Tall Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

Frozen grated butter, barely-mixed dough and three quick letter folds build dozens of paper-thin layers that shove these biscuits skyward. Baking them shoulder-to-shoulder in a single pan keeps the sides pale and pillowy while the tops go deep gold under a brush of melted butter — the diner-counter biscuit, done right at home for pennies apiece.

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour (360 g), plus more for dusting
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tbsp granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), frozen solid
• 1 1/4 cups cold whole buttermilk, well shaken

• 2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
• flaky sea salt, for sprinkling (optional)
• honey or jam, for serving (optional)

Instructions

1. Put the 3/4 cup butter in the freezer at least 30 minutes ahead (overnight is fine). Set the buttermilk in the refrigerator so it is thoroughly cold. Arrange an oven rack in the upper third and heat the oven to 450°F.
2. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and fine sea salt together in a large bowl. Slide the bowl into the freezer for 10 minutes while the oven heats — cold flour keeps the butter from smearing.
3. Working quickly, grate the frozen butter on the large holes of a box grater directly into the chilled flour, stopping every few strokes to toss the shreds with your fingers so they stay separate and coated. Do not rub or cut the butter in; you want distinct flakes, not crumbs.
4. Pour in the cold buttermilk all at once. Stir with a fork or bench scraper just until a shaggy, still-floury mass forms, about 15 seconds. It should look underhydrated and messy — that is correct. Stop mixing while dry patches remain.
5. Dump the dough and any loose bits onto a lightly floured counter. Press it together with floured hands into a rough 8 x 10-inch rectangle about 1 inch thick, patting rather than kneading.
6. Fold the dough in thirds like a letter: left third over the center, right third on top. Pat back out to a 1-inch-thick rectangle and repeat the letter fold twice more, for three folds total. If the dough sticks or the butter starts to look greasy, dust with flour and chill the dough on a floured plate for 10 minutes before continuing.
7. After the final fold, pat or gently roll the dough to an even 1-inch thickness. Flour a 2 1/2-inch round cutter, then punch straight down and lift straight up without twisting — twisting seals the layers shut. Cut 8 to 9 biscuits, pressing scraps together only once (with a fold, not a knead) for the last few.
8. Set the biscuits in a 9-inch round cake pan or 9-inch cast-iron skillet, or on a parchment-lined sheet pan, arranged so the sides touch. Brush the tops only with about half the melted butter, keeping it off the cut sides.
9. Bake at 450°F for 14 to 16 minutes, until the tops are deep golden and the biscuits have roughly doubled in height. If your oven runs hot, tent loosely with foil for the last 3 minutes.
10. Brush the hot tops with the remaining melted butter, sprinkle with flaky salt if using, and let rest 5 minutes in the pan. Pull them apart at the soft seams and serve warm with honey or jam.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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