Two weeks ago I promised Angostura with mayonnaise. But somehow ice cream in August seems…
Better Biscuits with Bitters
Hardly anything is more satisfying than homemade biscuits warm from the oven. So what’s special about these? Angostura bitters! Like so many foods, Angostura adds flavor depth and complexity — an umami of sorts — that raises these biscuits above your everyday fare. And, for variety, these biscuits have more than one personality: They can be dropped by the spoonful onto the baking tray, or with a bit less milk, rolled and cut out. They can be savory, or a bit sweet (Orange Currant Biscuits below). Whichever you choose, they are easy to make and perfect for breakfast, brunch or dinner. They stay fresh in the fridge for several weeks in a covered container. Just warm up in the toaster oven.
Surprise yourself with many more ways to use bitters — in addition to a Manhattan!
Angostura Drop Biscuits
Serve as a savory biscuit or try the orange currant variation for a slightly sweet treat.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 2 tsp. granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp. table salt
- 8 Tbsp. butter, room temperature
- 1 cup whole milk or 2%
- 1 Tbsp. Angostura aromatic bitters
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, sugar and salt.
- Cut butter into slices. Add to flour, cutting in with two knives, or use a pastry blender or your fingers, until mixture looks like coarse crumbs.
- Stir together milk and Angostura bitters. Add to flour mixture and gently stir until moistened. Do not over-mix.
- Drop batter by the heaping spoonsful onto baking sheet; let rest 5 minutes. Sheet tray does not have to be greased.
- Bake 13-14 minutes or until lightly golden. Serve warm.
Rolled Cut-Out Biscuits
- Proceed as above, using 2/3 cup milk for either the savory, or sweet variation (below). Dough will be on the moist side, but should form into a ball with your hands. Place on a well-floured surface and knead 10-15 times, sprinkling with extra flour so that dough is not sticky. Roll or pat out to about 1/2” thick. Cut into rounds with a 3” cookie cutter or rim of a glass. Place rounds on sheet tray. Fold over remaining dough, knead once or twice and roll out. Cut rounds until dough is used up. Bake 13-14 minutes. Serve warm.
Orange Currant Drop Biscuits
- Use 2 Tbsp. sugar (instead of 2 tsp.), 1/3 cup currants, zest of one orange and 1 Tbsp. Angostura orange bitters. Add the sugar to the flour, baking powder and salt; whisk together. Cut in butter. Stir currants into flour mixture. Add orange zest and Angostura to the 1 cup milk; stir. Stir into flour mixture. Do not over-mix. Drop batter by heaping spoonsful onto baking sheet. Let rest 5 minutes. Bake 13-14 minutes or until lightly golden. Serve warm.
Nutrition per Basic Drop Biscuit (14 biscuits total): 130 calories, 2g protein, 16g carb, 6g fat, (3.5g sat. fat), 15mg chol, 190mg sodium, 0g fiber
Nutrition per Orange Currant Drop Biscuit (14 biscuits using 1/3 cup currants and 2 Tbsp sugar): 140 calories, 2g protein, 20g carb, 6g fat, (3.5g sat. fat), 15mg chol, 190mg sodium, 1g fiber
Recipes and photos by Rita Held for Angostura USA
Nice lighting on those bitter biscuits, Rita!
They even taste better than they look! If you try them, let me know what you honestly think.
Will do!
Rita,
These look yummy – I was surprised to see that you use a tablespoon of bitters – need to give it a try.
Yes JoAnn, 1 tablespoon Angostura bitters. I looked back at my test sheet from two years ago. I started with 1 tablespoon and liked it. So each time I retested to get the biscuits just right, I used the same. However, I love the background flavor Angostura gives to food. Not everyone is a bitters fan. Please let me know what you think when you make them.