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David Lee's Biscuits
Like many recipes, this one has traveled many miles. David Lee, a long-time member of our bakingcircle.com community, picked it up from a James Beard book; Beard said he had gotten the recipe from his Chinese cook. David added his interpretation; now we've added ours. We all travel a slightly different path, but we're walking through the same forest: a love of baking, of creating. We write different words, but speak the same language: the language of flour and butter, sugar and salt. And eventually, we all reach the same destination: something wonderful to share with one another.
Ingredients
Biscuits
- 2 cups Pastry Flour Blend or King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 to 1 1/4 cups heavy cream
- 1 to 2 tablespoons melted butter
- sparkling sugar, optional
Shortcake
- 1 quart fresh strawberries
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 cup heavy cream
- granulated sugar to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- To make the biscuits: Sift together the flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar.
- Stir in enough heavy cream to moisten the dough thoroughly. You want to be able to gather the dough together, squeeze it, and have it hang together without dry bits falling off.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface, and very gently pat it into an 8" circle about 3/4" thick. Use a sharp biscuit cutter (we use a 2 1/4" cutter) to cut rounds.
- Dip the rounds into melted butter, and place them on a lightly greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with sparkling (coarse) sugar, if desired; this is a nice touch if you're going to use the biscuits for shortcake.
- Bake the biscuits for 15 to 18 minutes, until they're golden brown. If you have any melted butter left over, brush it on the baked biscuits. "Serve hot!," says David.
- To make shortcake from the biscuits: Trim and slice the fresh strawberries. Sprinkle them with the sugar, stir, and set aside at room temperature for several hours; or refrigerate overnight.
- Whip the heavy cream until it barely holds its shape. Sweeten to taste with granulated sugar.
- Split oven-warm biscuits in half. Top the bottom half of each with whipped cream, strawberries, more whipped cream, then the top half of the biscuit. Add a dollop of whipped cream and a slice of strawberry on top, as a garnish.
Tips from our bakers
- David called for "soft Southern flour;" that's why we like to use our Pastry Flour Blend, a lovely "soft" flour whose protein level falls right in between all-purpose and pastry flours, giving you the best of both worlds: tender texture and ease of handling. If you use unbleached all-purpose flour, substitute 1/4 cup (1 3/8 ounces) cornstarch for 1/4 cup of the flour.
- Use just enough cream to make a cohesive dough. You'll probably use about 1 cup in the summer, 1 1/4 cups in the winter, and 1 cup + 2 tablespoons at other times of year.
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Reviews
These biscuits were delicious! Make sure you don't overmix, don't roll them out too thin (3/4 inch) and if you use unbleached flour, follow the recipe regarding substituting part cornstarch. They were delicious without the cornstarch, but didn't rise very high. I do have one concern though about the number of biscuits. Is a 10 count yield accurate? I rolled too thin (to just over 1/2 inch) and cut into 6 equal pieces with a serrated knife. They were not overlarge at all. I can't imagine them smaller.Kim, we're glad to hear you liked the result of this recipe! The yield is about 10 biscuits if you use a 2 1/4" cutter, which makes perfect shortcake-sized biscuits. If you're looking for something larger, feel free to cut the biscuits to size and adjust the cooking time as necessary. Happy baking! Kye@KAF
I got light and fluffy shortcake muffins using KA all purpose baking mix. I left out the cornstarch. I used avocado oil instead of butter and homemade almond milk instead of heavy cream. I used just enough almond milk to make the batter fluffy and then dropped the batter into an electric mini muffin maker (yield 10 mini muffins). A 4 star recipe for me only because the shortcake was too salty. I'll try 1/2 tsp salt instead of 1 tsp salt next time.
I'm giving the recipe 3 stars as a benefit of the doubt...mine came out as one star (or less!). I would describe myself as an intermediate baker -- I've been baking for over a couple decades and am proficient at dough recipes requiring light working to produce light and fluffy results. My KA AP flour was very fresh and properly stored, and I used the 1/4 cup cornstarch suggestion and followed the recipe to a "t." However, these biscuits were the toughest I've ever had -- we literally had to pick them up and bite with our teeth! No fork (or spoon) cutting here, despite whipped cream and strawberry juices. The reason I'm giving benefit of doubt is perhaps my baking powder was not as fresh (end of a frequently used container though). I will stick to biscuits w/ butter cut into them from now on since I have better results with them.
Tough biscuits are usually a sign of over-mixing or over-kneading. Mix only until the dry ingredients are moistened and a gentle gathering of the dough and you'll have lighter baked results. Happy baking! Irene@KAF
I had already measured and sifted all the dry ingredients when I read the note about substituting corn starch for part of the flour. Nevertheless, these biscuits came out light, fluffy and delicious. Having them tonight with fresh peaches and whipped cream. Definitely a keeper!
Made these just now. They are tasteless - missing something - dry. Fresh picked strawberries = yum! But this dry boring shortcake not so much. Out they go!
We are sorry to hear you were not pleased with this shortcake recipe. You're right, adding strawberries is the key to making these biscuits shine. Without the fresh fruit, you might find them lacking in flavor. The good news is that we have a number of other shortcake recipes on our website for you to try if you feel like experimenting. Happy baking! Kye@KAF
Made this using fresh KAF white whole wheat with 1/4 c cornstarch,plus a little extra liquid. I let the biscuits rest 10 minutes before baking,and they were tall, tender,fluffy and had a lovely mild nutty taste. Our guest ate two before we got the strawberries on!
Delicious! Light and just sweet enough as shortcake. I don't think I will ever make scones again. These are as good and easier.
These are FANTASTIC!!! Easy, light, perfect biscuits. Made Strawberry Shortcake using this recipe. Biscuits are tender on the inside and slightly crispy on the outside with a delicate butter flavor on top. They rose in the oven to double - about 1- 1/2 inches tall.. The salt was the perfect amount to contrast with the slightly sweet biscuits. I only varied from the recipe by using 1 Tbsp. sugar in the biscuits. Instead of cutting into rounds, I patted dough into a 7" square and cut 9 biscuits. So easy - so good!
Yum! I missed the direction to sub cornstarch for part of the flour, but they're still tender and delicious as can be. Bless DAvid and thanks, KAF, for anpther great recipe!
This has quickly become my most demanded recipe. Every dinner party, potluck and picnic, this shortcake steals the show. I've made it about 8 times, and each time has been perfect. A surefire success. Also wonderful if you add blueberries, raspberries or other fruit along with the strawberries.
