Hot from the oven, these beautiful country-style biscuits have a down-home balance of crunchy peaks and crannies and buttery fluffiness. They’ll disappear faster than you can say “Breakfast is served!”

There are two tricks to fluffy biscuits. The first is use frozen butter. I use a cheese grater to add it to the dough while it’s still frozen. The grated butter pieces are just the right size to stir into the flour for even distribution. As the biscuits bake, buttery pockets are created and the steam released causes the dough to rise and become flaky.

The other trick is to tear the dough into biscuits instead of cutting it. Alternatively, you can use a cookie scoop to create the biscuits. Both methods produce fluffier biscuits than laying out the dough and cutting it. A traditional method of making biscuits is to use a water glass to cut them. Don’t. The glass seals the dough edges which inhibits the dough’s ability to rise. Tearing the dough is quick and allows for minimal handling. The edges of the ripped biscuits bake up into satisfyingly crunchy peaks and crannies.

Rustic Fluffy Butter Biscuits

Ingredients

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup unsalted butter, frozen
• 1 cup whole milk

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Cover baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar.
3. Grate frozen butter into flour mixture using a cheese grater with large holes.
4. Stir butter into flour mixture until it is evenly mixed.
5. Gradually stir in milk until dough just pulls away from the side of the bowl. Do not overstir.
6. Turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead until dough sticks together. It will be craggy looking.
7. Pull off pieces sized to your liking and gently flatten them to about 1 inch thick.
8. Place pieces on baking sheet.
9. Bake for 11 – 13 minutes. Edges will be golden brown when done.
10. Let cool slightly before serving. Serve warm or room temperature.

As buttery as these are, Jack still slathers them with butter and adds honey. I like them “as is” unless we have a favorite homemade jam on hand.