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A Gluten Free Biscuit Recipe made easy thanks to simple ingredients for a soft, flakey, and buttery taste. Prepare them ahead of time for dinner, or serve them fresh for breakfast or holiday brunch! Egg free option.
Why You’ll Love Gluten Free Biscuits
If you didn’t already know, I’m originally from Texas, and that means I grew up eating all kinds of really good foods. As a result, although I’ve traveled and lived all over the world, I often still find myself craving some of the traditional comfort food recipes from home such as mac and cheese, Creamy Sweet Corn Cauliflower Grits, and One Pot Shrimp Jambalaya Lentil Bowls. No matter what season I’m in or what occasion I’m cooking for, these meals always hit the spot! Not to mention, they’re always a hit with guests, too!
However, I noticed that while I have created lots of main dish recipes inspired by the Southern comfort foods I love, I don’t have a ton of side dishes or appetizers. So, obviously, that had to change as soon as possible, especially with the holiday season rolling around! Wasting no time, I got in the kitchen to create a gluten free biscuit recipe!
After many rounds of testing, I’m happy to say that these gluten free buttermilk biscuits are soft, fluffy, and made with simple ingredients for the best allergy-friendly addition to breakfasts, dinners, holiday brunches, and more! Keep reading to find everything you need to know to create your own.
Are Biscuits Gluten Free?
Traditional biscuit recipes are made with whole wheat or regular flour, both of which contain gluten. However, this recipe includes all-purpose gluten free flour instead, making a completely gluten free biscuits recipe!
What Are Gluten Free Biscuits Made Of?
Unlike other options, this gluten free biscuit recipe is very similar to traditional biscuit recipes, making it super easy to create! In fact, you likely already have everything you need waiting for you in your kitchen. All we did was make a few simple swaps using gluten free flour, xanthan gum, eggs, butter, buttermilk, and a few pantry staples!
Foodie Swap: For an egg-free biscuit, skip the egg, and mix ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar in with the dry flour.
So what’s the key ingredient for flavorful biscuits? Buttermilk!
Buttermilk is a slightly thicker milk that has been soured, which allows the proteins to curdle. As a result, buttermilk is lower in fat than traditional milk or cream. However, it’s a crucial ingredient to baked goods! When baking soda is combined with the lactic acids in buttermilk, the acid neutralizes the metallic taste that can sometimes occur with baking soda. It also gives the bread a nice tang!
Nutrition Tip: Did you know you can make your own buttermilk? Dairy free option too! If you don’t have buttermilk, you can make your own by combining 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice with 1 cup of milk (or dairy-free milk), and let it stand in the fridge for 5-10 minutes.
Can Buttermilk Biscuits be Made Vegan?
Yes, they will still be delicious! However vegan gluten free biscuits will have a slightly different taste and texture than the original recipe due to the ingredient swaps. For instance, plant-based butters do not grate as easily into the dough as dairy-based butters. Therefore, vegan biscuits won’t be quite as flaky. For the best results, I recommend using a plant-based buttermilk made with coconut milk and a soy-free plant-based butter.
Baking Tips & Tricks for the Perfect Flakey Biscuit
In all honesty, this recipe couldn’t get much easier. However, we’ve tested it out too many times to count to make sure you get the best gluten free biscuits ever. As a result, we decided to share a few of our best baking tips! These pointers will get you started, but don’t forget to take a look at the directions below for the full recipe!
- Grate the Butter. The secret to creating the flakiest biscuits ever is to grate the butter into the dough!
Baking Tip: The easiest way to grate butter is by freezing it solid and using a cheese grater to grate it into pieces. Then, the butter stays cold while you’re preparing the biscuits and melts into the dough as they bake for irresistible texture and flavor!
- Measure Carefully. Make sure to measure the flour carefully for these biscuits. Using too much will make them too dense!
- Don’t Overmix! Mix the dough ingredients until they are just-combined. Overmixing will cause it to become tough.
- Freeze the Butter. For extra flakey gluten free biscuits, freeze the butter, and use a cheese grater to grate it into the flour.
- Coat the Dough in Flour. To prevent the dough from sticking to the table, your hands, or itself, coat it in flour when cutting the biscuits.
- Prevent Waste. If you have leftover dough scraps, piece them together and roll them out to form more biscuits and reduce the amount of dough wasted.
Storage & Preparation
These gluten free buttermilk biscuits are best served warm and fresh. However, if you want to make them ahead of time, there are several ways to prepare and serve them!
Room Temperature: Keep leftover gluten free biscuits in an airtight container at room temperature for 1-2 days.
Fridge: For longer-lasting results, place your biscuits in an airtight container or sealable bag, and store them in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Freezer: To store biscuits, first make sure they are completely cool. Then, wrap them in foil, place them in an airtight container, and keep them in the freezer for 2-3 months.
Meal Prep Tip: Freeze the dough for quick, warm biscuits whenever you need them! To do so, flash freeze the prepared dough by placing the cut biscuits on a baking sheet, and placing them in the freezer for 30 minutes.
Then, place them in a sealable freezer bag, and store them in the freezer. When you’re ready to bake them, place them in the oven for 15-20 minutes.
A Few of Our Favorite
Serving Suggestions
This gluten free biscuit recipe is delicious all by itself topped with melted butter, warm honey, jam, or homemade nut butter. However, it also forms a great base for many delicious meals including:
- As a side with sausage
- For biscuits and gravy
- Layered on breakfast sandwiches
How to Make the Best Gluten Free Biscuits Recipe
- Author: Lindsay Cotter
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 7–9 biscuits 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
These gluten free biscuits are fluffy, flaky, and delicious for an allergy-friendly addition to your favorite breakfasts, casseroles, and more!
Ingredients
Units Scale
- 2 ⅓ cups all purpose gluten free flour (290 – 300 g) *
- 1 ½ Tablespoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon xanthan gum (See notes)
- 2 teaspoons raw sugar or honey
- 6 Tablespoons cold butter *
- 1 cup cold buttermilk plus extra for brushing
- 1 large egg (See notes for egg-free option)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, xanthan gum, and sugar.
- Grate the cold butter into the flour, and using two hands, gently combine the batter.
- Make a well in the center of the mixture. Whisk the egg into 1 cup (240ml) of buttermilk. Pour the egg and buttermilk mixture into the well of dry flour.
- Fold everything together with a large spoon or rubber spatula until it begins to come together. Do not overwork the dough!
- Place the dough on a floured work surface or parchment paper. The dough will be sticky at first but should come together with the added flour.
- With well-floured hands, gently form the dough into a ball. *Note, depending on the brand of flour you use, you may need to work more flour into dough in order to roll into a ball . Dust the top of the dough with a tablespoon of flour, and gently roll it out into a rectangle about 7 inches wide.
- Cut the dough horizontally into 3 even sections. Stack each section on top of the other. Firmly press the sections together. Repeat the process by cutting, stacking, and pressing the dough together once more.
- Roll the dough into a rectangle about ½″ thick.
- Using a 3-inch biscuit or cookie cutter, cut out the biscuits.*
- Place the biscuits onto a lined baking sheet, cover them with cling film, and place them in the freezer for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425° Fahrenheit.
- Once the dough has chilled, place the biscuits on the baking sheet slightly touching each other.
- Brush the tops of the biscuits with extra buttermilk or whisked egg.
- Bake the biscuits for 15-20 minutes at 425° Fahrenheit. Check their progress at 15-minutes to see if the biscuits are rising and golden. Baking times vary depending on the type of oven being used.
- Serve warm or store in an airtight container for later.
Notes
- For egg free biscuits skip adding the egg, and mix ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar in with the dry flour batter instead.
- If your flour doesn’t already include xanthan gum, add ¼ teaspoon vs ⅛ teaspoon.
- Extra flakey Tip! Freeze the butter, and use a cheese grater to grate the butter into the flour.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- chill time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15-20 minutes
- Category: breads
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 biscuit
- Calories: 243
- Sugar: 2.6 g
- Sodium: 333.9 mg
- Fat: 10.6 g
- Saturated Fat: 5.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 31 g
- Fiber: 4.4 g
- Protein: 5.9 g
- Cholesterol: 70.6 mg
Keywords: bread, biscuits, gluten free, egg free, vegan, dairy free, kid friendly
That’s it, y’all! In my opinion, these gluten free biscuits are the perfect addition to holiday dinners, weekend breakfasts, and more! If you make them, I would love it if you let me know how it went and how you used them in the comments below!
Cheers,
LC
