Sweet Autumn Biscuits Recipes

SWEET BISCUITS FOR BREAKFAST OR SHORTCAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400, I place a rack in lowest position in the oven.
• Combine dry ingredients.
• Cut in butter.
• Stir in liquid until it just begins to pull from the sides- it will be pretty moist.
• Spread 1/4 C flour on a pastry board and dump the dough onto the flour.
• Gently turn the dough until all sides are covered with flour.
• Knead by gently rubbing the dough into the flour, a scant 8 to 10 turns.
• Pat the dough into a 1 inch thich slab.
• Cut into rounds with a sharp round biscuit cutter- I use a 2 1/2 inch cutter-- you can push the scraps together to make room to cut a few more, try not to knead it too much.
• Place on insulated cookie sheet about 1/2 inch apart.
• Put in HOT oven and bake for 12- 15 minutes.
• You can test by lifting the top layer of the center biscuit; if it's done it will look dry inside and the edges will be golden.
• (I get 9 biscuits when I use a 2 1/2" cutter).

SWEET-POTATO BISCUITS

Steps:

• Make the dough: In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. With a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal, with some pea-sized lumps of butter remaining. In a small bowl, whisk together sweet potato puree and buttermilk; stir quickly into flour mixture until combined (do not overmix).
• Shape the biscuits: Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface, and knead very gently until dough comes together but is still slightly lumpy, 5 or 6 times. (If dough is too sticky, work in up to 1/4 cup additional flour.) Shape into a disk, and pat to an even 1-inch thickness. With a floured 2-inch biscuit cutter, cut out biscuits as close together as possible. Gather together scraps, and repeat to cut out more biscuits (do not reuse scraps more than once).
• Bake the biscuits: Preheat oven to 425 degrees, with rack on lower shelf. Butter an 8-inch cake pan. Arrange biscuits snugly in pan (to help them stay upright). Brush with melted butter. Bake until golden, rotating once, 20 to 24 minutes.

SOFT SWEET POTATO BISCUITS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine flour and salt. Cut in shortening and sweet potatoes until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in enough milk just until dough clings together. Knead lightly on a floured surface. , Roll dough to 1/2-in. thickness. Cut with a 2-in. biscuit cutter and place on a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake at 450° for 12 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.

SWEET POTATO BISCUITS

Steps:

• Make the biscuits: Heat oven to 375 degrees. Wrap the sweet potato tightly in foil and bake until tender enough for a knife to go in with no resistance, 45 minutes to 1 hour 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely. Scoop out 6 ounces/175 grams of cooked sweet potato flesh (about ¾ cup). (The sweet potato can be baked in advance and refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days.) Increase oven temperature to 400 degrees. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
• In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Working quickly, rub or cut the cold butter into the dry mixture using your fingers or a pastry cutter until the butter pieces are the size of peas. (Alternatively, use a food processor and pulse the dry ingredients with the butter to cut in the butter.)
• Add the scallions and toss to coat with the flour mixture. Cut the cooked sweet potato into ½-inch chunks and drop into the bowl, tossing gently to coat with flour so that the pieces stay separated. Make a well in the center and pour in the buttermilk. Use a wooden spoon to stir until a shaggy dough forms. Transfer the dough to a floured work surface.
• Roll the dough into an 11-by-7-inch rectangle. Use a floured spatula to lift one end of the dough and fold over one-third of the rectangle. Fold the other end over the top as if folding a letter. You should end up with a rectangular piece of folded dough. Lightly flour the surface of the dough and roll again into a 12-by-6-inch rectangle. Use a sharp knife to cut the dough into 12 (2-by-3-inch) rectangles. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet, spacing about 1 ½ inches apart.
• Bake until biscuits are golden brown and cooked through, rotating the pan about halfway through, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer the biscuits to a wire rack to cool slightly before serving warm.
• While the biscuits bake, make the honey butter, if you like: In a small bowl, combine the butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, black pepper and salt. Add the honey, and use a fork to cut the ingredients into the butter until incorporated and smooth. Transfer to a small bowl and serve with the warm biscuits. The butter can be covered and refrigerated for up to 7 days. Bring to room temperature before serving.