Amish Breakfast Biscuits

My brother has been visiting us from Ottawa for the past week. He goes home today as I write this (Tuesday). I had the opportunity to have him and the rest of our immediate family over for Supper on Monday, which really brought me a lot of joy.

For the 20+ years that I was living in the U.K. I could only dream of these kinds of occasions. The fact that I am finally able to do so is not a blessing that is lost on me. This is the silver lining in the dark cloud of my troubles from a few years ago.

There were five of us in attendance. My sister Cindy and her husband Dan, my brother David, my father and myself. I kept the menu fairly simple as my father doesn't like anything much out of the ordinary and we do all try to please him if we can.
We had Shake and Bake Chicken Wings, Mashed Potatoes, Peas & Carrots, Mashed Roasted Sweet Potato, yellow wax beans and an assortment of pickles. For dessert I made the TikTok Cinnamon Rolls from a recipe I posted a few months back. I knew dad would enjoy them and David had never tried them.

My brother in law Dan is not one much for sweet things and so I wanted to make a bread or biscuit that he could enjoy with his meal. I love Amish recipes. You can never go wrong with one of those. They are simple and usually very delicious.
I found a recipe in a cookbook entitled The Amish Cook for Breakfast Biscuits. It also included a recipe for milk gravy. I did not cook the milk gravy. I love this book. It is filled with lovely recipes and recollections from the kitchen of the late Elizabeth Coblentz, who wrote a very well received syndicated column for the New York Times for a number of years.

I don't know about you, but like many "English" (the term used to describe non-Amish by the Amish) I hold a great fascination for the Amish way of life and for their simple and delicious food. Especially their food and recipes.
Their food is simple, hearty, comforting and totally practical. There is no pretense or artifice. Its quite simply good cooking and good eating. As my old friend Debbie would say, they are a bunch of good "cookers!"

I was very intrigued by this simple recipe. It used very few ingredients. Just flour, salt, baking powder, sugar, milk and mayonnaise. Say what? Mayonnaise??? Who would have thunk it!
This Amish Breakfast Biscuit recipe also goes together incredibly easily and quickly. There is no having to cut in fat. You just stir everything together in a bowl. There is also no rolling out or cutting. They are a simple drop biscuit.

Although they contain mayonnaise, you can not taste it. I was a bit worried that you might, but you would be hard pressed to know that there was any mayonnaise in them unless you actually watched them being made.
I am not sure what the mayonnaise does or how it works, but these biscuits ended up being some of the most tender and fluffy biscuits around! I was really pleased with the results!

And I know that by posting an Amish recipe, and a "biscuit" recipe I am going to catch a lot of flack from people who think that I shouldn't, or that recipes such as this have no place in "The English Kitchen." I can't help that.
I am also a North American who now lives in Canada. I cook recipes from both sides of the pond. I am sorry if that disappoints or offends some people, but there are plenty, I would even say an abundance, of British/English/Scottish/Irish/Welsh recipes here on the blog.

The world we live in today is no longer a narrow place or limited. Our world is very cosmopolitan and we are free to cook from and experience the cuisine of many cultures from the comforts of our own kitchens.
As far as that goes, the British did not invent curry, and yet there is a curry house on almost every corner in the U.K. Curry has almost, but not quite, surpassed Roast Beef and Fish and Chips as being the U.K.'s national dish.
You may have to endure a North American Recipe in my now Canadian English Kitchen from time to time. That's just the way it is. So long as it all tastes good. Surely that is what counts most of all.

WHAT YOU NEED TO COOK AMISH BREAKFAST BISCUITS
Very simple, ordinary store cupboard ingredients. There is nothing fancy here.

2 cups (250g) plain all purpose flour
1 TBS baking powder (yes, it is 1 TBS)
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup (57.5g) Mayonnaise
1 cup (240ml) whole milk
1 tsp sugar

In the recipe it was specified that you can use either homemade or manufactured mayonnaise in this recipe. I used Hellman's. If I was in the South I might use Dukes. Just use a good quality mayonnaise and you will be fine.
Regular plain all purpose flour. Not self-rising or otherwise. White. Not whole wheat. I cannot speak for how whole wheat would work. I suspect you would not get the same rise as you get with the white flour. I do use organic unbleached flour in all of my baking for the most part.

HOW TO MAKE AMISH BREAKFAST BISCUITS
I have included the instructions in the notes for how to make the optional Milk Gravy if you are interested in also trying that. These may be simple, but they are excellent biscuits!
Preheat the oven to 375*F/190*C/ gas mark 5. Butter a muffin tin really well, or butter a baking sheet. (If you use a baking sheet, know that they will spread out during baking.)
Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together in a bowl. Add the milk, mayonnaise and sugar and mix together with a spoon for 2 to 3 minutes, until you have a smooth soft dough. It will be slightly sticky.
Drop by the heaped spoonful into your baking tin or onto the pan. You should fill the muffin tin 2/3 full.
Bake in the preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes. When done they will be a light golden brown in color with a light and fluffy texture.

Notes

The Amish like to serve this with a milk gravy: (makes 4 cups)

2 QTS (2.27liters) plus 3 TBS milk
3 TBS all purpose plain flour
1 tsp margarine or butter
salt and black pepper to taste

In a small bowl mix the flour with the 3 TBS of milk until smooth. Heat the milk in a large skillet until hot but not boiling. Whisk in the flour mixture. Add the butter. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Stir over medium heat until thickened. Serve hot over the biscuits.

I could not resist trying one of these tasty little breads fresh out of the oven with some soft butter and some of the crabapple jelly I made a few weeks back. Oh boy but this was some good!
These were not overly large, but instead they were delightfully light and fluffy little bites of heaven. Perfect to serve on the side of a large family meal. Nobody complained. Everyone enjoyed!

Some other quick breads/biscuits that I have made in my English Kitchen that you might also enjoy are:

MILE HIGH GREEK YOGURT BISCUITS - When it comes to flaky, biscuits really don't get much flakier than these delicious bakes. With a multitude of buttery flaky layers, these always go down a real treat with anyone I serve them to. They are quite simply incredibly delicious.

ONE, TWO, THREE, BUTTERMILK BISCUITS - I like to call these One, Two, Three, Buttermilk biscuits because they go together one, two, three, lickety split, and they require only three ingredients. These are delicious split, spread with cold butter and served warm with soups and stews. Or with jams and other spreads. With chunks of cold meat and cheese. They are delicious any which way you choose to enjoy eating them!

Yield: Makes 12 (3-inch) biscuitsAuthor: Marie Rayner