Make-Ahead Freezer Biscuits
Learn how to make biscuits with less mess any night of the week. (Hint: Make them ahead.)
Makes12 (2-inch) biscuits
I’m a firm believer that a warm and buttery freshly baked biscuit is one of the greatest gifts we can give ourselves in the kitchen. Whether you’re slathering them with thick jam or a dunking them into hearty stews, biscuits are weeknight baking at its best.
I love making biscuits morning, noon, or night, but cleaning up all the flour afterward? I wouldn’t mind skipping that regularly in favor of getting dinner on the table faster some nights. In this recipe, my tried-and-true biscuit method is modified slightly for freezing, so you can make a whole batch on Sunday and bake off as many or as few as you need for dinner during the week.
Freezer Biscuits at the Ready Anytime
When making biscuits for the freezer, don’t be afraid to bake off a few right away. The recipe was designed for quick cleanup — hence no biscuit cutter to dirty — whether you bake them tonight or in the future.
When ready to bake frozen biscuits, don’t worry about thawing. This is the real miracle of the recipe. Take the frozen biscuits straight from the freezer to the baking tray and bake. Keep in mind that they will take three to five minutes longer to bake depending on how many you bake off at a time.
Weeknight Baking
Why should Saturday and Sunday have all the baking fun? Especially when a few deft mixing methods and some ingredient shortcuts can make biscuits, breads, and cakes a part of any day of the week. Weeknight Baking is our ode to the quick baking that can be done on even the most harried Thursday night.
Make-Ahead Freezer Biscuits
Learn how to make biscuits with less mess any night of the week. (Hint: Make them ahead.)
Makes 12 (2-inch) biscuits
Nutritional Info
Ingredients
- 3 cups
all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 1 tablespoon
baking powder
- 1 teaspoon
baking soda
- 1 teaspoon
salt
- 12 tablespoons
(3/4 cup) cold unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 cups
buttermilk
Instructions
Place the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl and whisk to combine. Grate the butter on the large holes of a box grater and add them immediately to the flour mixture. Use your fingertips to gently work the butter into the flour mixture until the mixture resembles oats. Add the buttermilk and stir until the dough forms a sticky ball.
Turn the dough out onto a flour-dusted work surface and pat into a rough 8-inch square. Knead the dough about 10 times by folding it in half and then patting it back down; rotate the dough 90 degrees after each fold. Pat the dough into a 6x8-inch rectangle. Cut the dough into 12 (2-inch) squares -- cut straight down with a chef's knife, do not saw back and forth.
Transfer the biscuits to a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and freeze until solid, at least 4 hours. Transfer the frozen biscuits to a gallon-sized zip-top bag for long-term freezer storage.
When ready to bake, arrange a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 400°F. Place the frozen biscuits, as many or as few as you’d like, 1-inch apart directly on a baking sheet. Bake until golden-brown and doubled in height, 18 to 20 minutes.
Recipe Notes
Storage: Frozen biscuits are best when baked within 3 months.
Bake them fresh: Bake the freshly-formed biscuits directly on the baking sheet at 400°F until golden-brown and doubled in height, 13 to 15 minutes.