Buttermilk Biscuits

This weekend, I found out three things:
1) biscuits are surprisingly easy to make
2) biscuits are irresistible when they just come out of the oven
3) watching the butter melt in a biscuit makes me happy

I made a batch of buttermilk biscuits for a friend's casual (and I mean this in the truest sense as I wore sweatpants to it) barbecue. The weather in Toronto is finally warming up and it's a great time to meet up with new friends for dinner. All the meat groups and dessert were pretty much taken care of, so I made a small batch of biscuits to bring over.

Buttermilk Biscuits
Recipe adapted from Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook
(Makes about 8-10)

2 cups of Robin Hood® all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons of baking powder
1 1/2 tablespoons of sugar
1/3 teaspoon of salt
1/2 stick of unsalted butter, chilled and cube
1/2 stick of Crisco® all-vegetable shortening, chilled and cube
3/4 cup of buttermilk

Preheat your oven to 175°C (350°F), if you have a convection oven like me, go with 160°C (325°F). You can make these by hand or with a mixer, just make sure to powder your hands with flour to prevent the dough from sticking to it.

In your bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt on low until combined. While this is mixing, you can take the butter and vegetable shortening out of the fridge and cut them into tiny cubes shapes. When you're done, add the butter and shortening into the bowl and mix on low speed. The dough should reach a crumbly texture (see photo above) and you can turn off the mixer.

Pour in the buttermilk and mix for about 10 seconds on low. You just want the dough to come together, so don't over mix.

Take the dough out of the bowl and place it on a floured surface. Gently knead the dough two or three times. Then pat the dough out to about 3/4-1 inch thickness and form a loose rectangle shape. The top does not have to be smooth, the more cracks and blisters, the more character your biscuits will have. I love that about biscuits!

Using a 2 inch round cutter (my round cutter is frilly on the other side!), cut out your biscuits. Do not twist the cutter in the dough. Push straight down and then lift. Gather up the dough scraps and form the remaining dough into another rectangle to cut out more biscuits.

The biscuits don't expand to the side as much, so I could have placed more on a tray. But space them out evenly and bake for 15-17 minutes or until the biscuits are golden brown and cooked through.

Serve with butter or jam! These biscuits are not salty like the ones you buy at fast-food restaurants, so spread on the butter without guilt!

Disclaimer: A Baked Creation partnered up with Robin Hood®, who celebrated their 30th anniversary of annual Holiday Recipe Collection. They were kind enough to send us a baking package with Robin Hood® all-purpose flour and Crisco® all-vegetable shortening sticks.