Homemade Southern Biscuits

As a single parent, I’m constantly looking for ways to save money, especially in the kitchen. Eating out is something that my daughter and I do occasionally now. A significant amount of money can be wasted via drive thrus and, frankly, fast foods can quickly become monotonous and boring.

One comfort food that my daughter and I thoroughly enjoy are biscuits and gravy. Thanks to the generosity and recipe of my good friend, Susan, I’ve mastered homemade buttermilk biscuits. I make these delectable goodies at least once a week, sometimes twice. I buy flour at Dollar General for (as of this writing) $1.95 a bag. That’s cheap!

Roll up your sleeves and have fun in the kitchen. Here’s Susan’s recipe:

Susan’s Buttermilk Biscuits Recipe

3 cups all purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 rounded ½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 stick butter = 8 tablespoons or ½ cup
1 ½ cup buttermilk

* Mix dry ingredients

* Cut in butter til the mixture resembles coarse meal (I use a pastry blender to blend the butter into the flour.)

* Stir in buttermilk; mix thoroughly

* Empty onto a floured surface and roll out to desired thickness (I sometimes have to sprinkle a little flour on top to keep from sticking)

* I use a glass or a mason jar lid to cut the biscuit dough into the shape of a biscuit

* Put on ungreased cooking sheet

* Bake at 425 degrees for 15 - 20 minutes

* A few minutes prior to pulling the biscuits out of the oven, brush the biscuits with butter and put them back in the oven until they are done. (I added this little step.)

I will endeavor to close each blog post with a poem about food. Here is one of my poems, a tanka, published in Magnapoets:

bread, wine, cheese, the gentle patter of rain on a new tin roof...        come, read love sonnets to me        and I'll read you Neruda

Magnapoets –  Issue 7, January 2011

Peace and prosperity to you all.