WHOLE WHEAT BISCUITS BUCK'S STYLE

Adele wrote on October 6, 2009 at 5:01am

Buck, aka, James B. Wicker Jr., is married to Alice Marie Robbins Wicker; Trumans daughter from Pineola. I take water aerobics at the Y with Buck and he is a great guy. A big man with a big heart and a deep voice which he uses in church and with a genuine Barbershop Quartet.
Of course I am all the time talking about food in the water between breaths and have figured out along the way that Buck is a really good cook. We were discussing biscuit making and I told him that "Cooking with Adele" does not make biscuits. He elaborated on his biscuit making and I asked him to share his technique with us Facebookers.
Here it is..and it makes my mouth-water just thinking about it. I can taste it right now dripping with butter and honey. Thank U Buck!

Whole Wheat Biscuits

Buck’s Style


Ingredients:
**** Flour Notes ****

If you want to use all Whole Wheat Flour look for a “WHITE” Whole Wheat.
Regular Whole Wheat Flour is too dense and will not rise in the oven properly !
I know from the experience of pulling pancakes from the oven instead of Biscuits !
King Arthur makes a good White Whole Wheat Flour as well as does White Lily.
I recommend either one.
******************

One Cup of Each, Two Level Cups total: All Purpose Flour, Whole Wheat Flour.
Three Level Teaspoons of Baking Powder.
One Quarter Teaspoon of Salt.
Four Tablespoons of Shortening or I use Butter.
One Cup of Milk.
One Tablespoon of Lemon Juice.

Preheat Oven to 420 Degrees.
Equipment, You’ll need:
A Rolling Pin, I use a French Rolling Pin personally.
A Sifter or something similar, I use a Large Tea Strainer myself.
One Bowl, a Four Quart size I find to be ideal.
It’s large enough for my hands to get in to work the dough and keep it in the bowl. I’m 6’4” and weigh 310 pounds and have hands to match !
Pastry Cutter or similar device. I use the slicer on a Box Grater. A fork would work as well.
A One Cup Measure.
A One Teaspoon Measure.
A One Quarter Teaspoon Measure.
One Baking Sheet.
A Biscuit Cutter or a Drinking Glass the diameter you want your biscuits to be.
My own Biscuit Cutter is about Two and a Quarter Inches in Diameter.
Extra Flour to spread on surface and rolling pin to roll dough and add to dough in case it is too wet after combining with Milk and Lemon Juice.
A little oil is optional to spread on top of the Biscuits to brown them.







Method:
Combine in a sifter or similar device:
One Cup of the Flour along with the Baking Powder and Salt
Put the other Cup of Flour on top of the Flour, Baking Powder, Salt, and sift through into the Bowl.
Add to the Flour Mixture the Shortening or Butter.
I personally use a box grater to slice the Butter and then I use my fingers for this step myself, working the Butter between my fingers and thumbs into the Flour.
We are looking for a consistency of damp sand.

Stir the Lemon Juice to the Milk and add the Milk Mixture to the Flour Mixture.
Stir to combine. Again I use my hands myself. I suggest a little oil on the hands to prevent the mixture from sticking to your hands if you are not the messy type of person !
Add Flour, if necessary, to get the desired consistency. We are looking for wet enough to be pliable but dry enough to not be too sticky.
Flour your Hands, then:
On a Floured surface place the Biscuit Dough, knead the Dough about three times.
Roll the Dough to about One-Eighth of an Inch thickness.
Dip Biscuit Cutter, or your substitute, in Flour and cut out Biscuits
placing them on the Baking Sheet
Gather scraps and repeat rolling and cutting. Till you can’t get any more cut out.
I normally do this about three times and get about 15 to 20 Biscuits, it will vary.
There is just a little Biscuit Dough left over after completing the process, I just place it on the Baking Sheet and bake it along with the regular Biscuits. Some consider it better than the Biscuits themselves.
Spread oil on top of Biscuits to brown them if desired.
Put Baking Sheet in Oven and set timer for 12 to 16 Minutes.
The first time you use a new oven or try this recipe watch your biscuits. Ovens Vary and adjust the time according to your own Oven.

"My grandmother made bread on Saturday afternoons. In her small, bright kitchen, I would watch her mix the dough, forming it into a pale pillow that would rest for some time in the large blue bowl. After an hour, she would uncover the dough and then form it into loaves, each the size of a new born puppy. Placing them in rectangular bread tins, she would cover each one with a damp dish cloth. On the radiator, they would sleep for two more hours, slowly growing until they doubled in size, rising round and smooth above the rim of the pans.
Once the bread began baking,the house would fill with the wondrous sense of well-being. It was a velvety golden smell that made its way along the corridor and into the farthest room. An aroma that brought such contentment to our home. It was here in Grandmas kitchen that I first learned the pleasure of anticipation. And the paradoxical truth that sometimes the "waiting for" is the very best part.
As Grandma grew older, her loaves became smaller and more dense with crusts as thick as the bark of an oak. But once the bread was baking the aroma and the feeling were always the same. Each loaf of bread was a gift of love that my grandmother gave to our family."-Mary Tiegreen