Best Biscuits Ever

So I spent about a month or so in school learning all about dough. I learned several methods of biscuit making, all which took time and butter rubbing and we frankly a bit of a pain. Then I found this recipe and my life changed. This recipe is so freaking easy that I almost can't stand it.


CREAM BISCUITS
Originally from James American Cookery but adapted from Smitten Kitchen for y'all to enjoy

2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar (see note)
1 1/2 cups heavy cream

Preheat the oven to 350F. Combine flour, baking powder, salt and sugar in a medium sized bowl and whisk to incorporate. Make a well in the center and add almost all the heavy cream, reserving about 1/4 of a cup as you may not need to all to moisten the dough. With a spoon, gently mix the cream into the flour, using your hands once the dough comes together and adding the rest of the cream if the dough doesn't come together or is very dry. Place the dough on the counter and push it with your hands till the dough is about a 1/2 inch thick. Then, using a 2 1/2 inch to 3 inch round cutter (or a juice glass like in my case) punch out a few biscuits -- continue by bunching up the scraps and cutting out the dough till you've used it all up. Place biscuits on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake till lightly golden and slightly firm, about 12 to 15 minutes.

Note: If you want to use the biscuits to go with a savory dish like a chicken or beef stew, simply omit the sugar from the recipe.

I have used these biscuits as a shortcake with fruit and whipped cream, I've eaten them warm with butter and honey, I've even toasted them the next day and eaten them with jam.


Sweet biscuits with vanilla peaches and lightly whipped cream

I've also omitted the sugar and added 1/3 cup of finely diced cheddar cheese and about 2 tablespoons of chives to the biscuit batter and created a really delicious savory cheddar and chive biscuit. (I made them yesterday and used them as a bun, remember?


Cheddar and chive biscuits

What makes these biscuits work is the fat from the cream. In baked goods, fat acts as a tenderizer as fat coats the little flour particles and keeps them from developing gluten (too much fancy talk?). Basically, remember all those recipes I learned in school that required the butter to be rubbed into the flour, well the butter was acting as a shield around the flour to keep it from developing gluten and in my recipe here, the cream is doing the same thing as the butter would have, it is just doing it a lot faster. As my chef said, "fat is fat" and in this recipe fat produces delicious, easy, 5 minute biscuits. God bless you fat.