Michelle Darmody: How to make American-style buttermilk biscuits to enjoy with soup

Buttermilk is a key ingredient in some of our most beloved Irish recipes

Buttermilk biscuits

Buttermilk has a long history in Ireland. It was originally a by-product of churning butter. The liquid was popular because it was mild and sweet and had greater longevity than milk. 

Today most buttermilk is cultured and produced separately to butter; it is a product in and of itself. While it can be drunk, most people tend to use it in baking or cooking. 

It is a key ingredient in some of our most beloved Irish recipes, like soda bread and scones. The acid in buttermilk activates the bread soda which is used in both of these recipes, carbon dioxide is produced when the buttermilk and bread soda meet, and this acts as a leavening agent.

If you fancy using buttermilk in some savoury recipes it is great for marinading chicken, as its properties soften the meat, and it is also a good addition to the batter or to a coleslaw dressing.

If you have kefir, yoghurt, or sour cream, they can all work well as substitutes for buttermilk. It is best to thin the yoghurt or sour cream with a little milk, to achieve pourable consistency. 

If you do not have any of these to hand, you can add either cider vinegar or lemon juice to regular milk and leave it to sit at room temperature for about half an hour. Around 15mls of acid to 240mls of milk is a good rule of thumb. This creates acidified buttermilk rather than a cultured one, but it will work in recipes.

The buttermilk biscuits recipe is for biscuits in the Northern American sense, more like a savoury scone on this side of the Atlantic.

Buttermilk Biscuits (for your soup)

recipe by:Michelle Darmody

This recipe is for biscuits in the Northern American sense, more like a savoury scone on this side of the Atlantic.

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 15 mins

Cooking Time

 18 mins

Total Time

 33 mins

Course

 Baking

Ingredients

• 180g self-raising flour

• ¼ tsp bread soda sieved

• ¼ tsp fine sea salt

• ½ tsp ground nutmeg

• 50g cold butter, cubed

• 2 tsp golden caster sugar

• 150mls buttermilk

• 25g Parmesan cheese, finely grated

• 1 egg yolk

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 190°C and line two large flat baking trays with parchment.

2. Stir the flour, bread soda, salt and nutmeg together. Rub in the cold butter until the mixture looks like rough breadcrumbs.

3. Mix the sugar, buttermilk and parmesan and combine this with the dry ingredients to form a dough.

4. Turn it out onto a floured surface and pat it down to about a half an inch in thickness, the batter will be soft. Cut out your biscuits and place them on the prepared tray. Brush the top of each one with the egg yolk. Bake for about 15 to 18 minutes until golden and baked through.

Hazelnut praline cake

recipe by:Michelle Darmody

This is an indulgent treat

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 15 mins

Cooking Time

 40 mins

Total Time

 55 mins

Course

 Baking

Ingredients

• 55g soft butter

• 180g golden caster sugar

• 1 egg, lightly beaten

• 215ml buttermilk

• 1 tsp vanilla

• 180g plain flour

• 1 tsp bread soda, sieved

• ¼ tsp fine sea salt, sieved

• For the praline topping:

• 40g soft butter

• 10ml cream

• 80g light muscovado sugar

• 115g hazelnuts, skins removed and roughly chopped

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 180 degrees and line a 9-inch round spring-form or loose-base tin with parchment.

2. Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

3. Mix the egg, buttermilk and vanilla and combine this with the butter mixture.

4. Stir the flour with the bread soda and salt until well mixed. Add this to the batter, taking care to combine it completely, but once it is combined stop mixing. Overmixing flour will result in a hard cake.

5. Scoop the batter into your prepared tin. Bake for 30 minutes.

6. While it is baking add the butter, cream and sugar to a heavy-based pan, place over a low heat until the ingredients are melted and combined, add in the hazelnuts.

7. Scoop the praline over the cake, after it has baked for the half an hour. Spread it out and place the cake back into the oven for a further ten minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean. Allow to cool in the tin.

Cornbread

Fresh cornbread is a delicious treat for a chilly day

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 30 mins

Total Time

 40 mins

Course

 Baking

Ingredients

• 230g finely ground cornmeal

• 140g plain flour, sieved

• 2 tsp baking powder, sieved

• 5g golden caster sugar

• 1 tsp fine sea salt

• ½ tsp cracked black pepper

• 50g melted butter

• 2 eggs, lightly beaten

• 540ml buttermilk

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 200°C and grease an ovenproof skillet, or a 9-inch round cake tin, with butter.

2. Mix the dry ingredients together, taking particular care to ensure the baking powder is well mixed with the others. Make a well in the centre.

3. Whisk the melted butter, eggs and buttermilk together then add it to the well in the dry ingredients. Incorporate the liquid with the whisk until everything is combined.

4. Scoop the mixture into your prepared tin and bake for about 30 minutes until a skewer comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan and then cut to whatever size you wish.