Cold winter days are hopefully nearing the end, I feel like spring is sooo close! But with it still being a chilly, blustery day I feel like it’s a good day to make a stew.
What’s stews best friend? I’d like to think biscuits are. They’re unbelievably easy to make once you get the hang of it.
A little secret, that’s probably not so secret, save half of your dough from the biscuits and you can make dessert. If you love cinnamon rolls but don’t want to wait for dough to rise etc. etc., roll out half your dough and make these cinnamon rolls in a pinch!
Getting back on track, I learned to make these biscuits with my mom when I was little, and I’ve used the same recipe since. Anybody who has tried them usually has seconds, or thirds. I personally love them with jam and tea (because I’m secretly 80). But like I said they’re also stews BFF!
I’ll never forget my late brother-in-law telling me they were the best he’s ever had and coming from him, that really meant a lot. So with that, let’s get to the recipe!
Begin with preheating your oven to 425F, and lining a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone liner.
Get out a medium bowl and mix 3 cups of flour, 6 teaspoons of baking powder, 1 teaspoon of salt and 3 teaspoons of sugar until well mixed.
Add in your shortening or lard. I like using lard, but either will work. Measure it out using that handy measurement guide on the box it comes in! You’ll want 2/3 of a cup.
Drop it in your bowl, and cut it in using a pastry blender or if you don’t have one, a fork will do just fine.
Cut it in until little pea size pieces form
Add in 3/4 cup of milk and 3/4 cup of water. I use whole milk, if you have less than 2% I would use all milk (1 1/2 cups) and omit the water. Add in a bit of milk/water, gently mixing in, and repeat three or four times. You don’t want to over mix the dough as it will make the biscuits tough.
Once you have a nice lump of dough, place it on a lightly floured surface.
I like to flour my hands as well so they don’t get as messy and if the dough is a little sticky you can sprinkle some flour on top. Form a round shape about an inch thick. I don’t use a rolling pin, using your hands is fine, just don’t handle it too much as it will (like I said previously) make them tough!
Then using a biscuit cutter, a small glass, or even a cleaned out soup can if you don’t have either of the first two, cut out the biscuits and place them on the baking sheet.
Pop them into the oven for 10-15 minutes, until the bottoms are golden. Keep an eye on them so they don’t burn! Enjoy!
Note: These freeze very well, I usually freeze half of them in case I’m ever in a pinch!
Biscuits for Beginners
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Bake Time: 15
- Yields 2 dozen approx.
Ingredients:
- 3 cups flour
- 6 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 teaspoons sugar
- 2/3 cup vegetable shortening or lard
- 3/4 cup milk (2% or whole)
- 3/4 cup water
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 425F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone liner.
- In a large bowl combine flour, baking soda, salt and sugar.
- Cut in shortening using a pastry blender (or fork).
- Add in milk and water making about 3-4 additions. Do not over mix.
- On a lightly floured surface, make a rounded shape with dough about an inch thick using a rolling pin or with your hands.
- Using a biscuit cutter or small glass cut biscuits out and place on baking sheet about two inches apart.
- Bake for 10-15 minutes until bottoms are golden brown.
lifeiswhatyoubakeit.ca 