Biscuits

I love biscuits. Morning, noon, or night. Plain, or fancy. Leavened only with baking powder or with a little yeast thrown in. Oh yes, biscuits make me swoon. These are flaky and tender, helped along with a large dose of cheddar cheese and made slightly extravagant by the use of heavy cream as the liquid. They are great on their own but they are wonderful as a side to, well, just about anything. They are best eaten the day they are made but if you have a couple left over, split and toast them, then top them with scrambled eggs, a little more cheese, and if you're feeling it, some bacon.

You can thank me later.

Cheddar and Black Pepper Biscuits
4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cracked black pepper
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
10 tablespoons chilled butter cut into pieces
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
Additional heavy cream, sea salt, cracked black pepper, and paprika

Preheat oven to 375. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a mixing bowl whisk together the flour, salt, pepper, baking powder, and cayenne pepper. Cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the heavy cream and cheddar cheese and toss with 2 forks until the dough clumps and comes together. If it seems too dry add more cream a tablespoon at a time until the dough is soft but not too sticky.
Gather the dough together and knead it very briefly on a floured surface, just to make a smooth, cohesive dough.  Roll the dough out into a 12x12 square about 1/2 inch thick. Cut the dough into 12 square biscuits, brush with heavy cream and sprinkle each biscuit with some sea salt, pepper and paprika. Place on baking sheet and bake for 12-15 minutes.