Cornmeal Biscuits with Honey Butter

It seems there’s an “official day” for just about everything, and May 14 is National Buttermilk Biscuit Day—but why celebrate just once a year? With this easy recipe in your repertoire, you can whip up fluffy, high-rising biscuits anytime you like. Along with all-purpose flour, we toss some cornmeal into the dough for a hearty texture and a bit of crunch. Enjoy these biscuits warm from the oven with honey butter and flaky sea salt for sprinkling on top.

Ingredients

For the biscuits:

Directions

Preheat an oven to 425°F (220°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

To make the biscuits, in a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, kosher salt and baking soda. Add the cold butter pieces and toss to coat them with the flour. Using a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in the butter until the mixture looks like coarse meal with some butter pieces the size of peas. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in the buttermilk. Using a wooden spoon, stir until a shaggy, cohesive dough forms.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead a few times to bring the dough together, then shape into a round about 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick. Cut the dough in half and stack the halves on top of each other. Press down and shape into a round about 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick. Using a 2-inch (5-cm) biscuit cutter, cut out biscuits. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet, spacing them at least 1 inch (2.5 cm) apart. Gather up the dough scraps, shape into a round as directed above, and cut out more biscuits; you should have a total of 8 biscuits. Lightly brush the tops with buttermilk.

Bake until the biscuits have risen and are golden brown, about 10 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let the biscuits cool slightly.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the room-temperature butter and honey and stir a couple of times to combine slightly. If desired, add more honey to taste.

Serve the biscuits warm with the honey butter and flaky sea salt for sprinkling. Makes 8 biscuits.

Williams Sonoma Test Kitchen

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