Friday, February 5, 2010

Biscuits

It started two years before we even came to Zambia. We knew we would be going to Africa hopefully. We always bought biscuits at Wal-mart in the refrigerated section. You all know what I’m talking about. So if I’m going to Africa, maybe I better learn to make a few things – biscuits was on my list of things to learn.

I would make biscuits and they would not be good. They were either hard or flat or both. So I would give up. Then a few months later I would try a new recipe to see if it would be any better with no results. Homemade biscuits take a little work. I mean more work than opening a can of them and popping them into the oven. So when the results were unfavorable, I really didn’t want to try again. Steve said we just don’t need to eat them for three years. Three years is how long we will be in Zambia before we come back to the United States and can buy already made biscuits in a store.

Over the two years of trying to make them once in awhile, I started to think, a good thing to do. I wondered if I didn’t follow the recipe to the T (I always follow them to the T, at least the first time you make it) maybe it would work better.

I use the Mennonite Community Cookbook. Surely, Mennonite ladies know how to cook! I just looked in the book and on the first biscuit recipe on page 12 I hand wrote on it “OK, roll thicker.” The recipe says to roll 3/8 thick. That is thin!!! They don’t rise up to be big biscuits.

Another missionary lady on my team taught me how to make biscuits. She didn’t have her recipe, but the Buttermilk Biscuits on page 13 in the Mennonite Community Cookbook was close to hers. And the trick is don’t knead them much at all and roll them out thick.

Buttermilk Biscuits

2 cups flour                       ½ teas. Soda

½ teas. Salt                       3 Tables. Fat

3 teas. Baking powder       1 cup sour milk or buttermilk

Sift dry ingredients together. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. (like making pie dough. Also my friend used half butter and half Crisco, I don’t) Add sour milk all at once. Stir until dough follows spoon around the bowl. Turn out on floured board and knead for ½ a minute (I’m serious, too long they get tough). Roll 3/8 inch thick (ignore this roll much thicker) and cut out with biscuit cutter. Bake at 450 degrees for 12 minutes. My friend also adds 4 teas. of baking powder instead of three. I double the recipe and add 7 teas. of baking powder.


It all seems very simple, yet I never did figure it out until I got hungry for sausage gravy over biscuits.

God bless,

Rita

3 comments:

The Byrd's Nest said...

First of all....you guys have sausage!!!!!! Yummmmm!!!!!

Second, this sounds pretty easy something that I could try and I'm going to try it! Thanks Rita....praying for your family:)

Jeanne said...

Good biscuits was one of the very first things my mentor here taught me! The biggest key, according to her, is the not kneading very much....1-3 kneads and that's it. Also, you know how when you cut out the biscuits, you (at least I always did this) push down, then turn a little bit to cut the dough good? Don't turn! Just push straight down hard enough to cut through and then come straight back up. My biscuits have been rising twice as high since she told me that little trick!

So glad you figured out the secrets. I would've shared what I knew if I had known. :) And I'm with Kim.....very jealous that you can get sausage!!!!

Hope you are all well! Tell the family HI for us!

Kidz 40/40 said...

another trick is to not twist your cutter into the biscuits just press down and then lift back up. it really works.
suzie