These do-it-yourself biscuits are gentle and buttery with dozens of flaky layers. This biscuit recipe requires simply 7 components and so they’re prepared in about 35 minutes.

I initially printed this recipe in 2017 and have since added new photographs, a video tutorial, and extra useful success suggestions.

One reader, Marcia, commented: “Lastly, a biscuit recipe that labored for me. I particularly appreciated the notes which, in actual fact, had me change some issues I had been doing. The element in any respect ranges, each visible and written, could be very useful. ★★★★★“

One other reader, Maggie, commented: “One in every of my favourite biscuit recipes! They’re so constantly flaky and scrumptious, each single time! ★★★★★“

It’s fairly serendipitous that this “facet dish” might style much more exceptional than the principle occasion. No, no… it WILL style extra exceptional. Simply have a look at the large buttery layers! Nothing can compete.

What Are Biscuits?

The time period “biscuits” has completely different meanings relying on the place you reside on the earth. Within the U.S., biscuits are just like a dinner roll, however are denser and flakier as a result of they aren’t (sometimes) made with yeast. Since there’s normally no yeast and the rising agent is both baking soda, baking powder, or each, biscuits are thought of a fast bread, like banana bread and no-yeast bread. In different elements of the world, individuals might think about these American-style biscuits to be extra just like scones, and what they name “biscuits” are extra like what we name cookies.

7 Key Substances in Do-it-yourself Biscuits

With so few components, it’s essential to succeed in for high quality components and keep away from any substitutions.

Baking Powder AND Baking Soda

Till lately, this biscuits recipe referred to as for simply baking powder because the leavening agent. In recent times, I’ve discovered that the feel, shade, and taste excels when utilizing a mixture of each baking powder AND baking soda. In case you’ve all the time made this recipe utilizing 2 Tablespoons of baking powder, you possibly can actually proceed to take action! Nevertheless, by decreasing the baking powder to 1 Tablespoon and including 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda, the biscuits brown extra, have a flakier texture, crispier edges, and also you don’t danger a bitter chemical aftertaste.

Success Ideas for the Greatest Do-it-yourself Biscuits

After perfecting this recipe over the previous 8 years and growing different biscuit recipes, let me share what I’ve realized alongside the way in which. I’ve made loads of errors so that you don’t should. These tried-and-true tips will flip your flat, dry biscuits into the most effective biscuits ever. And that’s a assure.

1. Chilly Fats: For flaky layers, use chilly butter. When little items of butter soften because the biscuits bake, they launch steam and create little pockets of air—this makes the biscuits ethereal and flaky on the within whereas remaining crisp on the surface. It’s the identical factor that occurs when making these ham & cheese scones.
2. Buttermilk & Honey for Taste: Buttermilk and a teeny drizzle of honey stability out the salt. Buttermilk creates probably the most tender biscuit! I’ve a lot extra on this matter in my Baking With Buttermilk put up (together with a buttermilk substitute recipe).
3. Don’t Over-Combine: By no means overwork biscuit dough. Overworking and over-handling biscuit dough will end in robust, exhausting, and flat biscuits. Combine the components collectively *simply* till mixed. Dough shall be crumbly; that’s regular.
4. Flatten & Fold Methodology: An important step of all is folding the dough collectively. Flip the scrappy dough out onto a piece floor and flatten it together with your arms. Fold, flatten, flip, and repeat.
5. Don’t Twist the Biscuit Cutter: When chopping the dough with a biscuit cutter, don’t twist the cutter. Press the cutter down into the dough firmly. Twisting it should seal off the biscuit edges, stopping the biscuits from rising.
6. Bake Shut Collectively: Biscuits stand up good and tall when they’re touching, pressed snuggly in opposition to each other within the oven.

The best way to Make Your Do-it-yourself Biscuits

Whisk the dry components collectively, then add the cubed butter. Reduce the butter into the dry components with a pastry cutter, like when making pie crust, or pulse in a meals processor. Reduce/mix within the butter till you’ve gotten coarse crumbles, like this:

Add the buttermilk and honey. Combine every part collectively till you’ve gotten a shaggy dough, like this:

Pour it out onto a piece floor and produce the dough collectively together with your arms. It is going to be dry and shaggy with some moist spots. That’s all completely regular:

Fold & Flatten the Dough

Flattening and folding biscuit dough creates a number of flaky layers, simply because it does after we make do-it-yourself croissants, tough puff pastry, mille-feuille, and croissant bread. This step will take you not more than 2 minutes and also you’ll be rewarded with the flakiest biscuits on the earth. First, form dough right into a rectangle, about 3/4-inch thick:

Then fold one facet into the middle:

Then the opposite facet:

Flip the folded dough 90 levels so it’s now horizontal, gently flatten, and repeat that folding course of 2 extra occasions.

After you’ve folded and flattened 3 occasions, flatten right into a 3/4-inch rectangle as soon as once more, then use a biscuit cutter to form into rounds. In case you don’t have a biscuit cutter, you possibly can reduce into 8 to 10 squares.

Prepare shut collectively in a forged iron skillet (no must preheat it), or on a lined baking sheet. Once more, be sure the biscuits are touching so they are going to rise good and tall.

Earlier than baking, brush the biscuits with buttermilk to assist the tops brown evenly.

Honey Butter Topping

The honey butter topping is elective, however will set your biscuits other than the remaining. When the biscuits come out of the oven, brush with melted butter + honey. You employ each components within the biscuit dough, retaining the rely at 7 components complete.

Serve your do-it-yourself biscuits with jam or do-it-yourself raspberry sauce, cinnamon butter, or biscuits and gravy—I really like this explicit recipe. Or a swipe of do-it-yourself honey butter actually kicks it up a notch!

So Many Variations

I bake biscuits usually, and use the identical course of and success suggestions when making all of my favourite variations together with cheddar biscuits, every part bagel biscuits, and zucchini biscuits. I additionally make biscuit-topped vegetable pot pie and biscuit breakfast casserole. And you’ll completely flip these into dessert with my recipes for biscuit-topped berry cobbler and do-it-yourself strawberry shortcake.

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