Biscuits. What is more comforting in the morning? So homey. Makes you really feel loved, right? My mother used to tell me this story: When my father was at Officer Training School in Fort Benning, Georgia (WW II – he became a Major), they didn’t have room for everyone to live on the base, so residents of the town with extra room would take in officers and their wives. They lived with Mr. and Mrs. Olsen, in an upstairs portion of their house. And my mother would say, “Oh Mary, Mrs. Olsen made the BEST biscuits every Sunday morning!” Well if only my mother (and Mrs. Olsen too) were still living because I do believe this is the Best Biscuit Recipe around!
Usually my cooking is pretty clean, healthy, low fat, not much butter. Here is a major deviation. But every once in a while – maybe twice a year, it can’t hurt you. Actually, these biscuits are so good and have so much butter in them already, you don’t need to put anything on them so you can skip those calories. Try these tomorrow with your Sunday breakfast and you will not be disappointed. Fairly easy to make and well worth the extra effort as opposed to plain toast, this recipe is from Food & Wine magazine, the August issue. Make them with LOVE and you will be in a little bit of heaven.
SKILLET BUTTERMILK BISCUITS – adapted from Food & Wine Magazine – contributed by Coleen Cruze Bhatti
1 stick cold unsalted butter, cubed, plus more for greasing
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 1/4 cups cold buttermilk (I used Kate’s Buttermilk – the real thing)
Preheat the oven to 450° and butter a 12-inch cast-iron skillet. In a large bowl, whisk the 2 cups of flour with the baking powder, salt and baking soda. Add the cubed butter and, using a pastry cutter or your fingers, pinch the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles very coarse crumbs, with some of the butter the size of small peas. Gently stir in the buttermilk, just until a soft dough forms.
Scrape the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and pat it into a 3/4-inch-thick round. Using a 2-inch round biscuit cutter, stamp out biscuits as close together as possible. Gently press the scraps together and stamp out more biscuits. Arrange the biscuits in the prepared skillet and bake for 12 to 14 minutes, until golden brown. Serve warm.
I had leftover dough and used this little pie pan my mother used to use to make us little birthday pies when we were toddlers. Isn’t it so cute?!
