My first thought upon taking the first bite of Kim’s Sweet Cream Biscuits was one of surprise. They are beautifully, subtly, elegantly sweet! Who knew? In fact they are like my mother’s baking powder biscuits—a sort of cousin to them I would say–except they have this sweet difference. And they are also filled with another flavor. How can I describe it? It is round and nutty–the flavor of baked butter.
And this says nothing about their texture. The top is deliciously flakey and the bottom has a light crunch. Then the middle! The middle is tender, like angel’s wings I’m thinking… Oh forget it. You’re just going to have to try them yourselves. There are no words to adequately describe these wonderful little delights of flour, baking powder and heavy cream.
And as I sat before the platter of biscuits I caught myself reverting to a game of childhood. I assessed each biscuit–their shape and size and degree of browning–to pick the very best of the platter. And I did this again and again and again. Oh, that’s the other thing. There is no stopping eating them, until the platter is empty or you just can’t go on. I suggest them for your Christmas Day breakfast.
SWEET CREAM BISCUITS
2 C all purpose flour
1/3 C Baker’s Sugar (fine)
1 T fresh baking powder (baking tip: replace your baking powder every 6 months)
1/2 t salt
1 & 1/4 C heavy cream
Preheat oven to 425 – middle rack in place
Baking sheet with parchment paper ready
Whisk dry ingredients together in large bowl…
Pour in cream…
… and mix together quickly:
When fairly well mixed dump it all onto cutting board or counter top…
… and press and squeeze together until it forms a moist clump. Don’t overwork the dough at this point. This should only take about 2 minutes:
Either with a rolling pin or your hands shape the dough into an approximate 1/2” thick rectangle. Don’t worry about the dry bits that fall away:
With a large kitchen knife cut the dough into 1 1/2” or 2” diamonds or rectangles…
… and place spaced on the baking sheet and into the oven:
They should take about 15 minutes, turning the tray half way through, then removing to a cooling rack when finished to a golden brown:
I sometimes add a half cup of currants, separating the small fruit with my fingers in the dry ingredients just before adding the cream. These are really the same as scones by a different name, and are best eaten when just cooled because at this point the outer crust is dry and buttery, with the interior warm and tender. The combination is wonderful and delicious eaten as is, but also marvelous with a bit of good butter and jam.
Variation
For dinner biscuits, omit the sugar and add 1 tsp fresh chopped rosemary.
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And with that, coffee and biscuits complete, the sun fully up, we decided to take the dogs for a walk. And I realized THIS is Christmas–these sweet, small memories and activities: Up before the sun to make Sweet Cream Biscuits, the house filled with warmth from fire and oven, the rising of the sun, golden scents of baking embracing the kitchen, breaking bread and then off into the woods, a bit of snow remaining on the ground, the dogs in utter bliss. No shopping mall, no wrapped package, could come close to this. This is how I make Christmas and I hold it dear in my heart.
Love to you all,
Jeane
The renewal of spirit in breaking bread. On these longer nights with shorter daylight hours we are reminded to relish even more greatly – the days of sunshine that seems to last forever – as we are cozied by fire’s warmth. XOXOX The recipe is LOVELY:) I will see if I can adapt it to gluten free with success…:)
Yes, the breaking of bread–with a large group at the dinner table, or one friend for breakfast or even alone. It is a time-honored thing of beauty. And the days of sunshine are to be relished, as are the long, dark nights, or a gray and snow-filled sky like mine today.
Another reader wrote to say she’d converted Kim’s pancake recipe to gluten free using Bob’s Red Mill All Purpose Gluten Free Flour and that they were delicious. You might try that with this recipe, if you haven’t already.
beautiful! you made me sooo hungry and such a great desire for coffee that I had to stop and eat some frozen pumpkin waffles – toasted, and some homemade “Blonde” starbucks coffee!! But I love that the recipe is there. someday I can make sure I have all the ingredients and make this!!:) MY dieting will suffer though but I’m sure it is delish!!
So glad we could inspire you Alison 🙂 I think diets need to be set aside regularly for special treats. In my experience that makes dieting easier and more successful in the long run. Try ’em. They’re hard to describe.
It is so beautiful to see Kim cooking, thanks to your pictures, Jeane. I loved your description of biscuits – angel’s wings! So sweet a game of your childhood. 🙂
Thank you for your lovely response Laura. It’s so nice that you appreciated both the photos of Kim cooking and the only words I could come up with to try to describe the experience. So nice you noticed. Thank you.