little letters: buttermilk biscuits

I'm back from Utah! Didn't you just love Claire's guest post? She did such a great job and those Apple Streusel bars look divine. If you haven't visited her blog I hope you check it out - she's always sharing recipes for delicious treats.

It's been a busy week between a bittersweet flight home on Monday (so hard to end vacations!) and Jury Duty for the past two days I haven't had much time to bake, let alone blog. But after two days in a jury room I did have a lot of time to read, so this post is inspired by my friend Chelsea Griffith of Triumphs and Blunders of a Kooky Gal. Chelsea has been posting these little letters lately that make me grin wide. Here are a few of mine:

Dear Beth,

Please start stretching after your runs. I swear you'll like it.

Love always, your hamstrings

Dear Beth,

Just because you ran doesn't mean you can eat a pan of brownies guilt-free.

Maybe your blog should include more veggie recipes?

Just give it a thought, your Thighs

Dear Beth,

Don't listen to your thighs. You only live once!

Hearts! The fat kid in you

Dear Beth,

Sometimes less is more.

signed, your Twitter followers

Dear Beth,

Even though you like to think you don't need me, you know you do.

Thanks for taking me along to the office tomorrow and every morning :)

Yours, Coffee

Dear Beth,

I know you think I'm snuggling with you because I love you but really it's just cold at night. Can you turn up the heat in the apartment?

I promise I'll stop putting my butt on the pillow.

Thanks! Izzy

Dear Beth,

Read more! You like it!

- your Vocabulary

Dear Beth,

Go in the direction of your dreams.

Best, Henry David Thoreau

Dearest Beth,

Even though you had a werewolf birthday party, I know your heart belongs to me.

Forever yours, Edward Cullen

Hey Beth,

I think you nailed it - thanks to Patricia.

These biscuits would make Mamma B proud.

Love, your Memory

Last week I got a craving for buttermilk biscuits. It came out of nowhere and as I was reaching for a Pillsbury can at the grocery store my conscience kicked in and steered my hand to a half-gallon of buttermilk. I did a little searching and it was Patricia's mouth-watering photo that sold me on her recipe. Friends, these are perfect. They're layered and they peel apart and they are perfect for every meal. I ate them for dessert with apricot preserves, for breakfast with a touch of honey, and for dinner with a garden burger in the middle.

What kind of cravings do you get? Leave me a comment and inspire my next baking adventure :)

Buttermilk Biscuits

from Homesick Texan via Brownies for Dinner

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tbsp. baking powder

1 tsp. sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

1 stick (1/2 cup or 8 tbsp) butter, cold

3/4 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 450 F.

Mix together all of the dry ingredients. Using a pastry blender or your fingers, cut the butter into the dry ingredients until it resembles pea-sized crumbs.

Make a well in the center of the butter-flour mixture and pour in the buttermilk. Stir until the flour is just incorporated but the dough is sticky and loose.

Pour dough onto a floured surface and knead for 1 minute. The dough will be smooth and no longer wet (sprinkle the surface with more flour if dough is sticking).

Shape the dough into a ball, and hit it with a rolling pin, turning and folding it in half every few whacks. Do this for a couple minutes.

Roll dough until it is 1/4-inch thick and then fold it in half. Cut out your biscuits from the folded dough using a round biscuit cutter or a glass.

Place on a baking sheet lined with a silicon mat or parchment paper. Make sure the biscuits are slightly touching so that they help each other rise up instead of out.

Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the tops are golden brown. Eat them with butter, jam, preserves, gravy or friends. Just eat them.