Recipe and Photo by Molly Bolton

Making homemade biscuits is a skill that every Southerner should have in their culinary repertoire. And if you don’t have Grandma’s recipe on hand, we recommend giving this one a try. Warm from the oven, these biscuits are incredibly buttery, flaky, and have a soft and fluffy interior and perfectly golden exterior that are sure to make you swoon. The key to a perfect batch of biscuits, besides putting a little love in it, is all in the details. So, be sure to use frozen butter, whole buttermilk, and don’t skip the folding process. You’ll soon be on your way to the most comforting of Southern delicacies. 

Recipe:

Ingredients 

3 cups all-purpose flour, spoon and leveled*

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon table salt

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

3/4 cup butter, unsalted, frozen

1 1/3 cups whole buttermilk, cold

Directions

Step 1: Combine the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar. 

Step 2: Grate in frozen butter. Using the large holes of a box grater, grate the frozen butter into the dry ingredients. Use your fingers to gently toss the flour with the butter until evenly combined. 

Step 3: Add buttermilk. Pour the cold buttermilk over the flour/butter mixture. Gently stir together until the dry ingredients are evenly moistened. The dough will look crumbly, but that's OK!

Step 4: Create layers. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and shape into a square about 1 inch thick. Using a floured bench scraper, fold the dough in half. Rotate the dough 90 degrees. Repeat this process of shaping, folding, and turning 7 more times, re-flouring your surface and/or hands and bench scraper as needed to prevent sticking.

Step 5: Cut into rounds**. Once you've folded the dough 8 times, press the dough into a 1-inch thickness. Using a floured 2 1/2-inch round biscuit cutter, cut the dough into rounds using a straight down motion. Be careful not to twist the cutter as this will "seal" the layers and prevent the biscuits from rising tall in the oven. Repeat with remaining scraps of dough until you have 8 to 9 biscuits. 

Step 6: Chill. Place the biscuits directly onto a baking sheet and chill in the fridge for 30 to 60 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425°F. 

Step 7: Bake. Brush the tops of the chilled biscuits with extra buttermilk. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, until golden. Serve warm with butter, jam, and/or honey! 

Notes

*How to measure flour using the spoon and level method: If you don't have a kitchen scale to measure flour by weight, use the spoon and level method for the most accurate measurement. First, loosen the flour in the canister or bag by fluffing it with a fork. Next, spoon the flour into your measuring cup until it's full. Then, holding the cup over the canister or bag of flour, use the back of a knife to level off the flour. 

**For a larger batch of smaller biscuits, cut into 16 squares. Once you've folded the dough 8 times, shape the dough into a 1-inch thick rectangle. Using a floured bench scraper or sharp knife, cut the dough into 16 squares using a straight down motion. Be careful to not use a sawing motion as this will "seal" the layers and prevent the biscuits from rising tall in the oven.

Freezing/make-ahead instructions: Place unbaked biscuits on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and place in the freezer until the biscuits are frozen solid, at least 1 hour. Store frozen biscuits in a freezer-safe zip-top bag for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen, adding 1 to 2 extra minutes to your bake time if needed. 

Additional info:

Makes: 8 to 9 round or 16 square biscuits

Prep time: 15 minutes (plus 30- to 60-minute chill time)

Bake time: 15 minutes

Total time: 1 to 1 1/2 hours