Sweet Potato Biscuits

By dette

For our Sweet Potato Biscuits recipe, we started with a traditional biscuit recipe and slowly traded buttermilk for sweet potato until we discovered we didn’t need any buttermilk at all. A dash of cider vinegar made up for the buttermilk tang and also lightened up the biscuits. We tried incorporating the sweet potatoes raw, boiled, baked, and from a can before we settled on an extended stay in the microwave. This concentrated their flavor and released most of their moisture. All-purpose flour yielded biscuits that were a little too tough. We found biscuits made with cake flour to be far more tender.

Ingredients

• You can substitute a combination of 2 1/4 cups plus 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour and 7 tablespoons cornstarch for the cake flour. If you halve the recipe, in step 1 reduce the microwave time to 10 to 15 minutes.
• Ingredients
• 2 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes (4 to 5 medium)
• 2 tablespoons cider vinegar3 1/4 cups cake flour (see note)
• 1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar5 teaspoons baking powder1/2 teaspoon baking soda1 1/2 teaspoons salt8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces and chilled; plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 4 tablespoons vegetable shortening, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

Details

Servings 16

Preparation

Step 1

1. MICROWAVE POTATOES Prick potatoes all over with fork. Microwave on large plate until potatoes are very soft and surface is wet, 15 to 20 minutes, flipping every 5 minutes. Immediately slice potatoes in half to release steam. When cool enough to handle, scoop flesh into bowl and mash until smooth. (You should have 2 cups. Reserve any extra for another purpose.) Stir in vinegar and refrigerate until cool, about 15 minutes.

2. MAKE DOUGH Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Pulse flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, chilled butter, and shortening in food processor until mixture resembles coarse meal. Transfer to bowl with cooled potatoes and fold with rubber spatula until incorporated.

3. CUT BISCUITS Turn dough out onto floured surface and knead until smooth, 8 to 10 times. Pat dough into 9-inch circle, about 1 inch thick. Using 2¼-inch biscuit cutter dipped in flour, cut out biscuits and arrange on prepared baking sheet. Pat remaining dough into 1-inch-thick circle and cut out remaining biscuits.

4. BAKE BISCUITS Brush tops of biscuits with melted butter and bake until golden brown, 18 to 22 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes. Serve. (Biscuits can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for 2 days.)