Briggs’ Buttermilk Biscuits
We often receive photos on social media from Lodge users showing us what they’ve made in their cast iron cookware. When William Briggs posted a photo of buttermilk biscuits in his Lodge skillet to our Facebook page, we knew we wanted to try them. He generously sent us his recipe, and we baked it the same week.
We love how the tops and bottoms of these biscuits are slightly crispy and the inside stays tender and flaky. The Lodge staff agrees, William’s buttermilk biscuit recipe is definitely worth adding to your skillet baking repertoire.
Ingredients
2 cups self-rising flour, plus extra for dusting counter
½ cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, plus an additional 2 tablespoons melted butter
3/4 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons melted shortening
Preparation
Preheat oven to 450°F. Place a 10.25″ Lodge cast iron skillet into the oven to preheat.
Measure the self-rising flour into a large mixing bowl.
Using the coarse side of a hand grater, quickly grate 1 stick (½ cup) cold hard butter into the self-rising flour. Working quickly, use fingers to gently distribute the shredded butter into the self-rising flour.
Add the buttermilk, then stir until just combined.
Turn onto a lightly floured surface and, using floured fingers, quickly pat to approximately the size of an 8.5x11" sheet of paper, which will be about ½" to ¾" thick. Very lightly dust the surface of the dough with flour from your fingertips, then fold the sheet of dough into thirds, as when folding a business letter. Repeat the patting, dusting, and folding steps seven times, or fewer if you feel the dough begin to tighten--overworked dough makes for a tough biscuit! The final time, pat the dough to a rectangle slightly larger than the size of your skillet. Using a round biscuit cutter or a drinking glass, cut into about 7 round biscuits. Gather up the scraps to form the 8th biscuit by hand.
With a handle mitt, carefully remove the preheated skillet from the oven. Drop melted shortening into the preheated skillet, then return to oven for a couple of minutes, until it is melted. Place each biscuit into the skillet and, using a fork, immediately turn to coat both sides with shortening.
Place the hot skillet into the oven, and reduce the oven temperature to 425°F. Bake until tops of biscuits are golden brown, about 12-18 minutes.
Remove from oven. Brush tops with additional melted butter. Serve while hot!