Ramp and Strawberry Biscuits
Time: 1 hr | Difficulty: 2/5 | Recommendation: Weekend project
I thought about making these biscuits for a week, before finally making them. The recipe got developed, baked, and eaten multiple times in my head, which made the final result all the more satisfying!! These biscuits are a burst of spring flavor, with the garlicky ramps and the juicy, fresh strawberries. The berries are sliced small, and dried slightly in the oven, so they still have a fresh punch but don’t add too much moisture to the flaky biscuits. I recommend eating these with a bunch of butter, a slice of parmesan, and some fresh strawberries on top!!
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
Pepper
8 tbsp (1 stick) butter, plus some extra melted butter for brushing on top
1/2 cup buttermilk (or 1/2 cup milk + 1 1/2 tsp lemon juice)
A handful of ramps
4 large strawberries
A big bowl
A pastry mat (recommended so you don’t have to clean so much off the counter! If you don’t have a pastry mat, I recommend laying down a large sheet of plastic wrap.)
Method:
Heat the oven to 250°.
Prepare the ramps: Wash them by dunking them in a big bowl of water, then chop the leaves, and dice the stems.
Prepare the strawberries by cutting into small chunks: into halves, then quarters, then chunks. Place on a parchment-paper-lined baking tray and bake for about 15 minutes, until they’ve lost about half of their moisture.
To the bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and pepper, and whisk. Slice the butter into cubes, then add it to the dry mixture and crumble it into pea-sized bits with your fingers.
Add the ramps and mix.
Add in the buttermilk, and mix well until the mixture is just coming together.
Tip the mixture onto a floured surface and mold into a flattish square. Add the strawberries on one side, then cut the square in half and make a sandwich with the strawberries and the mixture. Roll it down into another square.
To create the flakiness, cut the dough into three, then stack the slices and roll them back down into a square. Repeat two more times.
Slice the dough into nine biscuits. Put the biscuits on a lined baking tray.
Increase the oven heat to 425°. Melt about a tablespoon of butter in the microwave, and brush the tops of the biscuits with the butter.
Bake for about 15-20 minutes, until the biscuits are golden brown.