The secret ingredient to biscuits

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

The secret ingredient to biscuits

White Lilly Flour. (In my humble cookie crumbly opinion....)

Fallen Monk made some biscuits and it reminded me of some of the best biscuits I have ever made was with White Lilly Flour. I had no idea the company was owned by Smuckers (biscuits and jam...sounded like a good combo) and am saddened to hear that one of White Lilly's storied plants was being shut down.

The old White Lily flour mill, a downtown landmark for 125 years, will be closing this spring.

...White Lily flour and Three Rivers cornmeal have been produced on Depot Avenue for generations under eight owners over 125 years. It is a downtown manufacturing landmark and employer of about 112 workers, including plant staff and a sales force in the field. - Knoxnews.com

If you can't find White Lilly near you, you can purchase it on line on the Smucker's website....Williams Sonoma and Surfas used to carry it, but alas...it seems no more.

White Lilly Angel Biscuits

Ingredients:

•	1 package active dry yeast
•	2 tablespoons warm water (105-120 degrees)
•	5 cups White Lily® Self-Rising Flour
•	1/4 cup sugar
•	1/2 teaspoon baking soda
•	1 cup Crisco® All-Vegetable Shortening
•	2 cups buttermilk
•	1/4 cup butter, melted

Instructions:

1.	Lightly spray a 15x10x1-inch pan (or one 13x9x2-inch pan) with no-stick cooking spray.
2.	Dissolve yeast in warm water (105 to 115 degrees). Set aside.
3.	Combine flour, sugar, and baking soda. Cut in all-vegetable shortening until chunks are no larger than the size of peas.
4.	Mix buttermilk with yeast water.
5.	Add to flour mixture.
6.	Stir with a fork until moistened.
7.	Roll out 1/2-inch thick on floured surface.
8.	Cut with 2-inch cutter.
9.	Place close together in prepared pans. Cover with clean lint-free warm, damp towel and allow to rise about one hour. (Dough will be doubled in size and will leave a small indention when pressed lightly with your finger.)
10.	Heat oven to 425 degrees.
11.	Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until browned.
12.	Brush tops with melted butter.
13.	Serve while hot.

Shirley's 'Touch of Grace Biscuits'

2 cups self-rising flour, preferably White Lily
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons shortening
2/3 cup cream
1 cup buttermilk, or more
1 cup plain flour, for shaping
2 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and arrange a shelf slightly below the center of the oven. Spray an 8-inch cake pan with nonstick cooking spray.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together flour, sugar and salt. Work the shortening in with your fingers or a pastry blender until there are no large lumps.

Gently stir in the cream. Stir in the buttermilk until the dough resembles cottage cheese. It should be a wet mess. If you are not using a low-protein Southern flour, this may require considerably more than a cup.

Spread the plain flour (not self-rising) out on a plate or pie pan. With a medium(about 2-inches) ice cream scoop or spoon place scoops of dough well apart in the flour. Sprinkle flour over each. Flour your hands.

Turn a dough ball in the flour to coat, pick it up, gently shape it into a round, shaking off the excess flour as you work. Place the biscuit in the prepared pan. Coat each dough ball in the same manner, and place the shaped biscuit "smuched" up against its neighbor. Continue scooping and shaping until the dough is used.

Bake biscuits until lightly browned, about 20 to 25 minutes. Brush with melted butter. Invert biscuits out onto one plate, then back onto another. With a knife or spatula, cut quickly between biscuits to make them easy to remove. Serve immediately. "Butter 'em while they're hot."

Cookiemadness even made a delish Red Velvet Cake using White Lilly. How can you get more "Southern" than that!

Labels: Biscuits, Flour, Recipes, White Lilly