Perfect Homemade Biscuits without Buttermilk

I have been trying to make a delicious homemade biscuit for going on five years now.  Many people have told me how incredibly easy it is or that 'there's nothing to it', but for me, I have had a biscuit block.  I don't know if I was trying too hard, or just hadn't found the right recipe for me, but I have never been able to make a truly delicious biscuit (though I have made a few decent ones). I have always been able to cook or bake most anything, but not biscuits.

The first 7 or 8 batches I tried, 5 years ago, always turned out dry or hard or both.  I got discouraged, and I quit trying for a while.  About a year later, I tried again.  This time, my biscuits were not quite as hard or dry, but they did not rise at all like they should.  So once again, I got discouraged and quit after trying possibly a dozen batches (using several different recipes too, might I add).   I was so dispirited  that I didn't try again until about 6 months ago.

After tons of research on WHY I was having these problems, and looking up ways to avoid them, I was finally able to product a decent biscuit.  I kept at it, tweaking my recipe and technique a little at a time to try to make it a little better.

This morning, I finally did it!  I made the most delicious, perfectly raised, fluffy biscuit ever!  It may not look like a pretty Hardees or Paula Dean biscuit, but it is soooo yummy that I had to share it with you all!

Homemade Biscuits

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups flour plus more for rolling out

1 Tbsp Baking Powder

1 Tbsp Sugar

1 tsp salt

1/3 cup shortening

1 cup cold milk (preferably whole)

2 Tbsp Butter or margarine, melted

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 415 degrees.  Combine flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in a medium mixing bowl.  Mix will.

2. Add the 1/3 cup shortening cutting in with your fingers. Work it in until the mixture looks like it has the texture of very coarse corn meal.   Try to do this as quickly as possible so that the shortening doesn't melt.

3. Make a well in the flour mixture and add the milk. Mix it in using a fork.  Do this only until all the flour mixture is moistened.  Do not overwork it.

4.Turn the dough out onto a floured surface.  Knead 3 or 4 times and flatten out with your fingers.  Add flour to the surface as needed to prevent sticking. Roll over the dough once or twice with a rolling pin, reducing thickness to around 1/2  thick.

5.  Dip a glass rim or round cookie cutter in flour.  Cut out biscuits.  DO NOT twist the glass!  Press straight down.  Twisting will prevent the biscuits from rising properly, and will make them hard. You may re-roll the dough and cut more biscuits until  dough is used up.  Place on a greased baking pan, brush tops with butter and bake approximately 10 minutes, or until lightly browned. 

*disclaimer*  I received a copy of Fitness Confidential free of charge for the purposes of this review, but was under no obligation to provide a positive review.  These opinions are my own, and were not influenced by any outside sources.