Thursday, July 28, 2011

Angel Biscuits - Heavenly

I'm excited to share this southern recipe with you today. Angel biscuits are a kind of biscuit made with baking powder and soda, but also a roll because they are made with yeast. The best part:  you can mix together the ingredients and bake them right away, or mix them when you have time and keep the batter in the refrigerator for weeks, baking what you need along the way.

I often make a doubled batch, but it never lasts more than just a few days.  They are just so.......well, heavenly.  Like eating baby angels!  Ha, Ha - OK, that was for you Tim Hawkins fans out there.  You can check out his video here. 


Ingredients:


5 Cups Flour
3 tsp. Baking Powder
1 tsp. Salt
2 1/2 Cups Buttermilk*
1 Pkg. Dry Yeast, dissolved in 2 Tbsp. warm water
1/4 Cup Sugar
1 tsp. Soda
1/2 Cup Light Olive or Vegetable Oil


This is the best yeast and it is also very economical.  I highly recommend it.  I purchase mine from a local bread supplies dealer.  Look for it on-line and in specialty kitchen stores.

 *If you're short on buttermilk, pour 2 1/2 Tbsp. of vinegar in a bowl, then stir in enough milk to make 2 1/2 Cups.  Let this sit and thicken while you're mixing together the other ingredients.  Buttermilk adds better flavor, but this works just fine.

Mix together the dry ingredients in an 8 Cup or larger bowl. Add the buttermilk, oil, and dissolved yeast.  Mix well.  Using a 1/4 cup scoop or large spoon, drop the biscuit dough on a baking sheet.  You might need to dip your scoop in flour to prevent sticking.


Bake at 450 F degrees  until lightly browned.  This takes only 9-10 minutes on my baking stone.

No rolling out, no cutting into shapes, no shaping, no rising and punching down.......O, the little angels!


The dough is also wonderfully versatile.  We've used it to make hamburger buns, cinnamon biscuits, garlic & cheese biscuits and great afternoon snack biscuits with frosting.  It is just so handy having the dough already in the refrigerator. Keep in mind that the dough does rise, so you will want to store in a large bowl at first.

This is how the dough looks after storing for one day.  Use your scoop to deflate it some, but don't "punch" it all down.

You know my theme around here:  Fast food at home may not be the absolute healthiest option, but it is almost always healthier than eating out.  I have tried to improve this recipe by making it with freshly ground whole wheat flour, but the whole wheat becomes unappetizing as the dough stores.  If I discover a healthier version, I'll let you know.  If you do, please come back and share with us. 

 Of course, they might not be the fluffy little angels they are now if they get too healthy.  Just enjoy.......they are delicious.  

The flavor and texture of the biscuit changes as they are stored.  When you bake immediately, they look and taste more like a biscuit.  When you store for several hours, they take on more of a roll flavor and appearance.  Both are very yummy.  This pan was baked from dough stored for about 24 hours.  The two biscuits at the back were baked when the dough was freshly made.

Thanks for stopping by,

Ellie






5 comments:

  1. These look delicious and I love how low maintenance they are! Jonathan loves rolls & biscuits.... I'll have to try these soon!

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  2. These look amazing! I cannot wait to try these out!

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  3. I'm so happy that u put these on ur blog!!!! I can't wait to make them and eat them!!! yum-o!!!

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  4. I'm ready for ur meatloaf recipe!!! Yeah!!!

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  5. Tried these tonight - we LOVED them! The kids were begging for more :)

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