brown butter rosemary biscuits with salted maple whipped cream
I’m in a long term relationship with browned butter.
The meetings started after a chance encounter with Slice n’ Bake Brown Butter Candied Pecan Cookies. Then, the vortex sucked me in. The same night I fiddled with salmon, scallops, some time later a fancy red wine-braised mushroom dish (have to have some class here, guys, to preserve my image), and most recently a maple fig cake.
I’m an addict. Whenever I can coax brown butter into my pan, to fill my abode with tempting nutty aromas, I will.
Here’s another way to brown butter: rosemary biscuits baked soft and flaky, spread with a simple salty maple whipped cream tinged with bourbon for an extra rich upscale flare. These biscuits are quite minimal in ingredients yet maximal in poof and taste. I baked two batches within the week, one to hoard and one to share. Be ready to reach for seconds and suddenly find an empty bag or container beneath your fingers.
Don’t Be a Limp Biscuit
…and skip the brown butter. The process takes a bit longer simply due to the chilling time required of the concoction. Biscuits require cold butter to work properly, such aids with the rise, the flake, and prevents a flat (but still yummy) blob from emerging out the sauna. What helps here? The freezer.
To achieve: melt a stick of butter with plenty of fresh rosemary sprigs until the butter stops sizzling and the fat solids separate and turn golden. Give it 8-10 minutes, or 5 if your butter is particularly cooperative. Pour into your tempered, heat-safe jar and pop in the fridge for at least an hour, or the freezer for about 15 minutes. Make sure it’s really cold and solid before you proceed.
For the biscuit dough, whisk together all purpose flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut the solidified brown butter with forks or your hands until no larger than pea-sized pieces scatter in the bowl. Pour in cold buttermilk and mix until a cohesive but somewhat dry dough forms. If you need more liquid or more flour, add one tablespoon at a time, but I found the prescribed 3/4 cup perfect for the suggested flour portion.
How to get those pretty layers? Several methods exist, but I used a fairly lazy one that worked beautifully. Pat the dough into a square and cut four even squares. Stack them atop one another and press down, pushing the sides together if they start to protrude. Roll or pat into a 1-inch rectangle and slice 9 biscuits out of the dough. Line a baking sheet with parchment and set the biscuits atop, then slide into the freezer for about 15 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400.
Whip It Good!
Whenever I slide bourbon into an icing or really anything, I always receive ridiculously positive feedback. I am glad to announce the whip cream contains bourbon, so please, let out your strongest anti-golf claps. More on that in a minute, though. We’ve got a hot oven to address.
Pour a little heavy cream into a bowl and brush the tops of each biscuit. This helps browning. Place the sheet tray of cold ass biscuits in the oven for 20-25 minutes until golden and puffy. The biscuits will contain speckles of darker brown as a result of the brown butter. These parts are really the best. Savor them. Do it.
Okay, back to the whip. It’s elementary, dear Watson. Combine cold heavy cream, maple syrup, bourbon, and salt in a bowl and beat with your hand mixer or stand mixer at a fast setting until you achieve firm peaks. Be careful not to overwhip else the result resembles canned whip, which isn’t bad when aerosol isn’t involve but looks less appetizing when served in a bowl. I think, anyway.
A final bit of unsolicited advice? Make a batch of Slow Cooker Spiced Apple Pumpkin Butter the night before, and slap it on a biscuit with some of the bourbon whip. The marriage is divine. All priests in the world will sob simultaneously.
Tried this recipe out? Leave a comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!
Ingredients
- 1 stick salted butter
- 1/4 cup fresh rosemary, lightly packed
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 2 tbsp heavy cream, for brushing
salted maple whipped cream
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 3 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tbsp bourbon (optional)
- 1 tsp kosher salt
Instructions
- Heat the butter and rosemary in a small saucepan until the butter browns and the solids separate, about 8-10 minutes. Pour into a tempered, airtight jar and set in the freezer until firm, about 15 minutes.
- When the butter is ready, prepare the biscuits. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut the browned butter-rosemary mixture into the flour with a pastry cutter, two forks, or your fingers, until pieces no larger than a pea remain and the mixture is crumbly. Slowly stream in the buttermilk, stirring until a shaggy but cohesive dough forms.
- Dump dough onto a lightly floured surface and form into a 6 x 6 inch square. Cut into four slices and stack atop one another, then press down until about 2 inches thick. Roll or press the dough into a 1-inch thick rectangle. Slice 9 biscuits out of the dough. Lay parchment onto a baking sheet and set the biscuits atop. Place in the freezer for 15 minutes to set.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Remove the biscuits from the freezer, brush with buttermilk, and bake for 20-22 minutes until golden and risen.
- For the maple whip, beat the heavy cream, maple syrup, bourbon, and salt until firm peaks form. Serve the biscuits with the whip and some apple butter or another jam/spread.
