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NAUGHTY SWEET CREAM BISCUITS Makes 12 biscuits
Ingredients: 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour, spooned in and leveled, plus additional for dusting 6 tablespoons sugar 1 tablespoon baking powder 1 teaspoon salt ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into ½-inch cubes 1 ½ cups heavy cream 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 3 – 4 teaspoons sparkling sugar for sprinkling
Procedure: Position the rack in the middle of the oven. Heat the oven to 375ºF. Have ready a large, ungreased cookie sheet.
Place the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Pulse 3 – 4 times to blend.
Add one-half of the butter and pulse 5 times, then process for 8 seconds. Add the remaining butter, pulse 3 times, then process for 5 seconds. Empty the mixture into a large bowl. Rub the mixture between your fingertips to reduce any large pieces of butter into flakes.
Remove 2 tablespoons of heavy cream and set aside. Stir the vanilla into the remaining cream. Pour the liquid around the edge of the bowl. Using a rubber spatula, push the mixture toward the center working your way around the bowl to blend the cream with the flour/butter mixture. The mixture will be soft and resemble large curds of cottage cheese.
Sprinkle a pastry board or other flat surface generously with flour, about 2 tablespoons. Empty the dough onto the board with the help of a palm size plastic bowl scraper or rubber spatula. The dough will be sticky. With floured hands, gently knead the dough 5 or 6 times, or until it just forms a skin. The dough will not be smooth. Use a dough scraper to help lift the dough as needed. Do not overwork the dough or your biscuits will not be tender. When the dough is ready, move it aside and clean the work surface.
Lay a pastry cloth on the surface and fit a rolling pin with a pastry sleeve. Rub another 2 tablespoons of flour into the pastry cloth and sleeve.
Place the dough on the cloth, and with floured hands, pat it lightly, shaping it into an 8-inch square. Roll the dough into a 10 x 14-inch rectangle, with the 10-inch side parallel to the edge of the counter. Fold the dough into thirds like a business letter. To do this, lift the far side of the pastry cloth up and fold the top third of the dough over on itself. Press the dough to line up the edges as best you can. Lift the lower edge of the pastry cloth and flip the bottom third of the dough over on itself. You will now have three layers of dough. Press the top gently with your hands, then roll into a 5 x 15-inch strip.
Using a 2 ¼-inch straight sided cookie cutter dipped in flour, cut straight down into the dough, without twisting the cutter, cutting 2 rows of 6 biscuits. Be sure to dip the cutter in flour before each cut and cut as close to the previous biscuit as possible. When placing on the cookie sheet, invert each biscuit, spacing them about 1 ½-inches apart.
Brush the top of each biscuit with some of the reserved cream and sprinkle with ¼-teaspoon of sparkling sugar. Bake for 18 – 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove the biscuits from the oven and let cool for about 5 minutes before loosening with a thin metal spatula. Serve the biscuits warm. If baking ahead, warm the biscuits for a few minutes in a 300º F oven.
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