Spelt Biscuits

Good biscuits are one of life's true pleasures. They can be tricky if you're not used to working with butter/margarine in flour but once you get the hand of it, just try to not make these all the time; they are such a reward for the effort!

Ever since I discovered the vegan version of "buttermilk" biscuits, buttermilk has no place in my refrigerator, which is great, because you use so little for the biscuits and then you're stuck with lots of leftover buttermilk. (Ok, you can make this pie, but some of us are still trying to fit in the clothes we own, so it's pie or biscuits...Biscuits for the win!) So don't fret, use baking soda and cider vinegar and you are all set. Cider vinegar will curdle dairy milk just as well as it does non-dairy milk.

What was even more exciting in this version of my beloved biscuits was realizing that the soft wheat flour that all truly traditional southern biscuits are made with is very similar to spelt! Less gluten and it absorbs more liquid (i.e. butter/margarine) so more to love! These were fantastic, light, fluffy and rich!

In case you're curious, the round sausages are my own DIY vegetarian breakfast sausage, gluten free to boot! Yup, just a party in your mouth around here!

And if you are looking closely at the picture you will notice that there are rocks on the stovetop. Yes, yes, they are rocks. We dry our dishes on the stovetop and the rocks keep them from sliding around.... It's also pretty to look at!

Spelt Biscuits
(makes 4-5 large)

2/3 cup milk (dairy or non)
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
2 cups white spelt flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
5 tablespoons butter (or vegan equivalent), cut into 1/2 inch cubes

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Chill butter/vegan butter in freezer for at least 15 minutes along with bowl in which you will be using to make dough. Add cider vinegar to milk and set aside to curdle. In chilled bowl mix flour, baking powder and soda and combine. Cut in chilled butter until largest pieces of butter are size of small peas or lentils. Add curdled milk and combine gently into ball and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.

Remove from fridge and place on large piece of wax paper folded over dough to create envelope. Press down into rectangle about 1/2 inch thick, fold dough over on it self once and flatten slightly and then fold over again; this is what creates layers of biscuity flakiness so do it gently. Use a biscuit cutter or glass to cut out rounds, working the dough back together as little as possible so that butter stays as cold as possible; when it comes into contact with your warm hands it melts. Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown. Serve immediately.

Hugs!