Buttermilk Biscuits with Salty Honey Butter

Here's an example of a recipe that started out with certain intentions and is being posted as something else.  I decided that my blog was lacking in the shortcake department, and I of course needed to fix that.  I have a Strawberry Shortcake in cake form, which happens to be one of my favorite cakes EVER, but I wanted to make some classic shortcakes.  I needed some buttery biscuit, whipped cream, and fruit action, so I set off to find a good biscuit recipe.  I found one, had them in the oven in about 20 minutes (they're so easy), and before I knew it, I had a tray of warm biscuits cooling on my kitchen counter.

I was about to start making the whipped cream for the shortcakes when temptation struck and I just had to have a biscuit while it was still warm from the oven. I mean, I figured it wouldn't hurt to make sure that these biscuits were shortcake-worthy, and I would only take one bite. Just one, so I did...and that's when it happened. The first bite of warm biscuit made me question why I was making strawberry shortcakes.  The second bite of warm biscuit made me think I was crazy.  At the third bite of warm biscuit, I knew that that I was crazy.  The fourth and final bite of warm biscuit made me change my mind about the urgency of posting a strawberry shortcake recipe. These buttermilk biscuits on their own were worthy of a post of their own, and that was a much more urgent matter.

After consuming one warm biscuit, I was ready for a second.  I enjoyed the first in its pure biscuit form, without any butter or any toppings, and was smitten.  I wanted to enjoy the second biscuit with a little something extra, and I figured that something rich and buttery like a biscuit could only be made better by the addition of some extra butter...am I right?  I decided to mix up a really simple salty honey butter, because if I love anything on my biscuits more than butter, it's definitely honey.  The honey butter takes about ten seconds to mix up; all you need to do is stir two tablespoons of honey into some softened butter (or if you're improvising at the last minute like me, butter that you've carefully softened in the microwave), and two teaspoons or so of salt- you'll need to taste this mixture as you add the salt.  Tasting butter sounds a little weird, I know, but it's the only way to know if the salty-sweet ratio will be to your liking. 

The biscuits themselves are just as simple to make as the salty honey butter.  The dry ingredients are all whisked together in a bowl, and then chilled butter is cut in with a pastry blender until a coarse, crumbly meal forms.  You want to make sure that you don't cut the butter in too much- you still want a few visible pieces of butter here and there.  The buttermilk is then stirred in, and your biscuit dough is ready!  So easy.  If you want to make drop biscuits, you're pretty much done at this point, and all you need to do is scoop the dough out onto a baking sheet and bake away.  I wanted to make cut out biscuits, so I gathered up the dough, dumped it out, pressed it flat (with my hands, no rolling pin required), and began cutting out biscuits. Try to work quickly during this step to keep the butter cold, but if you think the biscuit dough is getting a little warm, you can just pop the cut out biscuits in the refrigerator for a few minutes to chill them up. 

These biscuits are really, really good.  I know I'm certainly no expert on biscuits, and I don't pretend to be, but I really thought these were pretty awesome.  They might not be as legit as the biscuits a Southern grandma might make, but for a Latina New Yorker, these are pretty damn good.  I loved them. They're rich and buttery, and super flaky, if you decide to make them as cut-out biscuits.  They paired perfectly with the salty honey butter and I loved them with the butter and some strawberry jam.  I'll definitely be making another batch of these biscuits over the weekend as an easy Father's Day gift for my dad.  Since the World Cup is going on right now, my soccer-fanatic dad has kindly informed us that he is officially not to be disturbed at all during the next month, including on Father's Day.  He'll be watching all three games on Sunday, but I'm sure that he'll appreciate a warm biscuit straight from the oven during half time.  He loved these biscuits the first time I made them, and I know that he'll love them again the second time.  Until then though, happy weekend, happy World Cup, and happy Father's Day!

Buttermilk Biscuits with Salty Honey Butter
biscuit recipe from Bon Appétit

Ingredients

For the Biscuits

3 cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled, cubed
1 cup buttermilk

For the Salty Honey Butter

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons salt (more or less, to taste)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F and position a rack in the middle of the oven.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone liner.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.  Using a pastry blender or two knives, cut in the chilled butter until the mixture resembles a course, crumbly meal.  Add in the buttermilk and stir with a wooden spoon to combine. 

Drop the biscuits onto the prepared baking sheet, spacing two inches apart.  Alternatively, you can dump the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and gather it together.  Pat the dough down until it is 3/4"- 1" thick, and using a 2 1/2 inch round cutter, cut out biscuits, gathering the scraps and cutting out as needed. Work quickly during this step to avoid getting the butter too warm.  Bake the biscuits until the tops are golden brown, about 15 minutes.  Let cool slightly.  Enjoy the biscuits while they're still warm with a slather of salty honey butter.

While the biscuits are baking, prepare the salty honey butter.  Combine the butter, honey, and salt together in a bowl and stir to incorporate.  Taste to adjust the salt level.  Refrigerate the butter in an airtight container after enjoying some with your buttermilk biscuits.

Makes 16 biscuits (using a 2 1/2 inch cutter, yield may vary if shaped as drop biscuits)