It’s funny how trying out and eating new things slowly makes you like them.Buttermilk biscuits were the first american food which I ate just few hours I landed here when we went for a quick breakfast at Popeyes.During my long distance chats with P, the guy always used to tell me that he loves chicken & biscuits for breakfast, and I always thought what a strange combo it was!! That is because, in India only cookies with chocolate chips are called “cookies” and rest all kinds of cookies are called “biscuits”! Confusing ?But he never cared to clarify & I did not want to discuss food on international calls then!
Never in my life I had imagined that something could replace my love for green chutney & bread pakoras[potato stuffed bread fritters] for breakfast.Never ever! In fact you wont believe,at this point in my life I can have biscuits at any point of the day with butter,mayo, jam, maple, curry ..almost anything on earth.I know curry with biscuits sounds too crazy but I love it.P who loves sausage & biscuits,is so irritated with this habit & tells me many times that if you want to be addicted to Indian things and always give them a preference,then why not we go back to India.I tell him”I don’t mind”.He shuts his mouth there and we enjoy our meal! I dont know what problem men have with everything we do! Anways with a heavy heart, I must admit that though I m insanely in love with the bread pakoras still, I have developed a crazy addiction for biscuits!
Everybody who has heard of biscuits, would know they have their typical taste from the buttermilk that goes into them.Then why am I talking cream cheese here? Let me tell you. A month back, while watching Travel channel, I watched these famous variety of biscuits from Robinhood Meetinghouse restaurant in coastal Maine.The show talked intensely about their Chef Michael Gagne and his award-winning 72-layer Cream Cheese Biscuits baked entirely from scratch. You can visit their site here and order a pack for yourself if you wish! I do not know their signature recipe, the info I am giving here is purely based on a telly show & some internet search.
I was thrilled and wanted to incorporate cream cheese in my biscuits.I could not imagine how wonderful cream cheese would taste in the biscuits!! I have been baking buttermilk biscuits for over a year now but the last time I baked them with cream cheese and trust me once you do that you will never want to bake biscuits without cream cheese ever again! They are super moist,flaky and cheesy with amazing melt in the mouth kind of texture. I sometimes add wonderful flavorings like dried oregano,chives or garlic etc when I am serving them for breakfast.The smell of freshly baked biscuits out of the oven is the most intoxicating thing in the mornings.If you can’t wait..below goes the recipe:
What I need: [Makes 8-10 biscuits]
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup cream cheese,cold
- 5 tbsp unsalted butter,cold
- 1 fat garlic clove, minced
- 1/2 cup butter milk,cold [or as required]
- 1 tsp baking powder [use one without aluminium]
- pinch of baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Melted butter for brushing
How I did it:
- Sift flour,baking soda,baking powder and salt together in a medium-sized mixing bowl.
- Cut butter & cream cheese into the flour mixture.Tip in the minced garlic too.Work with hands until the butter is coarse. Do this quickly taking care that the butter does not melt.If you feel that butter is softening,refrigerate immediately and re work when cold.
- Stir in cold butter milk until JUST combined. If it appears on the dry side, add a bit more buttermilk.Dough will be will be slightly sticky due to cheese but do not worry.Just pull up the whole dough together, do not knead,wrap the dough in a plastic cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 450 F.
- Take out the refrigerated dough.On a lightly floured surface gently fold dough over on itself about 5-6 time.The same way how you create layers when making layered flatbread [paratha].
- Now, start patting with the help of hands to flatten out the dough into a rough sheet about 1/2″ thk.Preferably do not use rolling-pin as far as possible.In case you have to, roll as gently as possible.
- Cut with biscuit cutter or even cookie cutter will work.[I used my flower shaped].Use it straight down, no twisting around.
- Bring together the scrap, spread it again and cut more biscuits.
- Place biscuits on an un-greased baking sheet or one lined with parchment paper.Avoid using foil because the extreme heat from below will lead to over browning.
- Refrigerate again for at least 15 minutes.Take out,brush liberally with melted butter.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes in a 450 degree F oven until risen and tops are slightly brown.
- Serve warm with your style of eggs and butter!
Notes:
- If you wish to eat the biscuits with jam or do not like garlic, just skip it.Garlic is just for flavor addition and has no role in the baking part as such.
- The cold your biscuits are when they hit the oven, the flaky they will come out.
Enjoy and have a nice weekend everyone!
Sending these to Family Friendly Fridays @Mommie Cooks
awww your story about your chats with your husband was cute. you must have been thinking, “how strange biscuits and chicken” hehehehe.
your buttermilk biscuits look really yummy. will have to try this recipe out!
Omg,cute and just tempting biscuits..marvellous,happy 2011 to u and ur family Tanvi..
I subscribed to your site the minute I saw it because I LOVE indian food and spice. I did not expect to see my other favorite food mentioned here, but now you have done it! When my husband and I wanted to get married, one of the conditions was that he would keep me supplied in biscuits for the rest of my life! Soon after I learned how to make them myself, but they’re not quite Pillsbury. I can’t wait to try this recipe!
I love Popeyes/ KFC biscuits -I am the only one to eat the biscuit which comes with meal. Love the flower shape and they are extremely flaky!
Those butter biscuits looks just too beautiful lovely pictures and thank god i didn’t see it morning or else i would have screamed for that plate with egg for breakfast
I love biscuits, anykind of biscuits… your buttermilk biscuits looks yumm!!!
Have a lovely weekend!
I love fresh biscuits for breakfast, or really at any time of the day. And how cute is the idea of cutting ‘em in flower shapes? I’m definitely going to have to give this cream cheese idea a go!
hehehe ok that made me laugh out loud. Yup, I remember my mom referring to every sweet cookie as biscuit. It used to irritate me to no end. And then when I spend those 4 years in India, I realized everybody called everything biscuits!
I love your recipe, they look incredibly flaky and cheeeeeeesy!
Tanvi! I Love love love how you cut out these biscuits into little flowers! I so want to make my biscuits like this next time. They look perfectly cooked – a bit crispy on the outside, nice and chewy on the inside. Yum.
In Greece also all cookies are called biscotta. These look very cute. I love their flowery shape. They must go very well with the eggs.
You wont believe it but my case was the same… even though i love biscuits i never made them… i am really intimidated… but we love KFC or popeye’s biscuits… will surely try ur recipe… and yeah husbands do have a problem with everything we do… ofcourse they wont stop us and we wont listen right?
Ur biscuits do look so so so cute … love them… wanna grab one
Happy new year tanvi..the cookies look too cute and inviting…..
I stopped reading after bread pakoras. and green chutney. I’d forgotten about them. Now after hearing you mention it, I’m on borderline obsession. tomorrow. I’ll make BPs tomorrow.
have.to.have.some. NOW.
Tell P “maike chali jaongi” and come visit me. we’ll have the BPs together (and hit the gym afterward, okay?)
I love cream cheese and if possible I can add it to anything I eat! These biscuits look so great!
I think every desi boy (my husband included) loves their buttermilk biscuits. The only difference is that Ali eats his from KFC and not Popeyes. But I put a stop to that!!
I love how pretty these are! Cutting them with a flower shaped cutter is a brilliant idea. They look divine!
Actually I am not much of a biscuit person but this one, well, as one foodie once remarked you can never go wrong with 2 ingredients —- cheese and butter and this one has cheese and is bound to be delicious.It sure looks yum.But what attracted my attention was the photo of the delicious looking eggs, it has been done exactly the way we like it at home.
BTW, although I had heard about batata being a Portuguese word, I checked it on the internet to confirm what I knew and sure enough batata is the Portuguese word for potato.
Love these cute biscuits. Gallic flavor is a big yes to me, would love to bake them and make them my fave. breakfast too
Biscuits and eggs looks delicious. I love flaky biscuits.
That biscuits look so beautiful, perfectly baked and yummy. So far never used cream cheese in baking but now you’re tempting me to try them.
have seen a lot of biscuit recipes and my hands are itching to try out some. yours look great Tanvi.
Great recipe..looks so perfect and yummy!!
I am a total garlic fanatic & these look fantastic! I do believe I shall have to try them out.
Your biscuits are so cute! And they look so flaky – good tip on keeping the dough cold.
Thanks for stopping by my blog. Your photos are beautiful. And I love the shape you cut out the biscuits. So cute. I loved eating biscuits with butter and honey when I was a kid. Going to have to give this dough a try too and recreate that childhood memory.
Your biscuits are so cute! And they sound so very rich and delicious with the cream cheese in them! I could eat them happily all day long.
i live in NC and am from the UK must admit never really got a taste for biscuits like scones better
yours look so pretty though
It looks so beautiful…flaky and yummy biscuits….
I love these flower biscuits
) Look so pretty.
These are the cutest shape!! This would surely bring a smile on anyone’s face!
Check out the comments on my New Year’s Eve blog post regarding your question on the fish skewers. Come to think of it, I never did a tutorial on the pound cake…I just may do that soon…
Carmen
Those do indeed look really nice and flaky! I think I’ll have to try these without the garlic so that I can have them with a pat of butter and some jam for breakfast!
When I hear the words, garlic, biscuits and cream cheese I start to drool! Those look fabulous.
Cheers,
Rosa
I had heard that about cookies being called biscuits in India before! These sound delicious; I absolutely love the addition of cream cheese and I wouldn’t have ever thought to do that.
OMG that looks super cute.. Love it.. loved the recipe as well . By the way clicks are amazing.
Irresistible biscuits! They are a perfect anytime snack!
They are so CUTE…and very professional looking! I can’t wait to try them!
Beautiful photos.
My biscuits always come out more like scones, but I like scones, so it doesn’t bother me. But maybe my dough isn’t cold enough, like you said.
Cheers!
Absolutely adorable, and great flavour!
*kisses* HH
wow the buttermilk biscuits look really delish!
Wow, they sure look so cute and I bet they taste wonderful too
awesome post Tanvi! I’m loving it..
Also, there is a small giveaway in my blog.. Do participate in it!
http://rasoithekitchen.blogspot.com/
I love the biscuits they serve at Red Lobster here. Your buttermilk biscuits look perfect. 10 on 10 from me, if it matters.
Oh these are so wonderful!
Love the cream cheese addition as well as the the flower shapes , super cute!!!
And oh so flaky!
Ur layers are perfect and love the garlicky flav , perfect for those well fried eggs!
Wonderful day and brite sunshine new year!
Love that cute shape of the biscuits.
These biscuits are so pretty. Who could not like garlic?!!
Buttermilk Biscuits from Popeyes are my favorite.
Oh Tanvi! These are so cute! I mean really adorable! I love buttermilk biscuits and made some a week ago! Just stopping by to tell you I have awarded you a Stylish Blogger Award! Please stop by to A Moderate Life tomorrow to receive it! All the best! Alex
I’ve discovered your blog just recently. Recipes – so delicious. Love it!!!