All-Purpose Biscuits
Updated Dec. 15, 2024
- Total Time
- 1 hour
- Prep Time
- 5 minutes
- Cook Time
- 55 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 2cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 2tablespoons baking powder
- 1scant tablespoon sugar
- 1teaspoon salt
- 5tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, preferably European style
- 1cup whole milk
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)
204 calories; 8 grams fat; 5 grams saturated fat; 2 grams monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 28 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 3 grams sugars; 4 grams protein; 287 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Preheat oven to 425. Sift flour, baking powder, sugar and salt into a large mixing bowl. Transfer to a food processor. Cut butter into pats and add to flour, then pulse 5 or 6 times until the mixture resembles rough crumbs. (Alternatively, cut butter into flour in the mixing bowl using a fork or a pastry cutter.) Return dough to bowl, add milk and stir with a fork until it forms a rough ball.
- Step 2
Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface and pat it down into a rough rectangle, about an inch thick. Fold it over and gently pat it down again. Repeat two more times. Cover the dough loosely with a kitchen towel and allow it to rest for 30 minutes.
- Step 3
Gently pat out the dough some more, so that the rectangle is roughly 10 inches by 6 inches. Cut dough into biscuits using a floured biscuit cutter (or even a glass, though its duller edge may result in slightly less tall biscuits). Do not twist cutter when cutting; this crimps the edges of the biscuit and impedes its rise.
- Step 4
Place biscuits on a cookie sheet and bake until golden brown, approximately 10 to 15 minutes.
Private Notes
Comments
No, please don't turn the oven on to 425 degrees as your first step. No need to waste energy while you let the biscuits rest for 30 minutes!
Freeze the butter and then grate it. Use a fork to mix up the dough. Works like a charm and no need to wash the bowl of a food processor!
I'm 78, Southern and these were the best biscuits I've ever made. Probably because I followed the recipe and used 2 tablespoons of baking powder.
Geez and from and a Yankee!
I make biscuits at least once a week. The key for me: work quickly with minimal mixing and handling—just enough to make it all hold together—bake immediately in a 450 oven. I also don't use a cutter: I shape the dough into discs and cut them like scones. The biscuits turn out fluffy and sky high. So I was intrigued with both the extra baking powder and the 'rest time" of the NYT recipe. The results were surprisingly meh. Definitely not as light and fluffy. I blame the temp and the rest time.
Absolutely outstanding. Made these for brunch and they were not only the best biscuits I’ve ever made (by far) but also the best ones I’ve ever had! Changes made: skipped the processor, used a whisk to mix dry ingredients, froze the butter and then grated it in (because it sounded like a good idea) added a cup of grated cheddar (because the grater was already dirty from the butter…), and mixed the milk in very briefly with a fork. Will be making them again, soon!
I doubled this recipe and it needs more salt than called for.