Biscuit Exploration
For a while, I was on a biscuit-making kick. On top of buttermilk biscuits, I made various drop biscuits – including the copycat Red Lobster Cheddar Bay, cheddar cheese biscuits, bacon biscuits, cinnamon sugar biscuits, and cream cheese and chives. It took me a while to get the hand of making this fluffy, warm quick bread, but once I did, I was off to the races. There are still various types I still want to make.
Smoked Cheddar
I was lucky enough to get my hands on a pound of homemade smoked cheddar cheese. I have experimented with smoked flavored cheese, but never the real deal. While a pound of smoked cheese goes a long way, I have several plans for this cheese. The first is these amazing smoked cheddar jalapeno biscuits which pair beautifully with my Cowboy Beans. Using a cast-iron skillet instead of a sheet pan, I made these from my base buttermilk biscuit recipe. I love how the biscuit bottoms get slightly crispy on the bottom yet remain super tender and soft on the inside.
Ingredients
Instructions
- Add butter to the flour mixture and pulse until it resembles wet sand with a few pea-sized pieces of butter remaining.
- Add the flour-butter mixture to a large bowl, then add cheeses, jalapeno.
- Add buttermilk mixture in 2 to 3 ounces until it is incorporated; all of the liquid may not be used. Depending on your flour, you might need an ounce or two more.
- Lightly flour your workspace, drop your dough, and knead until just combined about 3 to 6 times.
- Flour a rolling pin and roll dough into a rectangle about an inch in thickness. Fold the dough like you would a letter. Repeat this process twice more.
- Cover and rest the dough in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- In the meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425 degrees f.
- Uncover and roll out once again to about an inch thickness.
- Cut out the biscuits using a floured 2.5 inch round cutter. Do not twist. Re-roll and cut only once if needed.
- Bake on an unlined cookie sheet or 8 -inch or 10-inch buttered cast-iron skillet for 7 minutes at 425, then drop the heat to 375 and bake another 7 to 10 minutes.
