Not biscuits, but biscuits

Oscar Wilde said of the UK, "We have really everything in common with America nowadays except, of course, language."  Writing a food blog has made this very apparent to me over the years.  Using sugar? In the UK it's icing sugar, in the USA confectioners sugar, in the USA you have superfine sugar, in the UK we have caster sugar.  Ask for chips in the UK and you'll receive deep fried potato sticks (or, french fries for you in the USA), in the USA you'll get deep fried potato slices (or, crisps for you in the UK)...  Do you see what I mean?!

So when I saw that the theme for this month's Gluten Free Ratio Rally was biscuits... well, I knew I was in trouble.  In the UK, biscuits are the same thing as cookies (although they tend to be crisp and crunchy instead of soft and chewy) so I had to seek help.  The Husband's parents live in North Carolina, and biscuits are on his "must eat" list any time he visits them, however his description was sketchy at best!  

"Something like a scone, but not a scone, savoury, not a dumpling, but fluffy."

Great. Loads to work with then!  Armed with this sparse knowledge, and having seen a few photos on Google Images,  I hit the kitchen.  Since this was my first attempt at biscuits, I decided to keep it simple.  My efforts were definitely thinner than the photos I'd seen, but the insides had promise, nearly fluffy.  So I read and reread Ruhlman's description of biscuits in his book, Ratio, then I tried again...

The ratio is actually pretty simple, 3:1:2 - 3 parts flour : 1 part fat : 2 parts liquid.  Ruhlman suggests that the lift is created by rolling and folding the dough (as you would with rough-puff pastry), but I added baking powder to help it along!  

While this batch was baking, I spent the whole time with head in hands and bum in the air, peering into the oven to check that the biscuits were rising.  The finished product were still a bit thinner than the photos, but when the Husband tasted them his eyes lit up!  They were fluffy!  They tasted like biscuits should!  Then, the Husband told me that they should be eaten with sausages and scrambled eggs.  Now, this could have easily been a ruse, he might have just fancied scrambled egg and sausage, but they did go well together.

For the round-up of the Ratio Rally this month, head over to Gretchen's blog at Kumquat.

American Style Biscuits


110g butter, chilled
330g all purpose gluten free flour mix (I used Dove's Farm Plain GF Flour)
1tsp salt
2tsp caster (superfine) sugar
2tsp baking powder (make sure it's gluten free)
220g milk
cornflour, for dusting
a little extra milk

• Weigh the flour into a bowl and add the salt, sugar, and baking powder and mix gently to combine.  Add the butter and rub together with your fingertips, until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs. 
• Add the milk and combine well until a wet-ish dough forms.  Tip out on to a floured surface and knead gently, be careful not to knead away those little lumps of butter.  
• Dust your worktop with cornflour and roll the dough out to 1/2 inch thick, fold into thirds and roll out again.  Repeat this rolling and folding 2 or 3 more times.  Wrap the dough in clingfilm and rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
• Remove dough from the fridge and pat out to 1/2 inch thick and cut out rounds with a 3 inch cutter.
• Place on a baking sheet, brush the tops with a little milk, and bake for 10-13 minutes at 220 degrees Celsius.
• Eat while still warm.

Oh, and my favourite UK/USA word-definition difference?  Pants.


And here's the rest of the gang!

Amanda at Gluten Free Maui made Classic Biscuits and Gravy

Amie at The Healthy Apple made  Gluten-Free Wasabi Parsley Biscuits

Caneel at Mama Me Gluten Free made Whole Grain Pecan Drop Biscuits

Charissa at Zest Bakery made Eggnog Biscuits with Grated Nutmeg

Erin at The Sensitive Epicure made Scallion Biscuits with Sausage Gravy

Gretchen at Kumquat made Sweet Buttermilk Biscuits

Heather at Discovering the Extraordinary made Almond Coconut Tea Biscuits

Jean at Gluten-Free Doctor Recipes made Jammers

Jonathan at The Canary Files made Vegan Sesame Shiso Biscuits

Karen at Cooking Gluten Free! made Biscuit Template with Dairy Free Substitutions

Lisa at Gluten Free Canteen made Fluffy Biscuits, Gluten Free

Mary Fran at FrannyCakes made Gluten-Free Espresso Orange Biscuits

Mrs. R at Honey From Flinty Rocks made Turkey Pot Pie with Biscuit Topping - Gobbler Cobbler!

Rachel at The Crispy Cook made Hummus in a Biscuit

Silvana at Silvana's Kitchen made Gluten-Free Sausage-n-Cheddar Bialy Biscuits

TR at No Ones Likes Crumbley Cookies made Lemon Basil Biscuits