#59: Biscuits
Oh man…
…biscuits.
Oh man, do I love biscuits.
Biscuits are magical in my mind. I always harbour hope for a biscuit when one appears on a menu. Because of this I will always give a biscuit the benefit of the doubt, assume deliciousness, and order it every time. Sometimes you get burnt (hopefully not literally, but it happens), but more often than not you get something much more exciting and buttery than a slice of bread could ever promise you. Breakfast sandwich? Better on a biscuit. Buttered toast? Buttered biscuits are better. Need something to sop up gravy with? Oh lord, let it be a biscuit.
Biscuits are also excellent practice for pie-makin’ season (you must say that sentence with a twang or a drawl – it’s imperative!) Lots of the same principles are at play with biscuit-makery – like how all the fats need to be properly chilled and how your inner mantra should temporarily become cold cold cold (this means don’t do silly things like wash your hands with very hot water before handling the dough). Also, keep in mind that the best biscuit is a fresh biscuit and plan accordingly. Biscuits are truly not a very difficult thing to bake at all, and if you’re generous you can certainly count them under the umbrella of pastry. Like, novice pastry. Blue run pastry. If you have a food processor than I’d say green run pastry even.
Everyone needs a recipe for a simple, stacked, flaky tower of a biscuit. That’s what BA’s situation is – a lightly tangy, buttery biscuit. My own plain biscuit go-to was so similar to BA’s, that it felt redundant to include. Instead, I went with the super easy, super fast jalapeño-cheddar biscuits that absolutely complete one of my favourite breakfast-for-dinner meals. Both are bases for all sorts of goodies – BA’s could handle anything from butter and jam to fried chicken and gravy; the jalapeño-cheddar ones are spectacular with fried eggs and salsa, but would also feel at home alongside some chili.
