~ Teresa's Stress-Free Cheddar 'n Cream Biscuits ~

T.G.I.F.  It was an egg-cellent week here on Kitchen Encounters.  I stayed warm in my kitchen, showed you how to ~ Wake Up and Poach an Egg ~ for breakfast on Monday, made ~ My Poached Egg & BLT Cheddar Biscuit Sandwiches ~ on Wednesday, and today, as promised, I'm showing you how to make Teresa Gottier's, mouth-watering, stress-free cheddar cheese 'cream biscuits', which were pictured on my sandwich post (click on the Related Article links below to get the recipes mentioned above).  A bit about Teresa and her stress-free biscuits:

Teresa Gottier was a pastry chef, and is a close FB friend of mine.  By coincidence, she posted a photo of her easy-to-make 'cream biscuits' on Facebook on Tuesday.  She was serving them with her Thanksgiving leftovers and I was intrigued.  She and I chatted back and forth about her recipe, because I just knew that her cheddar cheese biscuits on my sandwiches, if they weren't too hard to make, would "knock 'em outta the park".  Teresa assured me these were easiest biscuits on the planet to "throw together", and, they required no special equipment (quick and easy -- exactly what I wanted for my simple sandwiches).  She messaged me her ingredients list.

Note:  I'm not saying biscuits are hard to make, but, they can be persnickity.  They can go from light and airy to hockey puck in a hurry.  

Experts have written cookbooks revolving around biscuits, addressing everything from the type of flour to the shortening required.  I don't want to rain on their biscuit parade, but, it is possible to make a decent biscuit with any kind of flour and any kind of shortening as long as you don't over moisten or overwork the dough.

Chatting with Teresa, a seasoned biscuit maker, put my mind at ease. 

When Teresa and I are "on a roll" we discuss things to the max.  Teresa uses King Arthur self-rising flour when making these (a product I use all the time too), along with Grafton cheddar cheese and non-homogenized cream from grass-fed cows.  One would have to be out of ones mind not to recognize the high standards this chef sets.  I'm not chopped liver either, but, most of the time, I write a blog for "regular people who use regular ingredients", so, I asked what she thought about Bisquick, a staple a lot of people keep in their pantry, pre-shredded cheddar and ultra-pasteurized cream. Teresa felt that in this particular culinary application, she had no problem with me trying a substitution or three -- but I'd be held responsible for my actions!

When I made the biscuits on Wednesday, I did use the self-rising flour, but, substituted store-bought, pre-shredded, yellow cheddar cheese and ultra-pasteurized cream.  As you can see from this photo, they came out great!

Today I put the recipe to another test.  I decided to see how it would work with Bisquick as a substitution. My mindset:  if they flopped, I would just drop the matter entirely and write the recipe around self-rising flour.  Guess what?  They didn't flop!

Note:  Neither Teresa or I are saying Bisquick can be substituted equally for self-rising flour in any culinary application, except, possibly when making biscuits, more specifially, these biscuits.

8  ounces self-rising flour or Bisquick, your choice

4  ounces finely-shredded white or yellow cheddar cheese

1  cup heavy or whipping cream

1  tablespoon sugar

1/2  teaspoon sea salt 

additional flour, for dusting board

additional cream, for brushing on tops of biscuits prior to baking

~ Step 1.  Using a kitchen scale, weigh your flour (or Bisquick) and then your cheese, placing them in a large mixing bowl as you work.  Add the sugar and salt.  Using a large spoon stir until combined.

~ Step 2. Stir in the milk, about 1/4 cup at a time, until the dry ingredients are just moistened.

Stop adding milk when you feel the ingredients pulling together, somewhere between 3/4-1 cup. When making biscuits, you do not want over moisten the mixture or over mix it.  You want it to look like a rough, ragged, semi-moist mess!

With your hands, gather dough up and form  into a ball or thick disc. 

~ Step 3.  Place the ball/disc on a lightly-floured (or Bisquicked) surface.  Using your fingertips and/or the heel of your hand, gently pat and press it to a thickness of 1".  1" is the magic thickness!

~Step 4.  Cut dough into 5-6, 2 1/2" rounds.  If you only get 5, gather up the scraps, form another 1"-thick disc and cut the 6th!

~ Step 5. Arrange the biscuits on a 12 1/2" x 8 3/4 baking pan that has been lined with parchment paper. Using a pastry brush, lightly paint/brush the top of each one with any remaining cream or some additional cream.  Sprinkle VERY LIGHTLY w/a bit of sea salt.

~ Step 6.  Bake on center rack of preheated 425 degree oven for 12-14 minutes, or until golden brown on the top and bottom.  Remove from oven and immediately transfer to a cooling rack to cool 1-3 minutes to serve hot, 4-6 minutes to serve warm, or, 15-20 minutes to serve at room temperature.  All biscuits are always best served ASAP:

Teresa's Stress-Free Cheddar 'n Cream Biscuits:  Recipe yields 6, 3" round biscuits.

Special Equipment List:  kitchen scale; large spoon; cutting/pasty board; 2 1/2"-round biscuit cutter; parchment paper; 12 1/2" x 8 3/4" baking pan; pastry brush; cooling rack  

Cook's Note:  If you love the combination of chocolate and peanut butter as much as I do, you've got to give ~ Confection Perfection:  Teresa's Buckeye Candies ~ a try.  You can find the recipe in Categories 7 or 20!  

"We are all in this food world together." ~ Melanie Preschutti

(Recipe, Commentary and Photos courtesy of Melanie's Kitchen/Copyright 2013)

Related articles

~ Flour Facts: All-Purpose, Bread, Cake and Pastry ~

~ It's Monday Morning! Wake Up & Poach an Egg!!! ~

~My Poached Egg & BLT Cheddar Biscuit Sandwich~

~ Teresa's Easy-to-Make Overnight Belgian Waffles ~

~ Pennsylvania-Dutch-Country Chicken & Waffles ~

Comments

[Kitchen Encounters]

Teresa! You are HERE!!! You were missed!!! So glad you are a part of my food world!!! ~ Mel

[Teresa Gottier]

Proud as a peacock!

[Teresa Gottier]

I am honored to be in great company!