Recipe: Gluten Free Biscuits

If you follow me on instagram, you know I attempted some gluten free biscuit making this weekend.   A friend gave me a gluten free baking cookbook for my birthday, and I'm slowly making my way through the recipes with mixed feelings.  On the one hand, I'm ecstatic to be baking again and enjoying some of my favorite treats.  On the other hand, I think there are some things that just can't be recreated without a little gluten (ie: fluffy layers in biscuits.)  The silver lining is that the gluten free version of everything I've made has still been good - just maybe not an exact duplicate of the "glutened" original.  Take these biscuits for instance - they turned out relatively flat and a little chewy.  Not what I was expecting, but still good enough for Josh and I to devour two each.  

I promise not to focus too much on gluten free items here on Ann Elliott, but I do like to share what's really happening in my life and on my table.  Though I know many of you won't make this for yourselves on a regular basis, it's one to bookmark in case you're even faced with serving a southern style dinner to someone with celiac disease or a gluten intolerance...maybe not what you'd expect but delicious all the same.  

Gluten Free Biscuits

Recipe from Blackbird Bakery Gluten Free Cookbook

Ingredients:

• 1/2 C. sorghum flour
• 1 C. cornstarch
• 1/2 C. tapioca flour, plus 1/4 C. for dusting
• 1 tsp guar gum
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1 Tbs. baking powder
• 3 Tbs. cold unsalted butter, diced
• 3 Tbs. cold vegetable shortening, diced
• 1 C. organic buttermilk
• 2-3 Tbs. water, as needed
• Salted butter, honey, or jelly for serving

Directions:

1. Position oven rack in center of oven.  Preheat oven to 425.
2. In a large bowl, combine all dry ingredients and stir with a whisk.
3. Add butter and vegetable shortening to dry ingredients.  Using a pastry cutter, cut the fats into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles small peas.  (I just used my fingers.)
4. Stir in the buttermilk until the dough forms a ball.
5. Turn out dough onto a surface dusted with tapioca flour.  Knead the dough until it is very smooth, four to five turns.  
6. Form the dough into a disk, 1 inch thick.  Cut out biscuits and arrange them on an unbuttered pan.  
7. Bake 12-15 minutes or until lightly golden brown.  Remove from oven and cool briefly.  Serve warm

Enjoy!

xo,