Afternoon Tea Biscuits

The five-ingredient backbone of British afternoon teas: a tender, slightly crumbly biscuit that splits open to take a swipe of butter, a spoon of jam, and not much else. The technique is straight pastry method. Cold shortening gets cut into flour until the mixture looks like coarse meal studded with pea-sized lumps, then milk pulls it all together into a soft dough.

Those visible bits of fat are what you want. They melt during baking and leave behind tiny pockets of steam, which is what creates the layered, flaky texture instead of dense bread. Overworking the dough develops gluten and eliminates those pockets, so a few quick kneads is the limit.

A hot oven gives the biscuits their lift. The high heat shocks the leavening, the fat melts fast, and the rounds rise straight up instead of spreading sideways into pancakes.

Pro Tips

• Keep the shortening cold. If the kitchen is warm, chill the bowl and shortening for ten minutes before cutting in.
• Pat the dough out, do not roll it. A rolling pin compresses the dough and crushes the fat pockets that give biscuits their lift.
• Cut straight down with a sharp cutter, never twist. Twisting seals the cut edges and prevents the biscuit from rising fully.
• Place biscuits close together on the pan. Touching sides force the rise upward instead of outward.

Variations

• Swap shortening for cold cubed butter for a richer, more flavorful crumb.
• Add a couple tablespoons of sugar and a handful of currants or raisins for classic scones.
• Stir grated sharp cheddar into the dough for savory tea biscuits great with soup.