Cream Biscuits

For a few weeks now, I have been promising the filmmaker some type of delicious baked good, and have been repeatedly failing to deliver; in my defense, I have been traveling to various mundane and luxurious locations around the world, working hard and attempting to sufficiently grease my palms to climb and claw my way up the proverbial corporate ladder. I may still be desperately clinging to one of the lowest rungs, or, at least, it frequently feels that way, but, I have at least been afforded the opportunity to see a place or two, even if that included a highway intersection town in Pennsylvania.

To return from my tangent, when my mother sent me a positively and delightfully simple recipe for cream biscuits, I rejoiced and, finally, the filmmaker's luck had changed. Though I adore baking, with its precise proportions and chemically founded balance and ultimately attainable satisfaction, I rarely have the time, nor the resources to spend on certain potentially opulent or exotic ingredients. These biscuits could be pulled together almost any morning of the week, perhaps over a cup of coffee and they are delicious in their own right as well as a crumbling, puff vehicle for a hearty jam.

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour, plus some additional for the counter
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups heavy cream

First, and always crucial, make sure the oven rack is in the upper middle position and pre-heat oven to 450 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Slowly add and stir in the cream with a large wooden spoon, until dough forms, about half a minute or so. Then, turn the dough out onto the lightly floured counter and knead vigorously yet gently for about another minute, until the dough is smooth.

Pat the dough out into a circle, approximately three-quarters of an inch thick; I used a rolling pin, which was not specifically denoted in my mother's instructions, however, this strategy apparently worked perfectly well.

Cut the biscuits with a two inch or so cutter, or use a knife to slice the dough, into eight rounds or wedges; I bought cookie cutters at the local grocery store, unable to find a proper biscuit cutter. I chose the heart shape for my handsome filmmaker.


Place the biscuits onto a baking sheet, if desired, one lined with parchment paper, and bake for about fifteen minutes, until golden brown. A few of my biscuits managed to maintain the intended heart shape, and, arguably, those that morphed in the baking process merely achieved greater anatomical accuracy.



Enjoy with delicious jam; the filmmaker and I have been keeping ourselves sated with Bonne Maman Four Fruits Preserves, with strawberries, red currants, cherries, and black currants.