In honor of Granny I thought I would share this recipe I recently found (I think in an old Southern Living). As I mentioned previously, Granny had homemade biscuits at every meal. These biscuits were to die for! We all wanted the recipe and Granny was always more than happy to share it with us. But it was never something she could write down. It was just something you had to experience. Her recipe went something like this:
Scooping her hand in the Crisco tin, "Scoop out about this much Crisco."
Reaching down in the flour jar, "Now add a few handfuls of flour."
"Then you add some salt and baking powder. And, you are done"
Needless to say, no one ever perfected those biscuits! We all tried, but never came close. I am not going to try to give you a biscuit recipe that would even come close to Granny's, but I do have a great homemade crescent roll recipe that is delicious and very easy! I will give you this disclaimer though, it is not a flaky, buttery crescent roll like you get from a can. It is more like a dinner roll that is rolled up. In fact that is what Miller calls them, Roll Ups. He has asked for Roll Ups every night since I made them.
Roll Ups:
1 (1/4 oz) envelope active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water
3 1/2 cups all-purpose baking mix
2 tbsp sugar
All-purpose flour
1. Combine yeast and warm water in a 1 cup measuring cup; let stand 5 minutes. Combine 3 cups baking mix and sugar in a large bowl; gradually stir in yeast mixture.
2. If you have a heavy duty mixer (standing kitchen aide): Beat dough at medium speed using dough hook attachment, about 5 minutes, beating in 1/2 cup additional baking mix, if needed, until dough leaves the sides of the bowl and pulls together, becoming soft and smooth.
If you do not have a heavy duty mixer: Turn dough out onto a floured surface, and knead, adding additional baking mix (up to 1/2 cut) as needed, until dough is smooth and elastic (about 10 minutes)
If you do not have a heavy duty mixer: Turn dough out onto a floured surface, and knead, adding additional baking mix (up to 1/2 cut) as needed, until dough is smooth and elastic (about 10 minutes)
3. Roll dough into a circle (the recipe calls for a 12 inch circle - about the diameter of a rolling pin- but I thought this left the dough a little thick. Next time I make these I will probably roll my dough out a little bit more).
4. Cut circle into 12 wedges.
5. Roll up wedges, starting at wide end to form a crescent shap; place point side down on lightly greased baking sheet.
5. Cover and let rise in a warm place , free from drafts, 1 hour or until doubled in size.
6. Preheat oven to 425. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Would be really good if topped with some melted butter before putting in oven or Parmesan cheese!
Enjoy! We did!