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Baking Powder Biscuits

For this month at “This Book Makes Me Cook”, the chosen book was Anne of Green Gables by [Lucy Maud Montgomery](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucy_Maud_Montgomery
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Course breads
Cuisine british
Servings 12 number

Ingredients
  

  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • 1 tbsp baking powder
  • cheddar cheese grated (optional)
  • 1 1/2 tsps black pepper crushed
  • 1 cup milk chilled

Instructions
 

  • Keep the oil in the freezer for about 2 hours till it becomes very thick and viscous.
  • In a bowl, put the flour, salt, sugar, baking powder and dried herbs, if using. Mix everything till blended.
  • Add the chilled oil and mix, very lightly with fingers, till the flour resembles largish bread crumbs. Add the milk and grated cheese (if using) and again, mix very lightly with fingers or a fork. Gather the dough into a ball with both hands. Do not knead the dough.
  • If the dough doesnu2019t feel very cold, refrigerate it for about 15 minutes before proceeding further.
  • Using lightly floured hands, lightly press out the dough into a disc and roll out to 3/4u201c thickness. Cut into rounds or any shape using cookie cutters or into squares with a knife.
  • Place on a baking tray and bake at 220C (425F) for 15 to 20 minutes till the tops are golden brown.
  • Take them out and brush the tops of the biscuits with melted butter. This recipe makes twelve 3u201d round biscuits or 24 small cookie sized ones). Serve warm with jam for breakfast or tea.

Notes

Notes :
It is important to ensure that the milk and oil are chilled properly as you would do for making pie crusts.
It is equally important to handle the dough as little as possible as the warmth will cause the oil (or butter if you use it) to melt and affect the texture of the biscuit.
While rolling out the dough, do not be tempted to use more flour than the absolute minimum necessary. Adding more flour will make the biscuits heavy/ dense in texture.
It is important to use a cutter with very sharp edges, or the sides of the biscuits will get pressed down and will not rise on baking.
Place the cut out biscuits quite close together to ensure that they do not spread outwards much, but rise upwards if you want taller biscuits. Also ensure that your baking powder is active.
Usually the biscuits are brushed with an egg wash before baking, as this ensures a beautifully browned and shiny top. You may brush them with milk instead.