Buttermilk Biscuits
Thomas J. Story
Cookbook author Jen Stevenson made these buttery quick breads—adapted from a recipe in her book with Marnie Hanel, The Campout Cookbook (Artisan, 2018)—in a cast-iron mini cake pan, but a dutch oven works too.
How to Make It
At Home
1
Combine 2 cups flour, baking powder, soda, and salt in a resealable plastic bag. Pour buttermilk into an 8-oz. jar and the remaining 1/4 cup flour into a wide-mouth 4-oz. jar. Chop butter and seal in a jar. Chill ingredients and jam in a cooler.
In Camp
2
Prep a wood or charcoal fire (see “Going Dutch,” below). On a solid bed of coals, heat a cast-iron mini cake pan or 4-qt. (10-in.) camp dutch oven with lid (but no coals on top) about 10 minutes. Dust a rimmed baking sheet with some flour from the 4-oz. jar.
3
In a bowl, toss flour mixture with the butter. Rub in butter with fingertips until it looks like cornmeal. Slowly mix in butter- milk with a fork to fully moisten dough.
4
Transfer dough to baking sheet, gently pat into a round, and fold in half. Repeat 5 times, dusting with flour if needed, then shape dough into a 6- by- 9-in. rectangle. Dip a 3-in. biscuit cutter (or clean empty tin can) in flour and cut out 6 biscuits; press straight down and don’t twist. Reshape scraps into a seventh biscuit.
5
Nestle biscuits into cake pan. For dutch oven, remove from fire and set biscuits inside; rearrange coals for baking with 9 under oven and 18 on lid (including 2 in center). Bake biscuits until golden brown, checking at 10 minutes for any scorching and turning them once if using cake pan, about 15 minutes total. Serve with jam.
Going Dutch
6
A dutch oven lets you simmer, sauté, and even bake with a fire’s embers. Or, for more heat control, light the precise number of charcoal briquets a recipe calls for and you can literally count your way to success.
7
PACK SUPPLIES . Bring fuel for a wood fire, or charcoal briquets, chimney starter, and newspaper; butane lighter; 4-qt. (10-in.) and 6-qt. (12-in.) camp dutch ovens with feet and flanged lids; grilling tongs; grilling gloves.
8
PREP THE FIRE . In a fire ring with the grate pushed away, build a campfire and mound about 3 qts. of hot embers to the side. Or half-fill a chimney starter with charcoal briquets, ignite using newspaper, and let burn until spotted gray, 15 to 20 minutes; as you cook, ignite more coals as needed.
9
ARRANGE THE COALS. For sautéing, use tongs to clear an even layer of coals and set the pot on top. For baking or simmering, arrange 8 to 10 briquet-size coals in a circle a little smaller than the dutch oven. Set on top with lid in place; arrange 15 to 16 more coals around lip of lid and 2 coals in center.
10
TWEAK THE TEMP. Lift handle with tongs to check food. To decrease heat, scrape away some fuel. To increase heat or cook past 30 minutes, add 5 to 6 coals every 30 minutes beneath dutch oven and 5 to 6 on top.
Ingredients
2 ¼ cups flour, divided
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
1 ½ tsp kosher salt
¾ cup low-fat buttermilk
½ cup unsalted butter
Strawberry jam, for serving
Directions
At Home
1
Combine 2 cups flour, baking powder, soda, and salt in a resealable plastic bag. Pour buttermilk into an 8-oz. jar and the remaining 1/4 cup flour into a wide-mouth 4-oz. jar. Chop butter and seal in a jar. Chill ingredients and jam in a cooler.
In Camp
2
Prep a wood or charcoal fire (see “Going Dutch,” below). On a solid bed of coals, heat a cast-iron mini cake pan or 4-qt. (10-in.) camp dutch oven with lid (but no coals on top) about 10 minutes. Dust a rimmed baking sheet with some flour from the 4-oz. jar.
3
In a bowl, toss flour mixture with the butter. Rub in butter with fingertips until it looks like cornmeal. Slowly mix in butter- milk with a fork to fully moisten dough.
4
Transfer dough to baking sheet, gently pat into a round, and fold in half. Repeat 5 times, dusting with flour if needed, then shape dough into a 6- by- 9-in. rectangle. Dip a 3-in. biscuit cutter (or clean empty tin can) in flour and cut out 6 biscuits; press straight down and don’t twist. Reshape scraps into a seventh biscuit.
5
Nestle biscuits into cake pan. For dutch oven, remove from fire and set biscuits inside; rearrange coals for baking with 9 under oven and 18 on lid (including 2 in center). Bake biscuits until golden brown, checking at 10 minutes for any scorching and turning them once if using cake pan, about 15 minutes total. Serve with jam.
Going Dutch
6
A dutch oven lets you simmer, sauté, and even bake with a fire’s embers. Or, for more heat control, light the precise number of charcoal briquets a recipe calls for and you can literally count your way to success.
7
PACK SUPPLIES . Bring fuel for a wood fire, or charcoal briquets, chimney starter, and newspaper; butane lighter; 4-qt. (10-in.) and 6-qt. (12-in.) camp dutch ovens with feet and flanged lids; grilling tongs; grilling gloves.
8
PREP THE FIRE . In a fire ring with the grate pushed away, build a campfire and mound about 3 qts. of hot embers to the side. Or half-fill a chimney starter with charcoal briquets, ignite using newspaper, and let burn until spotted gray, 15 to 20 minutes; as you cook, ignite more coals as needed.
9
ARRANGE THE COALS. For sautéing, use tongs to clear an even layer of coals and set the pot on top. For baking or simmering, arrange 8 to 10 briquet-size coals in a circle a little smaller than the dutch oven. Set on top with lid in place; arrange 15 to 16 more coals around lip of lid and 2 coals in center.
10
TWEAK THE TEMP. Lift handle with tongs to check food. To decrease heat, scrape away some fuel. To increase heat or cook past 30 minutes, add 5 to 6 coals every 30 minutes beneath dutch oven and 5 to 6 on top.
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