I don’t believe I have ever been to a wedding reception or cocktail party in Charleston, South Carolina that didn’t have ham biscuits on the menu. The very best are made by my friend Betsy, a fabulous cook and caterer. Her cocktail size biscuits – about an inch in diameter – are buttery and light and when filled with a sliver of salty Virginia ham; biscuit perfection.
Biscuits are not complicated to make, but getting flaky, tender biscuits requires the right choice of flour, not over handling the dough and a little bit of technique when rolling them out. The minute flour comes in contact with a liquid it develops gluten, an elastic substance that becomes increasingly rubbery the more it is worked: good for chewy bread, bad for tender biscuits. Betsy uses White Lily, soft Southern flour that is lower in gluten than regular flour; in France, I would use Type 45. She then gently mixes the ingredients; kneading is for bread, not biscuits. And finally she rolls and folds her dough several times so the cooked biscuits will develop flaky, pull apart, layers.
This recipe will make 45 cocktail biscuits or 12 breakfast size biscuits.
Betsy’s Buttermilk Ham Biscuits
Ingredients
Instructions
- Heat oven to 450°F/230°C. Place the rack in the middle of the oven and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Put the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda in a bowl and whisk to combine.
- Toss the cubed butter into the flour mixture and stir with a wooden spoon to break up any pieces that are attached and make sure the butter is evenly distributed throughout the dry ingredients, do not rub or blend. Once done, add the cold buttermilk and stir until the ingredients combine to form a rough dough that pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Dump the dough from the bowl (it will be crumbly with visible bits of butter - you might be tempted to knead it, but don’t) onto a lightly floured work surface and using your hands, lightly press the dough into a coarse lump.
- Dust the top of the dough with flour and roll out into a rectangle, about a third longer than it is wide. The first time you roll it out, it will crumble and look like shaggy mess. Use your hands to shape it but avoid touching the dough too much. Lift and fold the top third of the rectangle down over the middle of the dough, (you may need a pastry cutter to help you do this), then bring up the bottom third, so the pastry is now folded in three like a letter. Turn the dough so the edges are facing you, again roll it into a rectangle and repeat the folding process. Roll and fold for a total of three turns. Finish by rolling out the final folded dough to a half-inch thickness for breakfast size biscuits or a little thinner for the smaller, cocktail size biscuits.
- Dip your cutter into flour and cut out the biscuits using a straight up and down motion, no twisting: this smears the cut edges and the biscuits will not rise evenly as they cook. Cut the biscuits out as close together as possible to avoid excess dough that will have to be rolled out again. Place the cut biscuits on the baking sheet and cook until golden brown and cooked through, 5-7 minutes for small biscuits, 12-15 minutes for breakfast size.
- While the biscuits are still warm, split in two, lightly spread the two halves with butter and fill with sliced ham. Biscuits can cool and be reheated before serving.
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https://www.charlottepuckette.com/recipes/savory-tarts-and-quick-breads-recipes/betsys-buttermilk-ham-biscuits/
