Make Some Biscuits

Adapted from the NSF cCWCS "Food Chemistry" (Clarke University, 2014)

Basic formula/recipe

Preheat oven to 425°F.

250 g flour (see below under "Variations")

10 g (3 tsp) baking powder

3 g salt (1/2 tsp) salt

48 g (4 tbsp = 1/2 stick) butter

180 ml (3/4 cup) milk

Procedure

1. Mix the dry ingredients together in bowl.

2 "Cut" the fat into the flour until pieces are the size of uncooked rice grains.

3. Make a well in the center of the mixture

add the milk.

Cut through using a fork with ~25 strokes to make the dough form a ball.

4 Place the dough onto a very lightly floured surface and knead lightly (10 times) with the fingertips.

5 Pat the dough into a rectangle 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick on a lightly floured surface and cut with a knife to make 12 small square biscuits.

6 Place the biscuits in a single line touching one another on a piece of parchment paper on a single baking sheet (ie. all groups will bake on the same tray).

NOTE: Everyone’s biscuit dough should start out the same height. Label your row so that you know which biscuits are yours. Bake until golden brown, 10-12 minutes. If there are people on a gluten-free diet, those biscuits should be baked on a separate baking sheet.

Rank each group’s biscuit from 1 (best) to 6 (worst) in terms of taste, puffiness (rise) and then add any applicable observations about the biscuits.

Variations

Group 1: Use all-purpose flour. Use chilled butter and utensils. Group 2: Use cake flour. Use chilled butter and utensils. Group 3: Use all-purpose flour. Use room temperature butter and utensils. Group 4: Use all-purpose flour. Use frozen butter and utensils. Group 5: Use self-rising flour. Omit the baking powder. Use chilled butter and utensils. Group 6: Use all-purpose flour. Use shortening in place of the butter. Use chilled shortening and utensils. Group 7: Replace the wheat flour with the gluten-free flour mixture (164 g rice flour, 63 g potato flour and 23 g tapioca flour). Use chilled butter and utensils.

Shopping list

All-purpose flour Self-rising flour Cake Flour Butter (min 4 sticks) Baking powder Salt Milk