold 5 times to create layers. Hope this helps a little.

This would be good advice for yeast rolls but would make a traditional biscuit tough and chewy.

[Old-Biscuit]

DeanRIowa wrote:

magnusfide wrote:

Old-Biscuit wrote:
Add 1/4 teaspoon Baking Soda

Double ditto. Also don't overwork the dough either. Use a minimum amount of rolling.

Thanks for the advice. I added the Baking Powder hoping it would increase the lift, I guess I should have done Baking Soda.

Note: I try to only stir the ingredients to mix , than I flour surface, and roll dough a few times to thickness and cut. I try to minimally touch the dough.

thanks,
Dean

Use BOTH
Baking Powder AND Baking Soda

[DeanRIowa]

Tom Trostel wrote:
Southern Living suggests that you stir the wet with the dry 15 times with a spoon. Also, that when you roll out the dough that you flatten and fold 5 times to create layers. Hope this helps a little.

I'll try that as well, I am always trying to learn how to improve a recipe, I will add it to my list.

thank you,
Dean

[Tom_Trostel]

Southern Living suggests that you stir the wet with the dry 15 times with a spoon. Also, that when you roll out the dough that you flatten and fold 5 times to create layers. Hope this helps a little.

[DeanRIowa]

magnusfide wrote:

Old-Biscuit wrote:
Add 1/4 teaspoon Baking Soda

Double ditto. Also don't overwork the dough either. Use a minimum amount of rolling.

Thanks for the advice. I added the Baking Powder hoping it would increase the lift, I guess I should have done Baking Soda.

Note: I try to only stir the ingredients to mix , than I flour surface, and roll dough a few times to thickness and cut. I try to minimally touch the dough.

thanks,
Dean

[magnusfide]

Old-Biscuit wrote:
Add 1/4 teaspoon Baking Soda

Double ditto. Also don't overwork the dough either. Use a minimum amount of rolling.

[NYCgrrl]

An article (w/ recipes) that will make you giggle and feel better. My Nana, who's roots were in Northern VA, made the BEST bread, I know. Her sister, Aunt Estelle, claimed her's was better but she used too much sugar even though as a polite child I never said so and just let my mouth do the judging;).
Still searching for the right version of potato Parker House rolls that will make my family's eyes roll back in their heads; cause my BigSis to lock herself in the bathroom with a pan of rolls and eat them so she didn't have to share and generally replace the family story about the first time I hosted Thanksgiving dinner and didn't start defrosting the turkey until 3:00 PM in the afternoon. BUT. I digress. I'm the only member of my family that wrote down Nana's roll recipe but errrr uhm lost it in some move to some place. My mother and sisters still castigate me over that.

Her buttermilk biscuits were of course sublime but so workaday didn't get that recipe soooooo none of the usual suspects can blame me. In fact in my older age got bold and told my Swanson's and Campbell's loving mother (wedged between a mother and MIL who could cook like there was nooooooo tomorrow she gave up the fight and descended into fast food Hades mid century style) that it's ALL her fault since she knew Nana longer than her children. 2nd digression over.

I do recall that Nana used Presto flour to make her biscuits and talked avidly about the beauty of Lily flour which was unavailable in the "barren" North she'd been condemned to toil in.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/24/magazine/you-are-making-your-biscuits-wrong.html

HTH!

[Old-Biscuit]

Add 1/4 teaspoon Baking Soda