Cheese Biscuits
Check out Amanda's gorgeous biscuit cutter at stage left. (She let me use it.)
Always good to double-check the recipe before getting started -- especially when it's not your own.
What Amanda and I love most about this recipe is that you use a mixer to make the dough. Who knew?
Flour, salt and baking powder (all chilled), plus butter and cheddar cheese go into the mixer all together.
Watching carefully...
You're ready for the next step when the butter has broken down into chunks the size of large peas (and a few slightly bigger pieces are okay too).
In goes the buttermilk!
I mixed the dough until just combines, at which point it looked like this.
It's a gorgeous, soft dough -- careful not to handle it too much at this point, or you'll lose some of the pillowy lift, and your biscuits will be tough.
Beauty shot!
I patted the dough into a rectangle about 3/4 inch thick.
Very important step: use something sharp (not a glass) as a biscuit cutter. and dip it in flour to help prevent sticking.
Adam taught us to press down in one firm motion -- no twisting -- so that the sides of the biscuits rise evenly.
You don't want to crowd the biscuits -- they need a little room to expand.
A little egg wash.
Transformation!
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Author Notes: Frequently on Tuesdays, Kristen shows up to our photo shoot bearing an armload of goodies from Bluebird Coffee Shop. All of the baked treats from this tiny gem of a place in the East Village of Manhattan are delicious, but our little cadre has pinpointed a couple of particular favorites: the doughnuts (more on those later this week from Amanda), and the cheese biscuits -- impossibly tender and almost melting within, the subtle bite of cheddar woven throughout. The other week, Amanda and I went to visit Adam Baumgart in his pastry kitchen in the basement of Bluebird, and he taught us how to make both of our top picks, sharing his tips and tricks along the way. This is Adam’s recipe for his heavenly biscuits. - merrill
Makes 10 to 12 large biscuits
- 3 1/2 cups minus 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour, plus more for shaping
- 2 tablespoons baking powder
- 2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 9 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon cold unsalted butter (use a good brand, like Plugra, with a high butterfat content)
- 2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
- 1 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 1 large egg
- Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and put it in the fridge for 20 to 30 minutes. In the meantime, cut the butter into chunks and leave out at room temperature (you want it malleable, but not soft).
- Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat it to 400 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine the chilled dry ingredients, the cheese and the butter in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on low speed for a few minutes, until the chunks of butter are no bigger than a large pea – or a small bean. (In the oven, the water in the chunks of butter creates steam, which in turn will creates lovely pockets of air within the biscuits.)
- Add the buttermilk to the bowl and mix on low just until the dough comes together. Turn the dough out onto a floured board, dust your fingers with flour and gently knead it a few times. Quickly and carefully pat the dough into a large rectangle about 1/2 an inch thick.
- Dip a 3-inch round cutter with sharp edges in flour and then cut the biscuits using an even downward motion, without twisting the cutter. Transfer the rounds of dough to the baking sheets, leaving an inch or two of space between them. When you’ve cut the first batch of biscuits, gently pat the dough into another rectangle and cut a few more -- discard the dough or add the funky leftover shapes to the baking sheets after the second batch is cut (if you shape the dough a third time, the biscuits will be tough).
- Beat the egg with a splash of water (if you’re feeling fancy, you can then pass it through a fine mesh sieve to get rid of any clumps of egg white that might burn). Brush the tops of the biscuits lightly with egg wash and bake for about 20 minutes, rotating halfway through, until the biscuits are a deep golden brown. Cool for a few minutes on the baking sheets but serve them while still warm!
- This recipe is a Community Pick!
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8 days ago arthurb3
Biscuits are staples here in the South!
3 months ago Sigita
Just made these to go along with some soup for a snow day lunch. Very easy and tasty. I did decrease the salt a bit - great texture and egg wash makes them very beautiful. Made a generous dozen of large biscuits . I froze half of the unbaked cut outs for use on another day. Would make amazing sandwiches - crunchy on the outside - light on the inside.
3 months ago rochelle123
I followed the recipe exactly and was very pleased with the results. The flavor and texture were great. I will definitely make these again.
4 months ago Joleensta
I have always been intimidated to make biscuits. I have to say these turned out great! I added a touch of mustard powder and paprika and cut into small square biscuits. They went perfect with sliced beef and a bit of horseradish mayo for mini sandwiches.
4 months ago merrill
Merrill is a co-founder of food52.
Sounds like a great combo!
5 months ago hanachocho
Delicious! Reduced the salt to 2 tsp., but followed every other step and ingredient. Tasted like Cheez-its in biscuit form.
7 months ago SJR
We are baking the second pan of biscuits as I am writing this comment. We also chose to add freshly diced jalepeno to the biscuits. I went along with others' advice & only put in 2 teaspoons of salt (instead of 2.5 teaspoons); however, I believe it needs the full 2.5 teaspoons because they need to be saltier OR I will simply use salted butter. Also, we used finely shredded cheese, but next time we will use regular grated cheese so that the cheese is more noticeable. Great recipe - will make again! We look forward to eating them with our fantastic chili this weekend.
over 1 year ago Sarah G.
The saltiness may have something to do with the kind of kosher salt used - i would guess that perhaps Diamond crystal salt was used in the original recipe?
over 1 year ago Steven Wray
I made these biscuits last night with a couple of minor modifications. I only used 8 T of butter and added 2 T of shortening. I also only used 1 1/2 cups of cheese (that was all I had). I loved these! My daughter thought they were a bit salty and my wife thought they were a bit buttery. The texture was soft and tender and the rise was very good. I started with 3/4" cuts. The egg wash gave them a delightful "crunch" texture. I did add 1/4 t of garlic powder to the egg wash.... Overall, I though these were excellent and will try them again.
over 1 year ago Jessie G
these really are too salty ... otherwise good - nice texture and very easy to throw together
over 1 year ago warholamm
My first attempt at biscuits was with this recipe. In trying to keep gluten out of our diet, I substituted rice flour and as you can imagine the biscuits turned out dense. Yummy, but dense. In order to salvage the biscuits, I cut them in small pieces, brushed some butter on the top, and stuck them back in the oven. What came out were the best tasting 'cheese straws' I've ever had! I will be saving this recipe to try my hand again at biscuits but also to make more tasty gluten free crackers.
over 1 year ago tessa022707
Just finished making these for two friends recovering from surgeries....husband and teenage son (okay I confess, me too) got ahold of them.....now I nedd to make another batch...thanks for this recipe, especially with soup and stew season here! Yum!
almost 2 years ago boulangere
Cynthia is a trusted source on Bread/Baking.
Made several dozen of these last week. Perfect in every possible way.
almost 2 years ago nasreenSeattle
Baked a batch of these yesterday - delicious! I used them for fried egg sandwiches this morning - sliced them in half, spread a little greek yoghurt mixed with paprika and granulated garlic, added an egg over-medium. They were gone in a trice.
about 2 years ago chava
About 20 years ago, before Starbucks, before Dunkin Donuts, there was a coffee bar in a stationery store on 33rd Street, called Philip's (after the owner's son). It was on my way to work, and each morning I would say "I am not going to stop for a cheddar-jalepeno scone," "I am not going to stop for a cheddar-jalapeno scone."
If you add chopped jalepeno to this fabulous recipe, you have...well, a cheddar-jalapeno scone.
about 2 years ago fitsxarts
these rock! i added some chopped ramp greens and they were extra delicious. and beautiful too!
about 2 years ago Gmarkb
I made these this morning. I'm not much of a baker, but they turned out lovely. Salty, but not too salty. I too didn't have a biscuit cutter so I used my stainless steel cocktail shaker. Worked like a charm. Thanks so much for the recipe. I will make these again and again. Cheer!
about 2 years ago kellyrossiter
I made these this afternoon and I loved them. I didn't find them too salty at all. I've made lots of different biscuit recipes over the years and this is the one I will go back to. I learned something too about using a cutter rather than a glass, which is of course what my mother used, so I did too. Not having a biscuit cutter I pressed the dough into a rectangle and then with my sharpest knife cut it into triangles. The great benefit of this is that there aren't any ends to roll out again, the whole recipe gets used the first time without toughening the dough. Love the website, the fantastic recipes and the beautiful photos.
about 2 years ago merrill
Merrill is a co-founder of food52.
Thanks for the lovely comment, and so glad you liked these! I often use the knife trick when I'm making biscuits -- good to know it works for this recipe!
about 2 years ago Ausra
made them last night and there were truly amazing; Maybe a bit too salty, even 1 1/2 teaspoons of kosher salt was a bit too much for me; but that might be because our Wegman's cheddar is saltier than usual; also, I thought that if I put the already prepared biscuits into the fridge for 10-15 minutes right before baking them, they might rise a bit more when they bake; anyway, great recipe!
about 2 years ago MWetzel
I agree, lighten up on the salt. Otherwise really easy really good really simple.
about 2 years ago MWetzel
OOPS doubled on my Really Simple Really Easy.
about 2 years ago KitchenKim
Can I use White Lily flour to make these biscuts?
about 2 years ago merrill
Merrill is a co-founder of food52.
We used all-purpose, but White Lily should work fine.
about 2 years ago KitchenKim
Thanks Merrill! I will bake them for my book group tomorrow night - although I will make mini-biscuits instead. I thought they would go nicely with some fresh fruit, a good bottle of wine, and perhaps some chocolate delicacies as well.:)
about 2 years ago sdebrango
Suzanne is a trusted source on General Cooking.
The biscuits are amazing, made them the other day. I reduced the salt to 1 1/2 tsp I thought that with the cheese they may be a bit on the salty side had a wonderful grafton cheddar. They were perfect.