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Maryland Biscuits

A biscuit made with flour, lard, salt, and cold water, baked until golden.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 4 ingredients
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Maryland Biscuits

Oven, in the book's wordsA moderate oven

Ingredients

Directions

The book says “a moderate oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.

Prepare the dough

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

  2. In a large bowl, rub the lard into the flour until well combined.

  3. Gradually add cold water until a stiff dough forms.

  4. Knead the dough on a heavy wooden surface until it is full of blisters.

Shape and bake

  1. Shape the dough into small cakes and prick each with a fork.

  2. Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

What each ingredient does

All-purpose flour
Provides the structure that holds the dough together as it bakes.
Lard
Coats the flour to keep the biscuits tender and flaky, adding richness.
Cold water
Hydrates the flour so the dough binds into a stiff, workable mass.

The step that matters

Adding the cold water gradually. Too much water at once makes the dough sticky and tough, while cold water keeps the fat from softening into the flour. Adding it slowly lets you stop once the dough is stiff but still workable.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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