Buttermilk Biscuits

The name "biscuit" can bring a lot of confusion and means different things to different people from various parts of the world. Outside of the US, and especially in the United Kingdom, "biscuits" are what most Americans referred to as cookies and/or crackers. However, in the US, it is normally referred to as a quick bread, made with flour, butter/shortening, and leavened with baking power and/or baking soda. Since I am in the US, I will use the latter meaning of the word "biscuits".

Most people do not make biscuits at home for some reason or another, which is strange because this is one of the simplest quick breads. The problem comes in with making sure that (i) the butter or shortening is incorporated properly, and (ii) to not over mix it. In fact, the less it is mixed, the lumpier the dough is, the softer, more tender it becomes.

This is my recipe for a very simple buttermilk biscuit. The amount of flour and buttermilk listed is approximate, because it depends on the weather, humidity, etc. The dough in the end should still be soft and slightly wet. After you make this a few times, you'll get a feel for how the dough should feel like for the type of biscuit that you prefer, so feel free to adjust those amounts.

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled in the freezer
• 1 cup cold buttermilk

Optional: 4 tablespoons melted butter to brush over baked biscuits after you pull them out of the oven.

Heat oven to 425 F.

Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together. If you are using a food-processor, pulse it a 4-5 times to mix the dry ingredients.

Cut the cold butter into chunks and rub it into the flour mixture with your fingers. Do this quickly to make sure the butter doesn't melt. You may also use a dough cutter to cut the butter into the flour. Do this until you either have flakes of flour-coated butter, or small, course meal. If you are doing this in a food-processor, pulse it until you see small pebbles of butter.

Pour into a mixing bowl, and add buttermilk. Stir gently until everything is just combined into a dough, no more than 20 seconds of stirring. It will look lumpy and under-mix. Dough should feel soft and slightly wet/sticky. Use additional flour if it is too wet.

Liberally sprinkle flour onto a flat surface and turn the dough onto it. Flatten it gently with your hands until it is about 1/2 an inch thick. Use a biscuit cutter to cut rounds of biscuits. Use scraps to form into a dough ball and flatten it again to make more biscuits.

Alternatively, you can shape the biscuits by hand. Pinch a ball of dough, about 1 1/2" in diameter, and flatten it gently until it becomes a disk about 1/2 inch thick.

Place the biscuits on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes.

As soon as the biscuits is baked and out of the oven, brush the top with the melted butter. Serve immediately.

I made these by shaping them with my hands, since I don't have a biscuit cutter. But I like my biscuits this way. It looks more rustic and definitely the unevenness makes it more home-made.

This is as quick of a quick bread as it gets. Depending on your oven, if you start heating it and start making the dough at the same time, you may be done with it even before your oven reaches its set temperature. Yet, it is so delicious, you'll never buy those frozen stuff in the supermarket refrigerator again.

Zz.