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Maryland Biscuits

Maryland biscuits are made with flour, lard, salt, and water, then baked.

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. Beat the dough on a heavy wooden surface with an iron pestle 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.

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 and sets as it bakes.
Lard
Coats the flour so it stays tender, giving the biscuits a short, flaky texture.
Cold water
Hydrates the flour and binds it into a stiff dough.

The step that matters

Beating the dough until it is full of blisters. Beating the dough on a hard surface works air into it and develops structure. Under-beating leaves the biscuits dense, while the air pockets help them rise and bake up light.

“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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