Cream Biscuits

Fool-proof pre-coffee morning biscuits. (Piglet’s recipe.)

Preheat oven to 375 deg. F.

A mixing bowl and a large mixing fork

• self-rising flour, 1 1/2 cups (160 grams)
• Sugar, 1 tablespoon, or to taste
Stir the flour and sugar together into the bowl.

• Heavy cream, 3/4 cup (170 grams)
Stir in the cream and mix to make a soft dough.
Use a fork to stir in the cream; keep stirring quickly, forking the flour from the outside into the center in a circular sweeping motion: fork some in, stir the middle, fork some in, stir the middle, etc. Balls of dough will form and then begin to cling together in one large mass.
Add a dribble more cream if needed to bind together, but don’t overdo it. You can also knead together several large pieces, which is better than getting it too wet. If you get it too wet, just go ahead and knead it, kneading in extra flour. It’s a forgiving dough.

NB: you can easily make smaller or larger batches. If you’re low on an ingredient, weigh it first. Then use relatively even amounts of the other ingredient. Self-rising flour + sugar == cream is the rule of thumb.

A lightly-floured work surface, a rolling pin, a cookie cutter (or substitute a medium-sized waterglass), and an ungreased cookie sheet. Use an all-purpose or cake flour to dust with when you knead and roll out, rather than self-rising, which adds a metallic taste to the outside of the biscuits.

Knead the dough for 30 seconds.
Roll out the dough to 1/2 inch thick.

Cut out biscuits using a small round or shaped cookie cutter and transfer them to the cookie sheet.

Bake in med. hot oven (375 deg. F) for 10-12 minutes (or as few as 7-8 minutes if you have a “fast” oven).
Remove them when they are puffy and light brown.