August 25, 2016
SWEET POTATO BISCUITS & HAM
This is probably one of the most requested items we have on our catering menu. Sweet potato biscuits are so good. Ours are soft, flaky, delicate, and are especially moist because of the way we cook our sweet potatoes. I always bake the sweet potatoes whenever I use them in baking (including my sweet potato pie) for it really intensifies the flavor of the potato – giving the end product a richness you won’t find if you boil or microwave them.
We stuff them with all kinds of great things, but my favorite this month is fresh baked Smithfield Ham topped with dressed micro-greens drizzled with orange balsamic glaze. Stuffing these delightful biscuits with our ham salad and boysenberry horseradish is freakin’ incredible as well.
If you have never made biscuits, don’t be daunted – it is really very simple. Just treat them gently.
INGREDIENTS
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1 pound cooked sweet potatoes (about 4 to 5 medium potatoes – weigh pound after baked)
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2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
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4 tablespoons baking powder
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½ teaspoon baking soda
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2 tablespoons sugar
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1 teaspoon salt
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¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
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8 tablespoons COLD salted butter (1 stick)
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¼ cup full fat buttermilk (Marburger Gourmet – you can buy at publix)
STEP ONE
Preset oven to 400 degrees. Line baking sheet with aluminum foil. Bake potatoes until completely done. Let cool. Remove skin and smash.
STEP TWO
In a Cuisinart (food processor), add dry ingredients. Blend for 30 seconds. Add butter chunks, pulse approximately 10 times until the butter is pea size. Put in large mixing bowl.
STEP THREE
Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, add smashed potato and buttermilk – mix together using a dinner fork. It is important not to over mix. Treat your biscuits like a baby’s bottom – very gently. If you over-mix or over-kneed your biscuits will be tough.
Gently roll or pat down on lightly floured board or surface to 1/2 inch high. Dip a biscuit cutter in flour each time you cut a biscuit. We cut our biscuits in small bite size pieces. Lay the cut biscuits one inch apart from one another on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar. Bake on middle rack for 8 to 12 minutes depending on your oven. They should be light in weight, and golden brown when properly baked.