Baking Powder Biscuits - and how to make them. From the Haven Test Kitchen.

So, let's get two things straight here, just to start:

1. I've said it before: I am not a chef. I do not claim to be a chef, but I'm always working on getting better. I'm just a home cook.

2. I've said this before, too: These food posts on this blog are for my kids. It may sound like I'm explaining A LOT (and I am), but sometimes, you have to make yourself perfectly clear, so that no one can possibly misunderstand. Because someone will still misunderstand.

Moving on!!

Ah, biscuits. Some people have rose-tinted memories of tender baking powder biscuits that their sweet grandma made. For me, this is not something I remember from my childhood -- maybe because my mom had really backed off on baking by the time I came around. Or maybe because she just didn't have a good recipe for biscuits, either, and just stopped trying.

I've eaten good biscuits before -- but my own baking results weren't quite there. Biscuits have the potential for being a great substitute for yeast rolls, in much less time. My past results have wavered between "passable" and "hockey pucks".  And even if these may not be perfected yet, I've tried a lot of recipes, and these are as near to that "perfect biscuit" as I've been able to come. And there are a whole lot of recipes out there for basic baking powder biscuits. Ask me how I know!!

I tried some recipes that claimed to be the "best biscuit ever". Note: they lie to you. Pinterest has no controls over wild claims by individuals.

I tried some that were put forth by famous people. Some famous people should stick to their day job.

And in case you were wondering, .... people seem to feel really strongly about biscuits, too. Weird!

I also tried "Frankensteining" biscuit recipes for the best qualities in each.

In the end, the ones I like the best actually came from my own cookbook, but with 3 personal adjustments to the recipe (so I feel like it's different enough from the original to not worry about claiming the source). Having said all that, we also need to establish that there really IS a LOT to be said for biscuit-making technique, too, so don't ever count on just a recipe as being the final word.

My top technique tips will sound a lot like other recipes:

1. Biscuits are a "quick bread", so don't overwork the dough. Just don't try to handle it too much.

2. COLD ingredients are also key. You'll see what I mean.

3. Put the rolling pin back in the drawer, and step away. You're not rolling out anything here.

Here's the list of ingredients:

SUPER-GOOD BISCUITS

1 stick butter, cold from the fridge(1/2 cup)

2 cups flour

1 1/2 Tablespoons baking powder

1 Tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup sour cream

2 Tablespoons milk

more flour for dusting

melted butter for brushing tops

Ok, so here we go!!

Start with the cold butter. I used to use shortening (again, from that base recipe), but I do think the butter is better. I take the cold stick of butter and pre-chop it into bits, touching it as little as possible. 

(Sorry for the lighting in the pictures. Wacky camera. Later photo credits go to Emma, because with dough on my hands, there was no way I was going to touch the camera!)

So, the reason for not touching the butter goes back to keeping things cold. Even the heat from my fingertips can start to soften the edges of small butter bits. Here's the key: Cold butter, worked into layers with the flour = flakier biscuits. I'm talking about pockets of butter [fat] in the dough. And speaking of the flour, ...

This used to seem like an unnecessary step to me, like just the kind of stuff that TV chefs do. But I'm converted.

Dump all the dry ingredients into a separate bowl, and mix them together thoroughly. Like, a lot. More than you think you need to do. While it does eliminate lumps, what it really does is evenly incorporate the little stuff (salt, baking powder, cream of tartar, sugar) into the flour. I used to get biscuits with speckled-looking tops as they browned in the oven. Has that happened to you, too?  Weird. Mix those dry ingredients. By themselves.

I just use my pastry blender to stir them around in the bowl.

Now. Wet ingredients.

I've tried using just straight milk. I don't keep buttermilk around, but I've tried the homemade substitute for it. Still, each time I've made biscuits, the sour cream ones have always been better. So, sour cream plus a little bit of milk (the 2 tablespoons) counts for wet ingredients in this recipe.

But not yet! First, cut the butter into the flour. I do it by hand with my pastry blender, and it doesn't take too long, because I've pre-cut the butter into bits. Some people apparently use a food processor. That's not worth the time/cleaning of those parts, to me. Some people grate the butter into the flour mixture. With a box grater. The kind you use for cheese. Weird. (And how do they keep it from melting in their hand??)

Pastry blender.

So, I missed a photo of that step, but trust me. It's blended. You still want to see visible little chunks of butter in there. About pea-sized. Then, make a well in the middle of the dry stuff, for the wet stuff to go in, and add the milk and sour cream -- both of which are also cold-from-the-fridge:

I usually start mixing by stirring some circles with a regular old spoon, and then change pretty quickly to using my hand.

See the old lady hand in the Claw shape? Seriously, that's how I do it. I keep my fingers open and I'm just trying to incorporate the dry stuff into the wet, cold stuff.

I end up with sticky dough all over my fingers.

Ewwww!!! OLD-LADY-HANDS!!!!

I really do have my mother's hands. When I look at my hands, I see my mom's hands.

Pretty sure no amount of hand lotion in the world would change that look.

Just scrape the sticky dough off with a rubber scraper, and keep going until ....

It all comes together in a ball in the bowl:

By the end of the "mixing" time, I'm just rolling the dough around the sides of the bowl, snowball-style, until it picks up most or all of the smaller chunks and dry stuff.

Look! You can see the yellow bits of butter in that.

Dust some flour on the counter, set the dough on it, and give the top of the dough a dusting of flour, too. See my super-old-but-still-functional-strainer-used-as-a-sifter?

Some recipes say to knead the dough. I think that's a misnomer. It's not really kneading, which is what I think of with yeast bread dough -- which is folding it over, driving the heel of the hands into it, turning a quarter turn, and repeat. That is not this. For me, it's not even folding it over, either.

I press, (no rolling pin), flattening evenly, and shape the dough as I go, into a general rectangle, about an inch thick:

Some recipes do say to "fold" the dough. I found it's more effective to slice and stack.

With a butter knife, cut the flattened rectangle into thirds, and then stack them on top of each other. There should be enough flour here so that it's not sticking to your hands, but don't overdo the flour.

Ooooh --- nice little butter bits!

Now flatten that stack of dough into that same rough rectangle.

I'm pretty sure those hands don't look like that in real life.

So, slice and stack - this is now the third time stacking:

Depending on my time, I often try to slice and stack ONE more time after that, and THEN ....

On the LAST step of slicing and stacking, instead of slicing into thirds, slice it in halves:

The reason I do only halves on the last run-through, is because when I do it that way, the biscuits will easily pull apart right in the middle, ready for buttering while they're nice and hot.

So, then flatten for the final time....

And then cut with a biscuit cutter. 

Make each cut straight down, and pull straight back up -- don't twist the cutter.

I like this cutter that is pretty deep and pretty open on the top. My old tin cutter (which was mom's) was deeper for biscuits, but also enclosed on the top, which limited how thick the dough could be.

The dough here should be about an inch-ish thick.

This is a 2 1/4" biscuit cutter, and I wouldn't go bigger in diameter than that -- to be sure that the biscuits cook through in the center.

I also keep my cuts VERY close to each other, even to the point that if you look carefully, some of these biscuits have a tiny nick out of the circle. It doesn't show in the finished biscuits.

After experimenting some with kinds of baking pans and biscuit layout in the pans, I've finally decided on a glass baking dish, and I space the biscuits out so they are not touching each other, but just barely apart from one another.

To get the most rise on these babies, I think they need someone to lean on, to help them grow to their full potential. As they bake, expand, and rise -- they use the sides of the glass dish for support, and they also end up baking into each other, which gives them additional support for rising. (The dish here has slightly sloping sides -- a straight sided dish would have been better.)

I've seen some recipes that crowd the biscuits into a pan, touching sides all over the place. I'm not a fan of that method. In theory, yes, ... they have biscuits next to them to help them rise.  But then they also become once solid mass of dough, and getting cooked through to the middle is a lot harder to do.

And they end up squarer -- which is ok, if that's what you're going for.

But then when you brush them with butter, it has a tendency to make them mushy. And while I love soft biscuits -- mushy ones are not that appetizing.

After the initial cutting of biscuits, I meld the remaining dough together, with cut edges meeting, and minimizing adding flour. Fold the dough over  once and make the second cutting of biscuits, and then with the final dough scraps, I smoosh a biscuit together -- these last ones will not be as good as the first ones. The smooshed biscuit  (in the middle) is really just a "taster biscuit" for the cook, anyway. Right???

I've also experimented with putting more baking powder in the recipe, to make them rise more. Supposedly, some people can taste the baking powder -- a chemical, metallicky taste. I don't really taste that, but if there's too much baking powder, they can't stay balanced when they rise.

They kind of look like those "black snakes" you can buy at Fourth of July fireworks stands. They start to rise, and then they flop over to one side. So, I backed off on the baking powder, and that happens much, much less now.

All that space around the biscuits allows for slightly crispy sides, and makes sure they cook through in the center. All that melted butter brushed on top keeps them from being too crispy!

You can still see the butter bits. This is a good thing!

Now they're ready for the hot oven.

You pre-heated, right? Ok, good.

(Pre-heating an oven was never something my mom did. In her frugal mind, it was a waste of gas (ours was a gas cookstove). I'm more lax than that, and pre-heating for baking is the way to go!

So,  a 450-degree oven for 10-12 minutes.

At least, that's what the recipe says.

In the mean time, assemble the appropriate biscuit accessorizing pieces:

Of course, more butter, for spreading. Homemade Raspberry Jam. And fresh honey from your-friend-the-beekeeper.

Then, check the oven:

Those (above photo) are NOT done.

With the "10-12 minutes" time given in the recipe, I still ended up baking mine for 15 minutes. Trust the color, and don't be afraid of some golden brown happening here.

These are done:

And brushed with more melted butter. 

(So, yes -- brush with butter before AND after baking the biscuits.)

And here's an eternal truth for you:

Biscuits will always, always, always be best when they are freshly baked and HOT out of the oven.

This is why my fingers are so very red in this photo:

Because that's burning my hand!!

Ouch!

I tried for a split-biscuit shot so you could see the flakiness: 

That one was still super-hot, too.

So, don't stop to take pictures. Just eat immediately!! Top with your favorites -- Emma prefers straight butter. I have more recently become a fan of jam on my biscuits:

Or, go classic, and put some of that fresh, local, homegrown honey on top:

Mmmmmm!!!!

And there you have it. Biscuits that I finally feel like I can serve to guests without apologizing.

Testing out variants was a tough job, but someone had to take one for the team.

Or in this case --- dozens!

Speaking of dozens -- this recipe makes about 1 dozen biscuits.

You should try some now. Seriously.

Master of the Bath

In a perfect world, there would be bi-weekly blog posts. Welcome to my imperfect world.

My Facebook Memories reminded me this morning that one year ago today, we finished the beautiful master bathroom remodel. Wait, what????

It's really been a year since it was completed. I have absolutely no idea where the time went. Actually, I do know, and it's recorded in scores of digital photos on my laptop. More stuff to write about!

So, in the interest of recording for posterity, updating the blog, and bragging on my talented husband ... here's the sweet tale of remodeling the Third of Four bathrooms at The Haven.


It really started back when the Incredible Laundry Room Remodel was happening. The grand plan from back then was to sacrifice some space from the old laundry room to gain some space in the coming master-bathroom-to-be.

So  you may or may not recall that the back half of the old laundry room (including that window wall) was closed off when we did the laundry room remodel. It sat there with tools, ladders, insulation .... until we started the master bathroom work.



Because there was no other way into that space, Todd cut out the back shower wall from the then-master bathroom for access:

So, at that point, the shower became obviously unusable. It looks like a dark hole in this picture because it was nighttime, and apparently I can't remember to think about lighting in photographs in advance. And yes, that is as clean as I could get that fiberglass shower floor to be.

And yes, you're seeing this correctly: the toilet and shower are inside the bathroom door, and the vanity and mirror are outside the bathroom door (IN our bedroom). And please do not adjust your screens: that really is a blue sink. With a blue marble-patterned laminate countertop.

Like many things in our home, it was up-to-the-minute-cool ...... in the 70's. Now, not so much. And that was one thing I really wanted to change with the new bathroom, because I'm  really just not a fan of having the sink in the bedroom. During my Seminary-teaching years, I didn't even use our bathroom in the mornings -- I got up way earlier than Todd, and he would never have slept through my morning routine.

A few other points of change .... the flooring in the bathroom was vinyl:

... with a seam that was separating. Any fixtures that hadn't been replaced, like the recessed toilet paper holder and robe hooks - were antique brass-looking. The cupboard over the toilet had been an afterthought-add-on before we moved in.We had removed the old medicine cabinet over the sink and replaced it with a flat mirror when we moved in, but the light fixture was off center. (Centered with the sink!!) And the vanity had seen way too many years of wear and tear.

Note that the blue sink was equipped as a hair-washing sink, so it was extra wide, and had a spray nozzle for rinsing hair mounted on the back. A convenient feature, I admit, but only Todd used it.

Also, some time ago, I did mention that the house moves, which was noticeable in particular in the master bathroom shower door frame. It alternated being so wide that the shower door could "tink" open at the merest touch, to being so incredibly tight that it took ninja moves to escape. The remodel eliminated that completely.

And finally, a word to the wise:

This was the shower wall. It had been finished at one time with the same kind of material as was used in the downstairs bathroom shower: a tile-looking paneling. It is water resistant, until the surface finish gets scrubbed off (or otherwise damaged). After that, it's as porous as anything, and gets scary looking and moisture goes right into/through it. Time for this stuff to GO.

Demo Day is always a good day!!

Here's just a few pic of demolition; this is the wall that was between the shower and toilet:

The wall behind the old toilet:

The south (outside) wall:

Cameron helped a great deal with this remodel. Maybe he's pocketing these construction learning experiences for future use?

Remember that the window on the right is from the old laundry room. And the sliding glass door on the left is in our bedroom, across from the old blue sink. This next picture has the drywall and walls gone, but you can see that some plumbing vents are there that needed to be moved to be enclosed in walls.

The spot where the gray garbage can is? That's sitting in the old shower. The old toilet was right behind the ladder. The forward plumbing vent was in the wall between the blue sink and the toilet area. The rearward plumbing vent was in the wall behind the old toilet. The blue sink was on the right (see the water lines sticking out?) and you can see the old paint that had been behind the vanity.

What do you do when you're demo-ing a bunch in the house? You get creative with trailer parking!

Todd backed the trailer right next to the house so he could toss scraps out the window, and directly into the trailer. The kicker? That trailer axle is straddling the stairs that lead down into the downstairs rec room. That's some well-aligned parking right there!!

Next came re-construction.

This was in preparation for wall texture.

The ELEPHANT in the room is the new bathtub!!

The tub had to be brought into the room while we could still get it in the room. When the tub is wider than the doorway, this is the way you do it! It would be some time before it could actually be installed, since the tub deck still needed to be tiled. 

Interesting side note: we had purchased this tub several years ago, in anticipation of the remodel. It's been sitting in storage, waiting for its moment to shine!! Finally!!

And this is what you do when spraying texture and sanding drywall threatens to overtake your sleeping quarters:

After the room was drywalled and painted, and Todd put down the insets of octagonal tiles on the floor:

And yes, having the bathtub still precariously balanced on the frameout for it made momma kinda nervous.

(Floor is done!)

You should also know that we moved the forward wall of the bathroom out (into the bedroom area) to gain a couple more feet, and to get the sink inside the bathroom. Now the bathroom entry door is right next to the sliding glass door, instead of two feet back. No sliding glass doors were harmed during the construction phase.

Emma helped painting! Most of this wall she's painting is going to be covered by a linen cupboard. But we paint anyway. The little "window" in the wall? I'll show you that, later.

(The tongue helps, HONEST!)

Decorative tile around the future tub area:

 Where the wall makes the jog back at the tub, is where we stole square footage from the old laundry room. Everything that you are seeing as tub and shower areas .... are in the old laundry room space.

My hardworking tile guy!! (He's also my hard working framing guy, plumber, drywall guy, painter, electrician .....!!!)

Decorative tile wrapping around the shower area (look closely, because it's gray on gray):

 The two insets in the back wall are for towels to hang (left) and shampoo/soap, etc. (right).

Cutting tile couldn't go super late at night, but Todd made the most of his daylight hours:

The back deck was the handiest tile saw setup location.

Things started really coming together when we got delivery from our cabinet maker. He brought and installed:

The tub access cover. In case we need to get to the guts of the tub, or the plumbing underneath.

The vanity! We patterned this off the bathroom vanity at our favorite hotel, and our cabinet maker custom built it for us.

Outside the bathroom, in our bedroom ... the linen cupboard.

And finally (for him),

The "medicine cabinet". I wanted shelf-storage for things that couldn't go in a drawer, and I didn't want the counter cluttered up with things. So, voila!! The linen cupboard is on the other side of this, and it's a little less deep on top, where this cupboard is. THIS is that hole/window in the wall shown in the pictures of Emma painting.

I know I took pictures of the counter installation as well, but I absolutely can't find them. I'm sure there's a perfectly good reason for this. It escapes me, at the moment. As did the pictures.

The final step was installing the glass shower wall:

And actually, waiting on the glass was the only thing that kept us from having the room completed by Christmas (of 2017). We did devise a temporary shower curtain arrangement before the glass came, so we were using the room, even though it was not totally complete.

So.

Are you ready for the big reveal? Don't forget what we had "before" :

The other thing you should know, is that the location of the toilet did not move. It is actually in the exact same spot, just rotated 90 degrees. It uses the exact same drain as previously.

So, here's the finished product!

CAN YOU BELIEVE THE DIFFERENCE??!!

We have a few different sets of towels for the room -- around Christmas to Valentine's Day, I like to have the deep red ones out.

Here's a shot from the opposite direction:

You might not have a tub like this, but if you did --- you'd be taking baths instead of showers, too!

There's that finished counter!

You might notice that it's also the same metal raised tray to the right of the sink. It's a favorite piece of mine. And since I collect lanterns, there's surely some requirement about having a lantern in there as well.

I know, you're thinking that you would have put in double sinks. And we thought about it. But in the end, we don't usually have any issues with trying to use the sink at the same time, and if we'd had double sinks, we would have had minimal counter space -- and I didn't want that. So .... one sink.

It's our bathroom, and we got to pick!

Also, we chose not to mount a toilet paper holder, but instead are using a free-standing one. At least for now. Maybe one day we'll drill into that pretty vanity cabinet, but today is not that day.

Here's that cupboard, put to use:

How about some cool details, too? Ok!!

We did make sure to have extra outlets in the bathroom: two at the counter, two on the opposite wall, and one to the left of the counter. I'm never running out of outlets again!!

The ones by the counter also feature:

USB ports! (Hey, I mean, as long as we're upgrading here......)

The mirror over the vanity ....

... is a lighted mirror. A little hard to see in this photo, but we love the lighted border on our mirror.

And under the sink ....

A "hidden" pull-down door for under-sink storage.

The linen cupboard outside adds a ton of room for all those towel sets:

There's some of them:

 You can see the octagon tile insets in the floor. We had originally thought to use the octagons all over the entire floor, but then we found out the cost of those babies. Instead of dropping the idea altogether, we opted for the insets. We think it makes a runway-of-a-floor look more interesting.

Lighting changed to recessed cans, with cans in the shower, the chandelier over the tub, the light bar over the sink, and of course the lighted mirror. This room is plenty bright!

The window faces south, and it was dusk when I took the pictures here. I took a ready-made curtain, and hemmed it to length. Now it fits inside the window casing, and we close it when we need privacy, and open it for light, and during the day.

I will tell you one other thing .....

baths are super-peaceful and relaxing!

Bet you wish you were here!!!

P.S.  Ok, Pink Bathtub. Your day are numbered!! Last bathroom still to go, but I feel like we'll work on the project house first, before tackling the last bathroom.