Beaten Biscuit
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
Mix flour, lard, and salt thoroughly.
Add cold water gradually to form a stiff dough.
Beat the dough until smooth and it pops when rolled out.
Shape and bake
Cut the dough into biscuits about ⅓ inch thick.
Bake in a moderate oven at 350°F (175°C) for about 20 minutes.
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
- Flour
- Forms the structure of the dough once mixed with water.
- Lard
- Adds fat that tenderizes the biscuit and keeps it short.
- Cold water
- Hydrates the flour to bind the stiff dough together.
The step that matters
Beat the dough until smooth and it pops when rolled out. Beating works the dough so gluten develops and it becomes elastic and smooth. Under-beaten dough stays crumbly and bakes up short and fragile, while the beating gives the biscuit its characteristic firm, layered texture.
“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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