By Cody’s first full week home. Six in the morning at the auto-body shop. Mr. Garcia put him back on prep work but with the painters now letting him do detail work most afternoons. He came home Wednesday with paint flecks on his hands and the tired look of a person who is grateful to be tired from work. Probation check-in Tuesday afternoon went well; the officer said the transition is going as smoothly as transitions go.
I made mini cheese biscuits Sunday for the first family dinner with the three of us back at the table for a regular Sunday. Drop biscuits with sharp cheddar folded in, baked in mini-muffin tins for the small bite-size, served warm with butter.
The math: two cups of flour, a tablespoon of baking powder, a half teaspoon of salt, a stick of cold butter cut in, a half cup of shredded sharp cheddar, three-quarters of a cup of buttermilk substitute. Total: about $1.80 for thirty-six mini biscuits.
The technique is the cold-butter cut-in (the same as scratch biscuits) plus the cheddar fold-in plus the muffin-tin scoop. Bake at 425 for twelve minutes. The biscuits come out small and crusty on top, soft inside, with little pockets of melted cheddar.
Cody had eight. Mama had three. I had three. The three of us at the kitchen table on a regular Sunday in November.
The recipe is below. The trick is the cold butter and the muffin tin.
Mini Cheese Biscuits
Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 14 minutes | Total Time: 24 minutes | Servings: 24 mini biscuits
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/3 cup cold butter, cut into small cubes
- 3/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 3/4 cup cold whole milk (or buttermilk)
- 2 tablespoons melted butter, for brushing
- 1/4 teaspoon dried parsley (optional, for topping)
Instructions
- Heat the oven. Preheat your oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or lightly grease it.
- Mix dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and garlic powder until evenly combined.
- Cut in the butter. Add the cold cubed butter to the flour mixture. Using your fingertips or a pastry cutter, work the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse crumbles with pea-sized bits of butter still visible. Cold butter is the key to flaky layers — work quickly.
- Add cheese and milk. Stir in the shredded cheddar. Pour in the cold milk and stir with a fork just until a shaggy dough comes together. Do not overmix — a few dry streaks are fine.
- Drop and shape. Drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto the prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 1 inch apart. You should get approximately 24 mini biscuits. Gently pat the tops slightly flat if needed.
- Bake. Bake at 425°F for 12–14 minutes, until the tops are golden and the bottoms are set. The edges should look just barely golden — pull them while they still look slightly soft in the center; they firm up as they cool.
- Brush and serve. As soon as the biscuits come out of the oven, brush the tops generously with melted butter and sprinkle with dried parsley if using. Serve warm.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 85 | Protein: 2g | Fat: 4g | Carbs: 10g | Fiber: 0g | Sodium: 115mg