FULL TABLE
BUTTERMILK BISCUITS
Can we talk about how long it’s taken me to post a traditional buttermilk biscuit recipe? I’m a little surprised – I assumed I had (I HAVE posted a recipe in an IG post before but that doesn’t count, does it?)
A good buttermilk biscuit recipe is pretty much THE FOUNDATIONAL recipe for a true Southern cook. I’ve made so many of them – thousands and thousands during my time in commercial kitchens! When I worked in a large production bakery and would get stuck up in my office buried under budgets and schedules, I would escape down to the bakery, tie up my hair and spend a couple of hours making biscuits to calm my nerves down a bit.
Biscuits and pie dough are therapeutic for me… the ritual of working dough calms my nerves and brings me back to center. It is a careful and thoughtful expression of love for the people that I am baking for – more than an intricately decorated cake – more than a 5-course dinner. This simple tradition of making the best biscuits for my people – there is nothing like it.
The basic recipe is amazing just on it’s own – but you can also add chopped fresh herbs and cheese or you can top it with salted butter that you may or may not have mixed honey and bourbon into. (ya’ll know I have done that 3 or 327 times)
These are really easy to throw together – but you do need to know a few little tricks that will result in flakey and buttery biscuits that have those layers that I just die over.
First, you need COLD FAT. Your butter and buttermilk need to be ice cold. Warm butter and milk result in sad little layer-less biscuits and nobody wants that mess.
We have given you a printable recipe card below with all of the details!
Whisk your dry ingredients together and then add your cold diced butter. Using your fingers, rub the butter into the flour so that you are left with streaks of butter through the flour. You do not need to fully incorporate the butter into the dry mix. (alternatively, you can use a pastry cutter and blend together until your mix resemble very coarse cornmeal)
Next, add your cold buttermilk (plain or with a handful of chopped herbs – I use thyme + rosemary).
Then you’ll bring everything together with your hands or a spatula. If you have naturally hot hands, I recommend using a spatula so that you don’t warm up the dough.
Once you have everything mostly together, dump it out on your counter and finish bringing it together into a round-ish mound that you can roll out.
Roll out your dough until it is about 1 inch think and then fold it over like a letter. Then roll it out again to 1/2 – 3/4 inch think and cut out your biscuits.
Sprinkle your counter and the dough if it is sticking to your rolling pin.
I used a 2 inch biscuit cutter in this picture for “mini” sized biscuits for a bridal luncheon we catered. But I usually use a 3 inch cutter for breakfast biscuits. You do whatever makes you happy, love.
Now all you need to do is line them up on a baking sheet (lined with parchment or a silpat), egg wash the little beauties and bake at 425 until they are golden brown and cooked through, about 12-15 minutes depending on their size.
Look at those layers YOU GUYS. That’s from folding over the dough mid-rollout and that chilled butter!
I do hope you’ll make these! Let us know when you do and tag us on all the socials with a picture! We LOVE to hear about your Salt + Charm cooking adventures. Also it would be so fantastic if you could share S+C with your people. Those of us that are building food blogs depend on help from our readers to spread the word! We really appreciate each of you!
All pictures by the one and only Matthew Ray. Matt Ray Photography