Joy the Baker Cookbook Spotlight and Cook-Off: Week 2

A quick little post for Week #2 of the Joy the Baker Spotlight and Cook-Off, hosted by Heather @ Girlichef.


This week's recipe choices were;
Mini Chamomile Cakes w/ Honey Frosting and/or 
Whole Wheat Honey & Goat Cheese Drop Biscuits


Last week, I chose the sweet recipe.  This week I decided to try out a savory one.  

Although not completely savory.  The honey adds just enough sweetness to balance out tangy, salty goat cheese. 


Drop biscuits.  I love the crunchy tips on drop biscuits.  They always bring up lots of childhood memories for me.  My grandpa made drop biscuits just about every time I spent the night.  It was always comforting to wake up to the scent of coffee and drop biscuits.  Only grandpa used Bisquick.  And definitely no goat cheese.


These biscuits are baked in a cast iron skillet.  A friend of my mother-in-law knew I was on the lookout for a cast iron skillet.  He found one for me at a garage sale.  In great shape too!

None of us are sure how we felt about the flavor of these biscuits.  I thought the goat cheese flavor could have been stronger.  The guys thought goat cheese in biscuits was odd.  I suspect the problem lies with the fact that only one brand of goat cheese was available to me and I've noticed inconsistencies with it in the past.


With that said, we tried another of Joy's biscuit recipes the day my cookbook arrived (will post next week).  Like the first biscuit recipe, the goat cheese biscuits had a great texture.  Light.  Soft.  The best biscuit texture I've ever achieved, in fact.  And I've tried plenty of biscuit recipes recently.

Next week is blogger's choice.  It'll be fun to see what everyone makes.


For a complete list of participating blogs look HERE.

Whole Wheat Honey and Goat Cheese Drop Biscuits 
from Joy the Baker Cookbook: 100 Simple and Comforting Recipes

2 cups whole wheat flour 
3 teaspoons baking powder 
1/4 teaspoon baking soda 
1-1/2 teaspoon salt 
1/4 cup (1/2 half stick) unsalted butter, cold, cut into cubes, plus more for the pan 
4 tablespoons crumbled goat cheese 
1 cup buttermilk, cold 
2 tablespoons honey, plus more for topping 


Place a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F. Place a 10-inch cast-iron skillet in the oven as it preheats. 


In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With your fingers, quickly incorporate the cold butter and goat cheese until the flour resembled coarse meal. Some of the butter and cheese chunks will be the size of small pebbles, others will be the size of oat flakes. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. 


Whisk together buttermilk and honey. Honey may not completely blend into the buttermilk; that’s okay. Pour the buttermilk into the well of the flour mixture. Use a fork to blend together the wet and dry ingredients. Mix until all of the flour is incorporated and no dry flour remains. Set aside. 


Remove the hot skillet from the oven and add 1 tablespoon butter. Swirl the butter around the bottom and sides of the pan until butter is melted and pan is coated. 


Spoon batter by the 1/4 cupful into the hot skillet. About 6 biscuits will fit into the 10-inch skillet. Biscuits should have about an inch of room separating them, but will bake up to touch one another. That’s great! 


Place in the oven to bake for 14 to 16 minutes, until golden and tops appear dry and slightly firm. Remove from the oven. Let rest for 5 minutes. Repeat with the remaining batter. For a glossy finish, brush the biscuits with slightly warm honey. These biscuits are best served immediately, but will last for up to 3 days, well wrapped, and at room temperature.



*This post is part of the Joy the Baker Cookbook Spotlight and Cook-Off sponsored by Hyperion and hosted at girlichef*