Biscuits

[Ahorsesoul]

My dh was raised in the south so his idea of Southern Biscuits are in the link below. Soft, tender, cut out(using a water glass), not dropped but not falling apart. He was between jobs many years ago. While home I guess he was watching the cooking shows (he always had dinner ready when I got home from work!!! He irons and does his own laundry too). One day he's telling me about some guy making biscuits. He wanted to know if I could find the recipe. So I walk over to the cookbooks, pull out a Fugal Gourmet cookbook and show him the recipe he wanted. Yes, we had them the next night. I love how the recipes flips them in the hot pan first. Have not tried them gluten free yet....maybe I should talk dh into it.

Open Original Shared Link

[RiceGuy]

My dh was raised in the south so his idea of Southern Biscuits are in the link below. Soft, tender, cut out(using a water glass), not dropped but not falling apart.

<SNIP>

I love how the recipes flips them in the hot pan first. Have not tried them gluten free yet....maybe I should talk dh into it.

Open Original Shared Link

What do you mean by "not dropped but not falling apart"? Please elaborate on that.

I've noticed southern style cooking and baking makes extensive use of frying pans.

[RiceGuy]

I looked at the photos in the link. At least in my experience, this is not what a Southern biscuit looks like. Regular gluten biscuits do not get those little holes in the inside. These look more like a bisquick drop biscuit which is very different. Maybe I am a weirdo, but southern biscuits have to be fairly smooth on top and basically flat, like a hockey puck.

By the term "little holes", do you mean a porous texture like what breads look like on the inside? Does this mean that a southern biscuit looks more like cake than bread inside?

What would happen if you press down on it? Would it flatten out and break apart, or would it tend to compress more like a sponge, and maybe come back up somewhat afterward?

[Wolicki]

By the term "little holes", do you mean a porous texture like what breads look like on the inside? Does this mean that a southern biscuit looks more like cake than bread inside?

What would happen if you press down on it? Would it flatten out and break apart, or would it tend to compress more like a sponge, and maybe come back up somewhat afterward?

Little holes- yes, porous. More cakey than bready, but not quite cakey.

If you pressed on it, I think the outside edges would crumble off, and it would get a bit gummy on the inside, but would mostly come back up.

[TrillumHunter]

I'm going to have to respectfully disagree. Biscuits aren't cake-like at all IMHO. They have layers and cake doesn't have layers when you pull it apart. If you take a piece of cake and pull it apart, you see lots of little holes. Not so for the biscuits I know.

Riceguy, I've been thinking about this.lol Biscuits are like pumped up pie crust. You know how pie crust flakes? Imagine if you puffed up each of those layers with air. If you'll compare recipes, you'll see that the base, flour cut with fat, is very similar. The handling is the same as well.

Okay, I'm obsessing now.

[RiceGuy]

Little holes- yes, porous. More cakey than bready, but not quite cakey.

If you pressed on it, I think the outside edges would crumble off, and it would get a bit gummy on the inside, but would mostly come back up.

I'm going to have to respectfully disagree. Biscuits aren't cake-like at all IMHO. They have layers and cake doesn't have layers when you pull it apart. If you take a piece of cake and pull it apart, you see lots of little holes. Not so for the biscuits I know.

Riceguy, I've been thinking about this.lol Biscuits are like pumped up pie crust. You know how pie crust flakes? Imagine if you puffed up each of those layers with air. If you'll compare recipes, you'll see that the base, flour cut with fat, is very similar. The handling is the same as well.

Okay, I'm obsessing now.

Actually, both of you have given me the same image in my head. While cake is porous, it isn't like bread in that it doesn't appear like air bubbles, as bread does. The pie crust layering is a good description of what I've been picturing.

Just moments ago, I recalled having strawberry shortcake years ago, and the cake part was very much like what's being described in this thread. I don't know if it was a traditional shortcake, as I haven't had it at a restaurant or anything like that. It was homemade. In fact it might have been bisquick for all I know.

[Wolicki]

Actually, both of you have given me the same image in my head. While cake is porous, it isn't like bread in that it doesn't appear like air bubbles, as bread does. The pie crust layering is a good description of what I've been picturing.

Just moments ago, I recalled having strawberry shortcake years ago, and the cake part was very much like what's being described in this thread. I don't know if it was a traditional shortcake, as I haven't had it at a restaurant or anything like that. It was homemade. In fact it might have been bisquick for all I know.

RiceGuy

My Granny used to use biscuits as the base for strawberry shortcake, she just added a bit of sugar to the dough. Pie crust,hmmmm, well biscuits should be a little bit flaky, kind of like pie crust, only not the same. It's so hard to describe! Not flaky like a Grands biscuit, and not like a shortbread either. Does Fluffy Amazingness help? LOL

[jerseyangel]

Just moments ago, I recalled having strawberry shortcake years ago, and the cake part was very much like what's being described in this thread. I don't know if it was a traditional shortcake, as I haven't had it at a restaurant or anything like that. It was homemade. In fact it might have been bisquick for all I know.

Yes! I would make shortcakes the same as biscuits, except that I would add 2-3 tablespoons of sugar in with the flour. What you're remembering should be right on.

The difference between pie crust flakiness and biscuit flakiness....I've been thinking about that. Pie crust flakes are drier and crisper, whereas in a biscuit, the layers are tender, light and fluffy. The idea is the same, though, since we cut the shortening into the flour in both so as to create the flakes.

[itfigures]

Wow. Reading these descriptions just made me real hungry for a biscuit. And I'm not even hungry. Lol!

I would love a gluten-free biscuit recipe if there is a recommended one!

[deb6]

Growing up in NC (western part of the state) my grandmother always made "Baking Powder Biscuits"--more firm to the bite. Today in the freezer section of the grocery store I would say Marshall's or Mary B's Biscuits would most be like them. Then, there were the 'other biscuits' flaky and soft-- most like today's KFC biscuits.

Below is a recipe that most reminds me of my grandmother's biscuits. In NC biscuits like BBQ--there's a western version and and eastern version and each person thinks their choice is the best:)

These biscuits really look good also:

BLOG: Open Original Shared Link

Bob's RedMill Buttermilk Biscuits-- by Carol Fenster

Open Original Shared Link

YOU TUBE: GOOD VIDEO

or search Gluten-Free biscuits from Ann's Kitchen

Deb

Baking Powder Biscuits

1 cup gluten free cake flour blend (like Wendy Warks Open Original Shared Link or Google for recipe)

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp xanthan gum( add only if gluten-free flour blend contains none)

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp sugar

4 TB cold butter

1/2 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 375

In a mixer, blend gluten-free cake flour blend, baking powder, salt and sugar.

Cut butter into small pieces and add to flour mixture. Blend until flour/butter mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

While mixer is running pour in buttermilk. Mix until just combined.

On a lightly floured surface,(use gluten-free cake flour blend) gently roll the biscuit dough out until it is 1 inch thick. Using a biscuit cutter dipped in flour, cut out the biscuits as close together as possible.

Transfer biscuits to a baking sheet, brush with milk or cream and bake 8-10 minutes. Take out baking sheet, turn and bake an additional 5 minutes or so until golden brown.

Can freeze unbaked, bake frozen--add about 5 minutes to time.

[RiceGuy]

RiceGuy

My Granny used to use biscuits as the base for strawberry shortcake, she just added a bit of sugar to the dough. Pie crust,hmmmm, well biscuits should be a little bit flaky, kind of like pie crust, only not the same. It's so hard to describe! Not flaky like a Grands biscuit, and not like a shortbread either. Does Fluffy Amazingness help? LOL

I agree it is difficult to put into words. I'm tempted to use the image of a cotton ball, the way it's airy and fluffy, without actual holes. But I know it's not quite right either. Neither is fiberglass insulation or cotton candy. Particleboard is a better fit I think, especially when it gets wet, and expands.

Yes! I would make shortcakes the same as biscuits, except that I would add 2-3 tablespoons of sugar in with the flour. What you're remembering should be right on.

The difference between pie crust flakiness and biscuit flakiness....I've been thinking about that. Pie crust flakes are drier and crisper, whereas in a biscuit, the layers are tender, light and fluffy. The idea is the same, though, since we cut the shortening into the flour in both so as to create the flakes.

Yes, I agree. I'm applying the analogy to the appearance, not the consistency. Come to think of it, puff pastry dough, such as that used for Open Original Shared Link, is made with similar ingredients, only it is worked far longer, intentionally creating long thin layers. But if I'm picturing it right, the layers in a southern biscuit would be sorta "scrambled" and disorganized, not uniform in thickness, and not continuous across the width of the biscuit. Otherwise it would be like a Grands biscuit.

[Wolicki]

I agree it is difficult to put into words. I'm tempted to use the image of a cotton ball, the way it's airy and fluffy, without actual holes. But I know it's not quite right either. Neither is fiberglass insulation or cotton candy. Particleboard is a better fit I think, especially when it gets wet, and expands.

Yes, I agree. I'm applying the analogy to the appearance, not the consistency. Come to think of it, puff pastry dough, such as that used for Open Original Shared Link, is made with similar ingredients, only it is worked far longer, intentionally creating long thin layers. But if I'm picturing it right, the layers in a southern biscuit would be sorta "scrambled" and disorganized, not uniform in thickness, and not continuous across the width of the biscuit. Otherwise it would be like a Grands biscuit.

yahtzee!

[itfigures]

Growing up in NC (western part of the state) my grandmother always made "Baking Powder Biscuits"--more firm to the bite. Today in the freezer section of the grocery store I would say Marshall's or Mary B's Biscuits would most be like them. Then, there were the 'other biscuits' flaky and soft-- most like today's KFC biscuits.

Below is a recipe that most reminds me of my grandmother's biscuits. In NC biscuits like BBQ--there's a western version and and eastern version and each person thinks their choice is the best:)

These biscuits really look good also:

BLOG: Open Original Shared Link

Bob's RedMill Buttermilk Biscuits-- by Carol Fenster

Open Original Shared Link

YOU TUBE: GOOD VIDEO

or search Gluten-Free biscuits from Ann's Kitchen

Deb

Baking Powder Biscuits

1 cup gluten free cake flour blend (like Wendy Warks Open Original Shared Link or Google for recipe)

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp xanthan gum( add only if gluten-free flour blend contains none)

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp sugar

4 TB cold butter

1/2 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 375

In a mixer, blend gluten-free cake flour blend, baking powder, salt and sugar.

Cut butter into small pieces and add to flour mixture. Blend until flour/butter mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

While mixer is running pour in buttermilk. Mix until just combined.

On a lightly floured surface,(use gluten-free cake flour blend) gently roll the biscuit dough out until it is 1 inch thick. Using a biscuit cutter dipped in flour, cut out the biscuits as close together as possible.

Transfer biscuits to a baking sheet, brush with milk or cream and bake 8-10 minutes. Take out baking sheet, turn and bake an additional 5 minutes or so until golden brown.

Can freeze unbaked, bake frozen--add about 5 minutes to time.

Yum! Those sound delicious! Thank you-- I'm going to experiment with these.

[RiceGuy]

Would the texture and consistency of a muffin (I mean like a blueberry muffin, not an English muffin) be similar in any way to that of a southern style biscuit?

[Wolicki]

a muffin is a little bit drier than a Southern Biscuit. Add some moisture and a muffin would be fairly close.

[freeatlast]

Growing up in NC (western part of the state) my grandmother always made "Baking Powder Biscuits"--more firm to the bite. Today in the freezer section of the grocery store I would say Marshall's or Mary B's Biscuits would most be like them. Then, there were the 'other biscuits' flaky and soft-- most like today's KFC biscuits.

Below is a recipe that most reminds me of my grandmother's biscuits. In NC biscuits like BBQ--there's a western version and and eastern version and each person thinks their choice is the best:).

Deb, thanks for the link. Those biscuits sure do look like my grandma's in NC, also. THANKS again!

[TrillumHunter]

Wolicki we must eat very different biscuits.... See, I think a muffin is like cake, which is nothing like a biscuit to me. Muffins don't have layers. A biscuit has layers. They aren't as pronounced in a homemade biscuit as a canned one, but they are there.

This is fun for me. It brings back memories of sitting on the counter while my Grandmother made pans of biscuits. She fed my Grandfather's employees and that took two sheet pans Monday through Friday.

[RiceGuy]

Well, the biscuits I grew up with were nothing like any description of southern style biscuits at all. They were usually drop biscuits, though sometimes formed with a glass to make them round. Either way, the texture was much more firm. Rough, rigid and chewy on the outside, and not very moist on the inside. Perfect to smother in butter or margarine, and/or to dip into a stew. Even if you split them open and poured gravy on them, it was still a good idea to use a steak knife to cut off bite-sized pieces.

That's what I prefer by far, probably because (as noted) it is what I grew up with. On the few occasions when I'd have biscuits that were made with milk, they were very soft, and I didn't really enjoy them much at all.

On the "softness scale", if a bagel is 1 and cake is 10, I'd say muffins are about 6-8, banana bread is about the same, cinnamon raisin bread is about 5-7, English muffins are about 4-5, rye bread is about 3-4. Note that this is not the same as moistness, but perhaps somewhat related to density.

Approximate Softness Scale (each line = 0.5):

||||||||||||||||||||Cake

||||||||||||||Muffin

||||||||||||||Banana Bread

||||||||||||Cinnamon Raisin Bread

||||||||English Muffin

||||||Rye Bread

||Bagel

So, based on the above scale, what would southern biscuits be?

[Wolicki]

I think Trillum Hunter and I must be from different states. They do vary. In GA, they are between a muffin and cake, with no discernable layers. As you can see, biscuits can be very personal

[deb6]

"Biscuit / English Muffins" Breakfast Bread

Reminiscent (to me) of a Bojangles Biscuit

This morning I wanted something similar to an English Muffin. I must have biscuits on the brain. My son said these Biscuit/English Muffin Things-- "taste just like real bread", and that's what he eats everyday!

1/2 the batter I baked in muffin top pan. 375 degrees 14 minutes. Flipped after 7 minutes to brown each side. They were more externally crisp out of the oven, but I covered with a towel to cool and they are softer.

1/2 batter on griddle using english muffin rings. 5-6 minutes each side medium heat.

Twelve biscuits/english muffins total

I love both.

I love Better Batter Flour Blend

You can easily make 1/2 of this recipe

Biscuit / English Muffin Things

2 Tb melted unsalted butter

1 1/4 cups warm milk

2 eggs room temperature(put in cup hot water for 5 minutes while gathering ingredients)

2 teaspoons sugar

4 teaspoons baking powder

2 cups gluten-free flour blend with xanthan gum ( I used Better Batter)

1 pkg instant/quick rise yeast

1/2 tsp salt

In a medium mixing bowl blend dry ingredients--the flour, sugar, baking powder, yeast, and salt.

In a separate small bowl or 2c. mixing cup stir together the eggs, melted butter, and milk until frothy.

Slowly add liquid ingredients to dry ingredients and beat to a creamy consistency--1-2 minutes. I used a hand mixer, but KitchenAid or a strong arm will do. Batter will be fluffy and fairly thick.

I used a 1/3 cup ice cream scoop (#12) and scooped a portion of the batter into each section of muffin top pan and each english muffin ring on the griddle(I warmed the griddle to help with rise). Smooth tops of batter. I used fingers sprayed with Pam. Let sit for 15 minutes, while oven is preheating to 375 and you gather other breakfast/omelet items.

Bake/cook--let cool for about 5 minutes. I split with a fork while warm, then toasted.

Cut with a knife when totally cooled.

Mine were baked/cooked perfectly. But last time I made these they were a little underdone/gummy in center and that was remedied by toasting.

Enjoy~ Deb