Baking Powder Biscuits

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These Baking Powder Biscuits are soft, fluffy, buttery and so quick to make.  With just a few easy steps, you’ll have delicious homemade biscuits to rival anything from the can in no time.

Jump to:

• Soft and Tender Baking Powder Biscuits
• Butter vs. Shortening in Biscuits
• Toppings For Homemade Biscuits
• Ingredients in Baking Powder Biscuits
• How to Make Easy Homemade Baking Powder Biscuits From Scratch
• Tips for Making Homemade Flaky Biscuits
• Can I Freeze Baking Powder Biscuits?
• Baking Powder Biscuits Recipe

Soft and Tender Baking Powder Biscuits

Once you make these Baking Powder Biscuits, you may never go back to the canned version again!  At the very least, you will realize how simple it is to make your own.  In fact, you probably have all of the ingredients that you need to make them right at this very minute.  

We’ve provided you with step-by-step instructions, as well as tips and tricks, on how to make these biscuits perfectly soft, tender and delicious every single time.  While they taste yummy on their own for breakfast, these are also good biscuits to use for biscuits and gravy, as the topping for pot pie or even as a replacement for regular dinner rolls.

Butter vs. Shortening in Biscuits

We prefer butter over shortening because we’ve found it helps give them a little extra boost, thanks to the water content in butter.  It also adds an undeniably delicious flavor that you just can't compete with.

These Baking Powder Biscuits without shortening are made using room temperature butter, as opposed to cold butter, which produces light, soft and tender biscuits, instead of flaky layers.  If you prefer yours a little flakier, you can substitute cold butter.  Just freeze your butter, then grate it using a box grater directly into the bowl with the dry ingredients.

Toppings For Homemade Biscuits

There are so many great ways to eat biscuits!  Yes, a biscuit is delicious all on its own (especially with plenty of butter).  But why not make it a party?  Here are a few of our favorite toppings for Baking Powder Biscuits:

• Honey, or The Most Amazing Honey Butter
• Jams and jellies
• Gravy of all kinds

You can also use this biscuit recipe as the topping for pot pie, cobbler or even dipped into your favorite soup (Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi Soup comes to mind).

Ingredients in Baking Powder Biscuits

• Flour - we use all-purpose flour for these biscuits.
• Baking Powder - any brand will work.  
• Salt - we like to use sea salt.
• Butter - you can use either salted or unsalted butter, however you may need to reduce the salt in the recipe slightly if you go with salted.
• Milk - we suggest using whole milk for this recipe, or even substituting heavy cream or buttermilk.

How to Make Easy Homemade Baking Powder Biscuits From Scratch

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, and salt.
3. Add room temperature butter and use a fork or pastry blender to mix.  The mixture should resemble coarse crumbs.
4. Make a well in the center of the butter and flour mixture, then add milk all at once and mix just until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl (dough will be sticky and a little lumpy).  Let the dough rest for 2-3 minutes.
5. On a floured surface, lightly knead dough by hand until smooth (about 30 seconds), then roll dough out with a rolling pin until the dough is even and about ¾" thick.
6. Cut dough with a 3-4" round biscuit cutter or the bottom of a cup/jar (you can also cut into squares using a sharp knife) and place about ½” - 1” apart on a lightly greased baking dish.
7. Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for 12-14 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.
8. Remove from the oven, then brush the tops with melted butter.  Serve warm, and enjoy!

Tips for Making Homemade Flaky Biscuits

• When cutting your biscuits, do not twist the cutter!  Cutting straight up and down will help the biscuits rise straight up, rather than lopsided. 
• Another way to achieve flaky layers is by folding the dough in half and rolling it back down to about 1 ½” thick.  Repeat up to 4 times before rolling out to the final thickness of ¾”.  
• It’s a good idea to keep the milk cold, particularly if you are using room temperature butter.  It helps keep everything nice and cool even while you are working the biscuit dough with your warm hands.
• For even more golden brown biscuits, you can brush them with a little milk just before baking.
• If you have the time, it doesn’t hurt to chill your biscuit dough once it is rolled out and just before cutting.

Can I Freeze Baking Powder Biscuits?

Yes, the unbaked biscuit dough freezes very well.  We recommend cutting your biscuits and freezing them flat on a baking sheet before storing them in a freezer bag or airtight container.  They can be store in the freezer for up to 3 months!

To bake, remove the frozen biscuit rounds from the freezer and transfer to a baking sheet.  Let them thaw in the fridge overnight, or else bake from frozen and add a few extra minutes onto the baking time.

Here are some more bread recipes that we love!

• Cinnamon Twist Bread
• Homemade Crescent Rolls
• Easy Homemade Cornbread
• Homemade Soft Pretzels
• Homemade White Bread

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These Baking Powder Biscuits are soft, fluffy and made with real butter.  Using only 5 simple ingredients, they are a cinch to make and quick to throw together.