Friday, March 9, 2012

Basic Biscuits

Recipe from Have Your Cake and Eat It, Too by Susan G. Purdy
Every year for Thanksgiving we spend hours preparing our dinner from scratch.  We look forward to the turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauce, yams...I think you get the picture.  Of all these delicious treats that can be savored only once a year, my cousins, Lindsay, A.J, and Tyler, all choose to make a meal out of the biscuits.  To be honest, they are the one item on the table that's both thrown together at the last minute and thrown around the table (literally).  They are simple and easy to make, yet turn out to be delicious and fluffy every time.

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
pinch of sugar
1/4 cup canola oil
3/4 cup low fat plain yogurt (or buttermilk)

  1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar.
  3. Add the oil and yogurt and gently mix with a dough whisk.  The dough will be crumbly and should not be completely mixed.
  4. Turn the dough onto a floured work surface and knead the dough a few times.  Flatten it to about 1/2 inch thick.  Cut using a round cookie or biscuit cutter.
  5. Place biscuits on your baking sheet, allowing them to touch.  Bake for 12 minutes.  Makes approximately 6-10 biscuits, depending on the size of your biscuit cutter.
*The use of a dough whisk in step #3 is important.  I have always used this tool when making biscuits and have never had a problem.  However, I have a friend who followed the recipe without it and was sad to report back to me that they turned out more like hockey pucks than fluffy biscuits.  If you don't have this handy tool, try using a spatula or wooden spoon and mix gently.  I would not recommend using a balloon whisk.

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