Fluffy & flaky Buttermilk Biscuits! I worked on this recipe for quite some time to get just the right combination of fluffiness and flakiness.

I’m happy to share it with you in case you haven’t found your perfect buttermilk biscuit recipe yet.

I’ve tried many biscuit recipes over the years. Some make a very, very wet dough that could almost be scooped like a muffin rather than cut with a biscuit cutter. A very wet dough that is minimally handled produces a super fluffy and moist biscuit.

I’ve tried other recipes that make a firmer dough that is rolled and folded to create flakiness. I found some of those recipes produce a biscuit that is flaky, but too much of the fluffiness is lost.

I want the best of both worlds so I tinkered with this recipe until I got a result that was both light and flaky.

How to make Buttermilk Biscuits that are both fluffy and flaky:

• Make a fairly wet dough that holds it’s shape well enough to be folded.
• Gentle folding will develop layers of dough that will bake into lovely, buttery layers in the final biscuit.
• It’s easy to create flakiness by layering the dough. The trick is to handle the dough gently so you don’t develop the gluten, which will toughen the dough. 
• Use a mixture of 1/2 all purpose and 1/2 cake flour. All purpose flour gives the biscuit dough enough body to create layers, and cake flour has a lower protein content to keep toughening gluten at bay.
• Use your hands from start through finish to avoid over-working the dough.
• This dough is so tender you don’t need a rolling pin. You can easily pat it into shape using your hands.

Click through the step-by-step photos to see how to make fluffy and flaky Buttermilk Biscuits:

Cut the butter into the dry ingredients and add the buttermilk all at once.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead a few times to bring the dough together.

Pat the dough to 1/2″ thick and fold 2x. Then pat to 3/4″ thick and cut the biscuits.

Line the biscuits on a parchment lined pan and brush with buttermilk before baking in a hot oven.

The biscuits are best eaten still warm from the oven. Leftovers (I doubt they’ll be any leftovers!) can be frozen and rewarmed in the oven or buttered and toasted on a griddle.

You might also want to try making Cornmeal Biscuits and if you’ve got a sourdough starter, try these delicious Sourdough Biscuits! 

If you love this recipe as much as I do, I’d really appreciate a 5-star review.

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Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits

Yield: 12

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 12 minutes

Total Time: 32 minutes

Buttermilk biscuits that are both fluffy and flaky. It's all about how you handle the dough!

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Ingredients

• 2 cups (10 oz, 280g) all purpose flour
• 2 cups (8.5 oz 240g) cake flour
• 1 Tablespoon + 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 8 oz (2 sticks, 224g) unsalted butter, cold and cut into 16 pieces
• 2 cups (16oz, 480ml) buttermilk plus more for brushing

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a half sheet pan with parchment paper.
2. Combine the all purpose flour, cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt in a mixing bowl. Whisk the dry ingredients to combine.
3. Mix the butter into the flour with your fingers until it's broken down into bits slightly larger than a pea. Add the buttermilk all at once and mix until about 2/3 of the dry ingredients are absorbed.
4. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead together just to incorporate the remaining dry flour (this should only take about 6-8 kneads).
5. Gently pat dough to a 1/2" thick, brush off excess flour and fold the dough in 1/2. Pat gently to stick the dough together and and fold again. Pat to 3/4 " thick disc and cut with a 3" biscuit cutter. Gather the scraps together, pat to 3/4" thick and continue cutting until all the dough is used up.
6. Set the biscuits onto the prepared baking sheet and brush the tops with buttermilk. Bake until golden brown, about 10-12 minutes.
7. If the bottoms of the biscuits are browning too fast set another sheet pan under the biscuits after 5 minutes of baking.

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

• 
  Pastry Brush, 1 1/2", Commercial Grade
• Round Cookie Biscuit Cutter Set
• SACO Pantry Cultured Buttermilk Blend
• Reynolds Non-Stick Baking Parchment Paper Sheets
• Vollrath Wear-Ever Half-Size Sheet Pans

Did you make this recipe?

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