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These easy to make Classic Biscuits, made with all-purpose flour and butter, are a tried-and-true recipe from the Good Housekeeping cookbook that turn out fluffy and delicious every time.
» You might also like this Easy Scones Recipe and Cinnamon Rolls with Heavy Cream.
This is my go-to biscuit recipe that I use any time we want fluffy tender biscuits for breakfast. They’re great on their own with some butter and jam, or you can use them to make on the go bacon egg and cheese biscuits or biscuits and gravy.
There are many biscuit recipes out there, all of them quite similar, but these are a tried-and-true classic recipe from the Good Housekeeping Cookbook that was published in 1963. They come out so great and I’ve never felt the need to stray from it.
The recipe uses butter instead of shortening and regular milk instead of buttermilk. These are two things I always have one hand, while I don’t necessarily keep shortening and buttermilk on hand. So they are super convenient to make and don’t require a separate trip to the store.
What makes this recipe truly special is its versatility; whether you’re in need of a breakfast on the go or a great brunch treat with friends, this recipe is the one.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- All-Purpose Flour – If you have gluten intolerance, you can substitute gluten-free all-purpose flour.
- Baking Powder – You need to use fresh baking powder to get the best result. Add a little baking powder to boiling water to see if it’s still good. If it bubbles, your baking powder is suitable for use.
- Salt & pepper – salt is used in the biscuit dough, then you can use the salt and pepper again to season the eggs.
- Cold Salted Butter – When preparing this recipe, make sure your butter is really cold – the colder, the better! Personally, I prefer salted butter in all savory recipes, but you can use unsalted if that’s what you have on hand.
- Cold Milk – I prefer whole milk for the extra richness, but skim, 2% or even unflavored almond milk can be used.
How to Make Classic Biscuits
- Preheat oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicon baking mat. Set aside.
- Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl and mix well.
- Add the butter to the flour mixture and cut with a pastry cutter until it resembles coarse cornmeal.
- Make a well in the middle of the mixture. Pour in 1/4 cup of milk.
- Lightly and quickly mix with a fork. Add additional milk just to form dough moist enough to leave the sides of the bowl and cling to the fork.
- Turn dough out on a floured surface. Knead together 4-5 times, adding enough flour to make it less tacky.
- Pick up side of dough furthest from you and fold toward you. With palms, push down, pressing dough away from you. Turn dough a quarter turn. Repeat process 6-7 times, working gently.
- Lightly roll dough out from the center to 3/4” thick.
- Using a floured 3” biscuit cutter, cut out biscuits – straight without twisting – as close to each other as possible. Flour cutter between cuttings.
- Lift the biscuits with a spatula and place on the baking sheet, about 1” apart. Brush tops of biscuits with milk or melted butter.
- Bake 12-15 minutes or until lightly golden. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool slightly.
Can I Make These Ahead?
These biscuits can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge for up to three days or in the freezer for up to three months.
This makes it a convenient option for busy mornings. You can pull out however many biscuits as you want to cook and bake them. This is a great option for when you’re making biscuits and gravy or a biscuit sandwich.
Additional Helpful Tips
- Before incorporating the butter and milk into the dough, make sure they are both very cold.
- Biscuit dough, unlike bread dough, does not require resting. You want to keep all of the butter in the dough cool. If you don’t use the dough right away, the butter will soften. So put the dough back in the refrigerator if you don’t cut the biscuits out immediately.
- Take care not to over-knead the dough. This will result in dry, tough biscuits.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it possible to substitute shortening for butter?
You can substitute the butter with shortening if you want to. It is a direct 1:1 substitute. For me, butter is the best option because it help make a super fluffy biscuit and the flavor is definitely enhanced by the butter.
Why do the butter and milk need to be cold?
Cold butter and milk will result in the fluffiest biscuits because they help to create more steam in the oven which leads to greater rising. Cold butter pieces in the batter will help make fluffy pockets of air that crisp and make fluffy biscuits.
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Easy Classic Biscuits
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons cold salted butter cubed
- 1/2 cup cold milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicon baking mat. Set aside.
- Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl and mix well. Add the butter to the flour mixture and cut with a pastry cutter until it resembles coarse cornmeal. Make a well in the middle of the mixture. Pour in 1/4 cup of milk. Lightly and quickly mix with a fork. Add additional milk just to form dough moist enough to leave the sides of the bowl and cling to the fork.
- Turn dough out on a floured surface. Knead together 4-5 times, adding enough flour to make it less tacky.
- Pick up side of dough furthest from you and fold toward you. With palms, push down, pressing dough away from you. Turn dough a quarter turn. Repeat process 6-7 times, working gently.
- Lightly roll dough out from the center to 3/4” thick.
- Using a floured 3” biscuit cutter, cut out biscuits – straight without twisting – as close to each other as possible. Flour cutter between cuttings. Lift the biscuits with a spatula and place on the baking sheet, about 1” apart. Brush tops of biscuits with milk or melted butter.
- Bake 12-15 minutes or until lightly golden. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
Notes
- Before incorporating the butter and milk into the dough, make sure they are both very cold.
- Biscuit dough, unlike bread dough, does not require resting. You want to keep all of the butter in the dough cool. If you don’t use the dough right away, the butter will soften. So put the dough back in the refrigerator if you don’t cut the biscuits out immediately.
- Take care not to over-knead the dough. This will result in dry, tough biscuits
Nutrition
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Laura is a home cook, with 25 years experience behind the stove, who spends an extraordinary amount of time in the kitchen cooking. She loves making new recipes and finding wonderful new things to eat, both at home or abroad. She spends a lot of time researching, crafting, and perfecting her recipes.
