Buttermilk Biscuits, Gluten-Free

From: Art of Gluten-Free Baking

http://artofglutenfreebaking.com

Gluten-Free Buttermilk Biscuits

-adapted from recipe by Lorna Yee

Special Equipment Needed

-2"-3″ cookie/biscuit cutter with sharp edges (don’t use the rim of a glass)

Ingredients:

2 cups (290 g) Jeanne’s Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour Mix, sifted

2 tablespoons double-acting, aluminum free baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

4 tablespoons (60 g; 2 oz) butter, cold (or lard/shortening for 100% lard/shortening)

4 tablespoons (60g; 2 oz) leaf lard or shortening, cold (or extra butter for 100% butter)

3/4 cup buttermilk (180 ml)

Tapioca flour for dusting

Optional glaze: one egg yolk beaten with 2 tablespoons milk

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

In a mixing bowl, stir together the sifted flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the butter and lard, and cut in with a pastry blender or your fingers until the fat resembles coarse, pea-size clumps. Stir in the buttermilk, taking care not to over-mix.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface or Silpat, and shape into a cohesive mass. Roll the dough out with a tapioca flour-floured rolling pin until it reaches about 1” thick, then cut with a tapioca-floured biscuit cutter. It’s important that the cutter goes in an out of the dough with minimal squishage of dough. Be careful not to turn the cutter as you cut the dough–this will “seal” the edges together and prevent the biscuits from rising to their true potential. This minimal squishing of the edges is what helps the biscuits to rise and be fluffy:

Place the biscuits on a parchment-lined cookie sheet, and brush the tops with an egg yolk beaten with milk if you want to glaze them.

Bake the biscuits for about 15 minutes, until the biscuits are golden brown and nicely risen

Note: If you use a different gluten-free flour mix, alter the amount of or eliminate the xanthan gum, use dairy-free or egg-free substitutes, or change any other ingredients in this recipe, your results may not match my results.