Parmesan Cheddar Chive Biscuits

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4.80 from 5 votes

Not only are these light and fluffy but they are packed with not one, but 2 kinds of cheese.

Prep Time20

Cook Time15

Total Time35

Course: Breakfast, Side Dish, Snack

Cuisine: American

Servings: biscuits

Author: Gaby Dalkin

Ingredients

2 cups AP flour
1 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoon cold unsalted butter cut into small cubes
¼ cup shredded cheddar
¼ cup shredded Parmesan
4 tablespoon chopped chives
1 cup + 2 tablespoon buttermilk

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450 F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
In a large bowl combine the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and black pepper. Give it a quick stir. Add the cubed butter into the dry ingredients and using a fork, cut the butter into the flour until it resembles a crumbly texture.
Add the cheddar, Parmesan and chives and stir it around.
Add the buttermilk to the bowl and stir it together until the dough comes together.
Turn the dough out onto lightly floured surface and, with floured hands, give it a quick knead.
Pat the dough into a 1-inch thickness and cut out biscuits with a 2 ½” cutter. Keep reshaping and cutting the dough until you have 9 biscuits.
Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silpat and place in the pre-heated oven and bake until puffed up and golden brown, around 15-18 minutes. Serve warm!

Notes

Keep the butter cold, then go colder. Cube it, then freeze for 10 minutes before working it into the flour. Cold butter is what creates steam pockets in the oven, which is what gives you flake.
Grate your own cheese. Pre-shredded cheddar is coated in cellulose to prevent caking, which absorbs moisture and dulls the melt. A 90-second grate makes a noticeable difference.
Don't overwork the dough. Mix until it just barely comes together with shaggy spots still visible. A smooth, kneaded dough makes a hockey-puck biscuit.
Fold the dough three times. Pat it out, fold in thirds like a letter, rotate 90 degrees, repeat twice more. Those folds are the layers you'll see when you split a hot biscuit open.
Cut straight down, never twist. Press the cutter or a sharp glass straight through the dough and lift. Twisting seals the edges shut and stops them from rising.
Bake them touching. Place biscuits so they just kiss on the sheet. They support each other on the way up and rise taller than they would standing alone.
Hot oven, no compromise. 425°F minimum. The high heat sets the outside fast and traps steam, which is what powers the rise. A lukewarm oven gives you flat, greasy biscuits.
Brush the tops with buttermilk before baking. A quick swipe of buttermilk on top gives you a deeper golden color and a slightly crisp crust without weighing the tops down.
Chop the chives at the last minute. Chives oxidize and turn dark fast once cut. Mince them right before they go into the dough so they stay bright green and grassy in the bake.
Freeze the unbaked biscuits, not the baked ones. Cut, freeze on a sheet, then bag. Bake from frozen with 3 to 4 extra minutes any time you need a hot biscuit on short notice. Beats reheating any day.

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