Cheddar Scallion Biscuits
One of the goals with this blog was to work on creating my own recipes. Creating a recipe for baked goods is definitely a science. After some background research about biscuits and the ingredients needed, I decided to dive into the baking without looking at the recipes. This of course is a challenge for me since I like to follow recipes to a “T”. I am glad to say that it turned out well and I wanted to share the progression with you all!
2-1/2 cups Flour
1 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Sugar
1T Baking Powder
1 stick Unsalted Butter
3 Green Onions
1 cup Cheese
1 cup Buttermilk
3 T Salted Butter (melted)
Of course there was experimenting as I went along and the first thing was the oven temperature. I started with preheating the oven at 425 degrees because I thought it would be hot enough to brown the edges while lightly cooking the inside. However, when I was baking the first batch of biscuits, I realized they were taking too long to get to a golden brown. I then decided to increase the temperature to 500 degrees.
To begin the biscuits, start with mixing the dry ingredients. Whisk together the flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder. The salt is important to create the savoriness of the biscuits, but also adding a little bit of sugar sweetens the dough like a scone. The baking powder is used to help the biscuits rise. *Note: A helpful hint about the baking powder is that as soon as it is mixed with a wet ingredient it is activated. Make sure that you make the dough as quickly as possible to allow the majority of the rising to happen in the oven.
Before you start the next steps, chop the green onions into small pieces. Set aside for later.
Leave the unsalted butter in the fridge until needed. Cut the butter into cubes and add to the flour. You could technically use a food processor at this point, but I prefer to use my hands. The key is to rub the butter into the flour between your fingers until the butter is completely combined. Add the green onions and cheese and then stir. Then make a well in the flour with your hands, so there is a hole in the middle. Pour the buttermilk in the well and then combine with a wooden spoon. It was at this point when I realized that the biscuit dough was too wet, so I added a little bit more flour.
Turn out the dough onto a flour ed surface. Use a rolling pin to roll the biscuit dough to a thickness of 1/2”-3/4”. Keep flouring the rolling pin if it sticks to the dough. Prick the dough with a fork to allow the steam to escape when baked. Dip a 2” biscuit cutter in flour and then use it to cut the dough into circles. There will be leftover dough from the circles, so gather the dough into a ball and then roll it out again. Be careful to not work the dough too much because it will lose it’s flakiness. Add the biscuits to a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove the biscuits from the oven and cool on a cooling rack. Then melt the butter. You can do either unsalted or salted butter. I preferred the salted butter because it added more flavor. Brush the melted butter over the top of each biscuit. Then it is time to eat!
I will fine tune this recipe down the road to see if I could get them “cakier” and more like the Red Lobster biscuits. These are more of a light and fluffy buttermilk biscuit with a cheddar and scallion flavor. Now I am about to embark on a bread making theme, which will be time consuming, but a challenge. The more complicated the recipe the better!
