recipe goodness :: herbed buttermilk biscuits

Herbed Buttermilk Biscuits

Today is my dear friend Kristin’s birthday — the same one who went to Paris and loves all things french. So in honor of her big day, I made her these incredible herbed buttermilk biscuits from french food writer and cookbook author, Dorie Greenspan. I love when someone takes something so ordinary {enter biscuit} and adds one small, but brilliant touch {enter thyme} to reinvent the old standard. Dorie is a master with pastry, so I had no doubt these would turn out to be a fantastic breakfast treat, but biting into the warm, flaky biscuit and surprising your still somewhat sleepy taste buds with the fresh herby thyme is a delightfully unexpected way to start your day.

Herbed Buttermilk Biscuits
{From Dorie Greenspan; adapted from Baking From My Home to Yours}

Makes 12 biscuits | 425º | Cook Time: 14-18 minutes

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 TBS baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp dried or 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, crushed between your fingers
6 TBS cold unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces
3/4 cup cold buttermilk, well shaken

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 425º F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.

Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt, soda, sugar and thyme together in a bowl. Drop in the butter and, using your fingers, toss to coat the pieces with flour.  Quickly, working with your fingers, rub the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture is pebbly.  You’ll have pea-size pieces, pieces the size of oatmeal flakes and pieces of every size in between – and that’s just right.

Pour the buttermilk over the ingredients, grab a fork and toss and gently turn the ingredients until you’ve got a nice soft dough.  Now reach into the bowl with your hands and give the dough a quick gently kneading – 3 or 4 turns should be just enough to bring everything together.

Lightly dust a work surface with flour and turn out the dough.  Dust the top of the dough very lightly with flour and pat the dough out until it is 1/2-inch thick.  Don’t worry if it isn’t completely even. Use a knife or biscuit cutter to divide the dough into 12 pieces and transfer the pieces to the baking sheet.

Slide into oven and bake until the biscuits are puffed and golden brown, 14 to 18 minutes. Serve immediately {with delicious jam or honey — Fauchon is my favorite french jam if you really want a franco-breakfast}.

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