Tuesday Tip: Mile-High Biscuits

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Biscuits—the wonderfully soft and flaky quick breads we all know and love—have become an American staple. Biscuits act as an alternative to dinner rolls or cornbread, soaking up gravy when paired with meat or potatoes, but they work equally well as a breakfast treat, covered with a thick layer of jam.

There are a few coveted qualities of all biscuits. They must be soft and flaky, unbelievably tender, and they must rise to towering heights (if for no reason but to entice us in). If you follow the few tips below, your biscuits can come out perfect every single time.

Mile-High Biscuit Tips:

  • Start with very cold butter or shortening. The cold ingredients, when incorporated into the flour, will give you flakier biscuits. We want flaky biscuits (FYI: this is also the trick for flaky pie crusts!).
  • Mix the butter into the flour just until it resembles coarse sand. This can be accomplished using a stand mixer, food processor, pastry blender, or with your hands (but make sure your hands are cold so you don't warm the butter!).
  • Add the liquid (again, make sure it is cold) and do not over-mix when incorporating it into the flour. Over-mixing will result in less tender biscuits. Why? Gluten forms when mixing dough, so the more you mix, the more gluten forms. When a lot of gluten forms, it results in a heavier, denser bread. This is the opposite of what we look for in a light, tall biscuit.
  • Move dough to a lightly floured surface and flatten with it with your hands (as opposed to a rolling pin) to 1/2-inch to 1-inch thick. If you need to knead the dough a few times to get it to come together, it is okay to do so but don't knead more than 10-12 times. The less you handle the dough, the softer the final result will be.
  • Cut out biscuits with a cutter lightly coated in flour. Do not twist cutter once you have pressed into the dough. Twisting will cause the sides of the dough to seal, meaning the dough will not rise as high as possible (or one side may seal and the other doesn't, resulting in a very crooked biscuit).
  • Place biscuits close to one another on the baking sheet for biscuits with soft edges or place 1-inch apart for crusty edges (depending on your preference).

To reheat leftover biscuits, wrap biscuits individually in foil and bake at 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) for 8-10 minutes. Alternatively, you can place biscuits in a microwave with a damp paper towel on high for 15-20 seconds, or until warm.

Can you guess what type of recipe is coming up next?

Dark Chocolate Oatmeal

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Dark Chocolate Oatmeal

Dark Chocolate Oatmeal

Oatmeal is on my short list of comfort foods. While meat and potatoes or thick hearty stews are perfect for cold winter nights, I look to oatmeal to warm my body and keep me snug on frost covered mornings. The stick-to-your-ribs goodness makes me feel as if I'm wearing a wool sweater (without the inevitable "itch"). Oatmeal has an ease and grace that stands out among the breakfast cereals. It's warm and friendly, soft and approachable (and it's good for you too). It's always pleasant to know that an honest breakfast is just five minutes away.

If only all of my comfort foods were just five minutes away...

On second thought, that would actually be a terrible idea.

Dark Chocolate Oatmeal

I typically sweeten my morning oatmeal with a sprinkling of brown sugar, a spoonful of maple syrup, or a handful of fruit. Occasionally, when I have the urge to become a little more adventurous, I cook up a batch of pumpkin spice or banana bread oatmeal. Despite the rare bowl of bold oats, I tend to stick with the classic hits in the oatmeal world.

While wandering the aisles of my local grocery store recently, I spotted something dangerous, something so utterly corrupting to my healthy New Year's resolutions I had to take a closer look. It was, for all intents and purposes, a mix for chocolate oatmeal. Chocolate Oatmeal. No wonder it stopped me in my tracks.

The four dollar price tag, however, kept my feet moving.

Dark Chocolate Oatmeal

Nevertheless, the idea had been planted.

As I contemplated the best way to make this oatmeal happen, I looked to my cabinets for the right ingredients. I used cocoa powder to supply a chocolate base, a dash of sugar to offset the bitterness the cocoa powder lends, and a small handful of chocolate chips to give it that chocolate punch I was craving. I call this recipe an easy success—easy to make (and even easier to make disappear).

This dark chocolate oatmeal is so sinful it tastes like a rich full-fat chocolate pudding. You'll want to eat this for breakfast, but you really, really shouldn't. However, if you do indulge (like me), you can count on me to keep that information under lock and key.

Your secret is safe with me.

Dark Chocolate Oatmeal Dark Chocolate Oatmeal

This Dark Chocolate Oatmeal is the perfect snack to zap your chocolate cravings and keep you full until the next meal. Made with milk, cocoa powder, and dark chocolate chips, this oatmeal tastes more like a chocolate pudding than a breakfast staple (and trust me, that's a very good thing). This recipe serves two comfortably. If cooking for one, halve the recipe accordingly—it will be enough. Serve hot, with a splash of milk and a few extra chocolate chips scattered on top.

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Soft & Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Soft & Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate Chip Cookies.

I want you to take in these words, close your eyes, and visualize their meaning. Feel the warmth from the oven as you peer at them baking. Breathe in their scent, imagine the taste, the texture, and let it linger softly on your tongue. Chocolate Chip Cookies will always be my ultimate cookie. Certainly sugar, shortbread, and oatmeal raisin all have a time and a place, but they have never carved out such a sweet place in my heart like dear chocolate chip.

And oh what a sweet place it is.

Chocolate Chip Cookies Chocolate Chip Cookies

In my year and a half of blogging, I have never shared a chocolate chip cookie recipe with you. There was a reason for this. I've shared a variation here or there, but you don't mess around with the true classic. When I was going to share a chocolate chip cookie recipe with you, I didn't want it to be just any cookie. I wanted it to stand out, to be special, to be different.

A good chocolate chip cookie has a few requirements. A great chocolate chip cookie has many more. I know some of you prefer them thin and crispy, but today's recipe is all about the thick and chewy chocolate chip cookie.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

This chocolate chip cookie recipe comes to me from a close family friend. It is her secret recipe, sought after by everyone blessed enough to try one of her cookies (me included). Fortunately, she has given me permission to share her secret with you. I won't reveal my source, however. The woman has an image to uphold (and a secret recipe to stay "secret").

This particular recipe has a slight twist. It is made with vegetable shortening instead of butter, which keeps the cookies wonderfully thick (cookies with a high butter content spread out very thin). The cookie also uses a couple tablespoons of mild molasses for one specific purpose. The molasses keeps the inside of the cookies soft for days (if they last that long, of course), without lending a distinct flavor. Five days on my kitchen counter and these cookies are as soft as the day I made them.

Chocolate Chip Cookies Chocolate Chip Cookies

These soft and chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies are the only chocolate chip cookie recipe you'll ever need. With just the right ratio of chocolate chips to cookie dough, the cookie maintains a very soft center while the edges stay lightly browned and crispy. These are lovely dipped into a glass of milk or eaten warm and gooey, straight out of the oven.

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