Tasty Thursday: Black Pepper Biscuits

Today's Tasty Thursday entry is Black Pepper Biscuits. I found this recipe a while ago, but recently when I was reorganizing my recipes and entering them into the computer, I found this one again and tried it. It was an immediate hit.

Black Pepper Biscuits

3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons cracked black pepper*
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled, cut up, divided
1 cup whole cold milk


Preheat the oven to 425° F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, pepper and salt. With a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in 1/2 cup of the butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs with some pea-sized pieces. Stir in milk just until soft dough forms.

On a lightly floured surface, pat or gently roll out dough to 3/4-inch thickness. With a floured biscuit cutter, cut into 2-inch rounds, pushing straight down and pulling up without twisting cutter. Place on baking sheets. Press scraps together to use all the dough.

Melt remaining 2 tablespoons of butter; brush over tops of biscuits. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until light golden brown on tops and golden brown on bottoms. Cool briefly on a wire rack.

*Tip: Cracked black pepper can be purchased in the spice aisle of the grocery store. To crack your own, place whole peppercorns in a heavy resealable plastic bag; seal bag. Pout with flat side of meat mallet until coarsely chopped. OR you can also use a pepper mill, and use a more fine grind for a more even flavor.