MELT IN YOUR MOUTH GRAM'S SCRATCH BISCUITS

Steps:

• 1. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees
• 2. Sift dry ingredients into a bowl and yes I still sift my flour when making breads it does make a difference. If you don't have a flour sifter, take a knife and cut thru your flour a bit to fluff it before measuring and never take your one cup and scoop up your flour, this packs it. Take a scoop or a large spoon and add it to your 1 cup holder then level it off with a knife. Best part is you just use regular flour, that's the way we did thing before we had all these choices!
• 3. BTW.. some of you may say this has baking power why do I need cream of tartar, trust me this is the one ingredient that makes the difference! I put 1/2 heaping tsp because a lot of measuring spoon don't have a 1/4 to make it 3/4 tsp. If your set does then you can measure it that way.
• 4. Now the key to great biscuits is how you cut in shortening (shhhh big secret) don't dump all your shortening in a lump, use a knife and cut small pieces into your bowl all around your flour. Then start the mix with that same knife cutting thru your flour (forget that pastry knife lol) with clean hands get in there and work the shortening between your fingers until there is no loose flour in the bottom and mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
• 5. Add buttermilk and stir dough with that same knife around bowl, I just keep cutting thru and turning the bowl till all course crumbs have blended to a nice soft dough that forms a ball and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
• 6. Your dough will be a tad sticky that's ok just grab a tiny pinch of flour and sprinkle on top and start working the dough, fold over couple of times, add a tiny pinch of flour again and fold twice that's probably enough flour now just fold a couple more times the sides of your bowl should be clean now, don't over work the dough. Adding too much flour will make your biscuits dry so just do a pinch at a time. I basically just coat my hand with flour and fold it in till it isn't sticky.
• 7. Take your dough out to a flat surface now if you worked your dough good you really won't need to flour your surface, I usually spill a little flour measuring so I just rub that over my surface. Just pat your dough out to the thickness you like 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick I do mine 3/4" the size of my cutter. Cut with a cutter I use a 2 3/4 inch one, or use a glass edge the size you like, Gram's used a snuff glass remember those? If using a glass you might want to dip it in the flour before cutting.
• 8. Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet (I use my flat iron skillet) at 450 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes, or until just golden brown. I check mine at 10 minutes and usually almost done with a 2 3/4 inch cutter size biscuit. If you cut yours smaller they will probably be done at 10, so watch them close as ovens differ also. This makes about a bakers dozen depending on your cutter and thickness! I always have 11 and one smaller made from the left over dough.
• 9. As you see in my picture I like my biscuits thick. These will cut in half like cutting thru butter and melt in your mouth! These are so easy don't let the long directions scare ya off I just put in a lot of details. You will never use canned biscuits again!! To reheat leftover biscuits, wrap in foil and heat in a 300 degree oven for 10 minutes.