These whole-wheat biscuits are super cheesy. They’re slightly denser than your typical buttermilk biscuit, but they stay soft and moist in the middle and get a nice crust on the outside.
Here are the components:
- 2 cups whole wheat flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 cup shortening
- 1/2 lb extra sharp cheddar
Grate the cheese very fine, so you have a nice big fluffy pile. Set it back in the fridge while you’re prepping the other ingredients. This will allow it to melt more slowly in the oven and help keep the biscuits from sticking to the pan.
Preheat your oven to 450°.
In a large bowl, combine the flour and baking powder. Cut in the shortening. You can use a couple of forks, or a pastry cutter, or your hands, but the goal is to incorporate the shortening fully into the flour. You should be able to pick up a handful of the mixture and squeeze it together into a wad and have it stick together loosely.
Now, add in the milk. You should have a fairly thick, not too sticky dough that comes away from the sides of the bowl easily. Now, incorporate the grated cheese. A half pound of cheese is a lot to add into this amount of dough. I’d recommend using your hands to combine it really thoroughly, making an effort to get it evenly spread throughout.
Next, form the dough into evenly-sized balls. I made mine about two inches across, and at that size the dough made sixteen biscuits.
Spread them out on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes.
The inside of these will feel very soft and squishy, especially when warm, but don’t make the mistake of thinking they’re undercooked – if you bake them too long the outsides will burn, and the middle doesn’t really ever get any firmer. The middle will firm up some as they cool.
