Honey Butter Biscuits: Tall, Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits with Whipped Honey Butter

If there is one bread that makes a table feel like home, it is a warm biscuit. These honey butter biscuits are tall, tender and flaky, with golden tops and a swipe of sweet, salty honey butter that melts into every crack.

I spent a long autumn chasing the perfect biscuit. Early batches came out flat, then dense, then tough. What finally worked was embarrassingly simple: butter so cold that it feels firm in the bowl, a gentle hand with the dough, and a quick set of folds that builds layers without any special equipment.

In this recipe I walk through each step with the small details that matter, including how to cut the butter, how to fold the dough, how to cut straight down without twisting, and how to whip the honey butter. Serve them with Sunday breakfast, a holiday spread, or a big bowl of soup.

What Makes a Great Biscuit

A tall, flaky biscuit has pockets of cold butter scattered throughout the dough. In the heat of the oven, the butter melts and its water turns to steam, pushing the dough apart into thin layers. Everything in the method protects that cold butter and avoids developing gluten that would make the biscuit tough.

Flour matters too. All-purpose flour gives a sturdy yet tender crumb, and measuring it correctly keeps the dough from turning dry. Spoon the flour into the measuring cup and sweep the top level with a knife rather than scooping straight from the bag, which packs in up to an extra quarter cup.

Temperature is the other half of the story. On a hot day, chill your mixing bowl and even the flour for 20 minutes before starting. A cold bowl buys you extra time before the butter softens, and that makes the difference between a biscuit that rises two inches and one that spreads out flat.

• Cold butter: chilled until firm, never softened.
• Cold buttermilk: acidity tenderizes and activates the leaveners.
• Light handling: stir only until the dough comes together.
• A hot oven: 425F creates fast steam and lift.
• Straight cuts: twisting the cutter seals the edges and stunts the rise.

Ingredients for Honey Butter Biscuits

• All-purpose flour (2 1/2 cups): spooned and leveled, plus extra for dusting.
• Baking powder (1 tablespoon) and baking soda (1/4 teaspoon): double leavening for height.
• Kosher salt (3/4 teaspoon) and sugar (1 tablespoon): for flavor and browning.
• Cold unsalted butter (1/2 cup, 1 stick): cut into small cubes and frozen for 15 minutes.
• Cold buttermilk (1 cup): plus a splash for brushing.
• For the honey butter: 4 tablespoons softened butter, 2 tablespoons honey and a pinch of flaky salt.
• For the tops: 2 tablespoons melted butter mixed with 1 tablespoon honey.

How to Make Honey Butter Biscuits

Set a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 425F (220C). Line a baking sheet with parchment. Work quickly and keep the dough cool.

1. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar in a large bowl.
2. Add the cold butter cubes. Toss to coat, then press each cube flat between your fingertips, working fast, until you have flakes the size of nickels and a few pea-sized pieces.
3. Make a well, pour in the cold buttermilk and stir with a fork until a shaggy dough forms and most of the flour is moistened.
4. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and pat into a rectangle about 3/4 inch thick. Fold it in thirds like a letter, rotate a quarter turn, pat out again and fold again. Repeat once more for three folds total.
5. Pat to a final thickness of 1 inch. Cut with a floured 2 1/2-inch round cutter straight down without twisting. Gather scraps gently and cut once more.
6. Place biscuits with sides touching on the baking sheet for taller rises. Brush the tops with buttermilk.
7. Bake 15 to 18 minutes until deeply golden. Brush right away with the honey-butter mixture and serve warm.

The Lamination Fold Explained

Lamination sounds fancy, but here it just means folding the dough over itself to stack thin layers of butter and flour. Three folds are enough. More than that overworks the dough and warms the butter.

• Pat the dough into a rectangle, not a circle, so the folds line up neatly.
• Use a bench scraper to lift the dough if it sticks, and flour lightly between folds.
• Fold like a business letter: one-third over the middle, then the other third over that.
• If the butter starts to feel soft or greasy, slide the dough onto a plate and chill for 10 minutes.

Whipped Honey Butter

The honey butter takes about two minutes and can be made days ahead. Beat 1/2 cup softened unsalted butter with 3 tablespoons honey and a good pinch of flaky salt until pale and fluffy. Scoop it into a small dish or roll it into a log in parchment.

• For a hot honey butter, add a teaspoon of hot sauce or a pinch of red pepper flakes.
• For a cinnamon version, beat in 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon.
• Refrigerate, then let it come to room temperature before spreading.

Honey butter is also lovely on soft dinner rolls and baked sweet potatoes, so make a double batch.

Troubleshooting Your Biscuits

• Flat biscuits: the butter warmed up, the baking powder is old, or the cutter was twisted. Chill the dough for 15 minutes before cutting.
• Dense or tough: too much mixing. Stop when the dough is shaggy.
• Dry and crumbly: too much flour on the surface or measured with a packed cup. Spoon and level flour.
• Pale tops: brush with buttermilk and bake on the center rack until deeply golden.
• Butter leaking out: the oven was not hot enough. Preheat fully and bake on a hot pan if needed.
• Uneven rise: rotate the pan halfway through baking.
• Bitter or metallic taste: too much baking soda or powder. Level your measuring spoons carefully instead of heaping them.
• Gummy centers: the biscuits needed longer in the oven, or the dough was too wet. Bake until the sides feel firm and the tops are deep golden.
• Hard bottoms: a dark pan runs hot. Use a light-colored sheet, stack two pans together, or move the rack up one position.

Serving and Pairing Ideas

Biscuits are flexible. I serve them in the morning with eggs and crisp bacon, at dinner beside a bowl of chicken noodle soup, and on holiday tables next to honey glazed ham. Split a warm biscuit and layer it with a slice of ham and a dab of mustard for a small sandwich, or fill it with fried chicken and hot honey for something larger.

For dessert, split a biscuit, spoon over sliced strawberries or baked apples, and top with whipped cream. The sweet, tender crumb stands in beautifully for shortcake.

If you are cooking a big holiday meal, biscuits are a gift to the cook because they bake in under twenty minutes. Tuck the tray in the oven while the roast rests, and they will arrive at the table hot just as everyone sits down. Wrap them in a clean cloth inside a basket to hold the warmth, and set the honey butter beside them so guests can help themselves.

Planning a gathering? Count on one to two biscuits per person, and bake a second tray if the menu is light. Leftovers make excellent breakfast sandwiches the next morning, so I never worry about making too many.

• Breakfast: eggs, sausage patties or sausage gravy
• Dinner: soups, stews, roast chicken or country ham
• Holiday: honey glazed ham, green beans and mashed potatoes
• Snack: split and toasted with jam and butter

Variations

• Cheddar and chive: fold in 3/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar and 2 tablespoons chives.
• Black pepper and herb: add 1/2 teaspoon pepper and fresh thyme.
• Cinnamon honey: add 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon to the dry ingredients and brush with extra honey.
• Drop biscuits: increase buttermilk to 1 1/4 cups and scoop; no folding needed.
• Buttermilk substitute: stir 1 tablespoon lemon juice into 1 cup whole milk and rest 5 minutes.

Make-Ahead, Storage and Food Safety

Biscuits are best the day they are baked. Store cooled leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two days, or refrigerate for up to five. Rewarm in a 350F oven for 8 minutes, covered loosely with foil so they do not dry out.

For make-ahead baking, cut the biscuits, freeze them on a tray until solid, then bag them. Bake straight from frozen at 425F, adding 3 to 5 minutes. They rise just as well as fresh. Biscuits that contain eggs, ham or cheese should be refrigerated promptly, and the USDA gives useful rules on leftovers and food safety.

Frequently Asked Questions

If these biscuits made it to your table, please leave a rating and tell me what you served them with. For more warm baked goods, browse the bread category.

Honey Butter Biscuits

Tall, flaky buttermilk biscuits brushed with honey butter and served warm.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 18 minutes mins

Total Time 38 minutes mins

Servings: 8 biscuits

Course: Bread, Side Dish

Cuisine: American, Southern

Calories: 330

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

Biscuits

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter cubed and frozen 15 minutes
• 1 cup cold buttermilk plus 1 tablespoon for brushing

Honey butter

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 pinch flaky salt

Brushing mixture

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
• 1 tablespoon honey

Method

 

1. Heat oven to 425F and line a baking sheet with parchment.
2. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar.
3. Cut in cold butter, flattening cubes into flakes with your fingertips.
4. Add buttermilk and stir to a shaggy dough.
5. Pat on a floured surface to 3/4 inch, fold in thirds, turn and repeat for three folds.
6. Pat to 1 inch, cut straight down with a 2 1/2-inch cutter, and place touching on the pan. Brush with buttermilk.
7. Bake 15 to 18 minutes until golden.
8. Mix the melted butter and honey, brush over hot biscuits, and serve with whipped honey butter.

Notes

Biscuits can be frozen unbaked and baked from frozen at 425F, adding 3 to 5 minutes. Store baked biscuits up to 2 days at room temperature.

A pan of hot biscuits has a way of gathering people around the table. Keep your butter cold, handle the dough gently and brush on that honey butter while they are still steaming. Enjoy every bite, friends. Chef Amber