Bacon Cheddar Biscuits on a Shoestring Recipe

6

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups all-purpose gluten-free flour (I use Better Batter)
1 teaspoon xanthan gum (omit if using Better Batter)
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup grated extra-sharp cheddar cheese (or whatever hard cheese you prefer)
2 tablespoons bacon grease, chilled and roughly chopped
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, diced and chilled
1 extra-large egg, kept cold
1 cup buttermilk (or 1 cup milk plus 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar, shaken)

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set it aside.
In a large bowl, place the flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and whisk to combine. Set it aside.
In a small bowl, place the grated cheese, remove a tablespoon or so of the dry ingredients, and toss it in with the cheese. This will keep the cheese from clumping together in the dough. Set this small bowl aside.
To the large bowl of dry ingredients, add the bacon grease and diced butter. Using a hand held pastry blender, cut the fats into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles small peas. Add the grated cheese and reserved flour, and mix to combine.
Add the egg and buttermilk, and first whisk with a fork to break up and distribute the egg and buttermilk, then mix with a spoon until the mixture begins to come together. Turn out the dough onto a large piece of plastic wrap, close the wrap, squeeze the dough a bit to press it together, and place in the refrigerator to chill for at least 15 to 20 minutes (or up to overnight). If I’m in a real hurry, I will even put it in the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator and use a rolling pin to flatten it into a proper disk that is approximately 1 inch thick. The dough should be mostly smooth and mostly round. A round shape will make easier work of cutting rounds of dough with a biscuit cutter.
Peel back the plastic wrap. If the dough seems too sticky, dust it with flour or stick it back in the refrig to chill a bit more. When ready, peel the plastic back, and cut out rounds of dough with a floured 2 1/2 inch round biscuit cutter. Gather up the scraps, chill and re-roll until you can re-roll no more. Bake off the last little bits as is. In bits.
Transfer the rounds (and assorted scraps) to the baking sheet, spaced about 1 inch apart or less (they won’t spread when baking). If you have the time, and the inclination, stick the baking sheet in the freezer to chill for a few minutes. Cold dough = flaky biscuits.
Place the sheets in the preheated oven and bake for about 15 minutes or until they are puffy and have begun to brown, rotating the sheets halfway through baking.