The American South is the birthplace of
the biscuit and it is usually made with a cultured buttermilk. The acidity
makes the biscuits tender and gives them a slight tang, which stands up to the
buttery richness. Here again I have used yogurt in place of buttermilk and
found that I like it better. I also use a pastry cutter to cut up the butter into
the flour, but you could use a food processor or even the back of a fork. Neal’s
Yard Dairy makes a delicious plain yogurt, as does Yeo Valley. Makes 15
biscuits.
INGREDIENTS
- 250g plain flour
- 250g strong white flour
- 2tbsp caster sugar
- 1 3/4tsp baking powder
- 3/4tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 250g unsalted butter, cold
- 340g plain yogurt
- Sea salt flakes, for the tops
METHOD
- Line a baking tray with paper.
Heat the oven to 200°C/fan oven 180°C/mark 6.
- In a large bowl, mix the flours,
caster sugar, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and 2tsp sea salt,
whisking the ingredients together well.
- Cut 220g of the butter into small,
even-size cubes and use a pastry cutter to cut it into the flour mixture
until the chunks are the size of peas.
- Stir in the yogurt until the mixture
just comes together and holds its shape.
- Turn the ball of dough out onto a
lightly floured surface. Pat the dough into a square about 2cm thick and
fold in half. Pat it out again and let it rest for 5 minutes.
- Use a 6cm round biscuit cutter to
get as many biscuits as you can. Take any scraps and pat them together
before re-rolling it and cutting the remaining biscuits to get about 15.
Place them close together on the prepared tray so that they almost touch.
- Melt the remaining 30g butter and
brush the biscuits with it. Sprinkle on the salt flakes and bake for 15–25
minutes (this will depend on the heat of your oven). They are cooked when
they are puffed, golden and springy to the touch.
Enjoy !
-bird
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