I recently blogged about a delightful souvenir we picked up in Coeur D’Alene, Idaho on our cross country road trip – Mary Jane’s Budget Mix. Budget Mix is an all-purpose organic baking mix that can be used to make pretty much any baked good you can think of.
In addition to the Budget Mix, I also bought an issue of Mary Jane’s Farm magazine with the recipe in it that inspired this post (see left). Mary Jane’s original recipe is called No-Fuss Budget Biscuits. The great thing about the magazine and Budget Mix is that recipes are given in family portions and in just-for-two portions. I adapted Mary Jane’s biscuit recipe to create the one below. In terms of replicating the recipe, you could buy yourself some Budget Mix (and I highly recommend it) or you can use any multi-purpose baking mix you can find in the grocery store (Jiffy, Bisquick, Arrowhead Mills). Honestly, I’ve never been interested in a one stop shop product like this (especially for baking) but the Budget Mix may be the one exception I make. It worked out great and make delicious biscuits. I can’t wait to use it in other ways!
Domestocrat’s Budget Herb Biscuits For Two (yields 4 biscuits)
1 cup Budget Mix (or another multi-purpose baking mix)
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tbsp. fresh thyme (7 springs), minced
1 tbsp. EVOO
3 tbsp. butter
1/3 cup 2% milk
Start by mixing all of the dry ingredients together in a big bowl.
Fresh thyme is key here, the flavor is much bolder and smoother. Mine was from our container garden, wahoo! Mince the thyme into your preferred sized pieces and add those into the bowl. I like to cut really small pieces so that the thyme runs evenly throughout the biscuits.
Cut the butter into small cubes, add to the dry ingredients, and begin to incorporate the two. You can do this with a fancy dough blender, two butter knives, a fork, or just your hands. I opt for my hands though a real baker would tell me that I’m compromising my butter by getting body heat anywhere near it. Ah well. You’ll know you’re done when the flour looks like course meal and not fine flour (like slightly wet sand rather than dry sand).
Add the EVOO and milk and knead for a few minutes to bring the dough together.
You can roll out the dough and cut it with a ring cutter but for four biscuits, I just shaped them with my hands. Bake on a parchment paper lined baking sheet for 7-10 minutes on 400 degrees.
The biscuits are done when the tops just start to turn golden brown.
Best served with tea, bacon, and eggs. Just trust me on this one.
Domestocrat 