Freezer Biscuits with Fresh Herbs
By America's Test KitchenPublished on February 6, 2008
Yield
Makes about 24 biscuits
Ingredients
Before You Begin
Try to cut out as many biscuits as possible each time the dough is patted out in step 2; each additional batch of cut biscuits will look more rustic. Obviously, these biscuits do not need to be baked at the same time, but rather can be baked as desired. The biscuit dough cannot be held in the refrigerator, or it won’t bake well. You can either use one herb or a combination of them.
Instructions
- Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper (if your baking sheets are small, you may need to use 2); set aside. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and minced herbs together in a large bowl. Stir in the cream with a wooden spoon until a dough forms, about 30 seconds. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter and gather into a ball. Knead the dough briefly until smooth, about 60 seconds, adding extra flour as needed if the dough is too sticky.
- Pat the dough into a 3/4-inch-thick circle. Following illustrations below, cut out the biscuits using a 2 1/2-inch round biscuit cutter. Lay the biscuits on the prepared baking sheet, spaced about 1/2 inch apart. Gather up the scraps of dough and reknead them briefly to combine, then pat the dough again into a 3/4-inch-thick round and cut more biscuits; repeat this process again for a third time. You can either discard any remaining bits of dough or gently pat them into rustic hand-formed biscuits.
- Wrap the baking sheet tightly with greased plastic wrap and freeze the biscuits until frozen solid, about 6 hours. Transfer the frozen biscuits to a large zipper-lock bag and freeze for up to 1 month. (Do not thaw before baking.)
- Adjust an oven rack to the upper-middle position and heat the oven to 450 degrees. Lay the biscuits on a parchment-lined baking sheet, about 2 inches apart, and bake until puffed and golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. (If baking a large amount of biscuits, spread them out over 2 baking sheets and bake the sheets separately; do not bake both sheets at the same time.) Serve hot.
to store
to serve
Yield
Makes about 24 biscuitsIngredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
With the goal of developing a biscuit recipe in which the dough could be made ahead of time and kept at the ready in the refrigerator, we found that the freezer was a better place than the refrigerator to store our simple make-ahead dough. When the dough was refrigerated overnight, the biscuit recipe baked up squat and dense, but when frozen, our biscuit dough baked up as brown, crisp, flaky, and high as if freshly prepared.
Before You Begin
Try to cut out as many biscuits as possible each time the dough is patted out in step 2; each additional batch of cut biscuits will look more rustic. Obviously, these biscuits do not need to be baked at the same time, but rather can be baked as desired. The biscuit dough cannot be held in the refrigerator, or it won’t bake well. You can either use one herb or a combination of them.
Instructions
- Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper (if your baking sheets are small, you may need to use 2); set aside. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and minced herbs together in a large bowl. Stir in the cream with a wooden spoon until a dough forms, about 30 seconds. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter and gather into a ball. Knead the dough briefly until smooth, about 60 seconds, adding extra flour as needed if the dough is too sticky.
- Pat the dough into a 3/4-inch-thick circle. Following illustrations below, cut out the biscuits using a 2 1/2-inch round biscuit cutter. Lay the biscuits on the prepared baking sheet, spaced about 1/2 inch apart. Gather up the scraps of dough and reknead them briefly to combine, then pat the dough again into a 3/4-inch-thick round and cut more biscuits; repeat this process again for a third time. You can either discard any remaining bits of dough or gently pat them into rustic hand-formed biscuits.
- Wrap the baking sheet tightly with greased plastic wrap and freeze the biscuits until frozen solid, about 6 hours. Transfer the frozen biscuits to a large zipper-lock bag and freeze for up to 1 month. (Do not thaw before baking.)
- Adjust an oven rack to the upper-middle position and heat the oven to 450 degrees. Lay the biscuits on a parchment-lined baking sheet, about 2 inches apart, and bake until puffed and golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. (If baking a large amount of biscuits, spread them out over 2 baking sheets and bake the sheets separately; do not bake both sheets at the same time.) Serve hot.
to store
to serve
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