Old Fashioned Buttermilk Biscuits
2 cups sifted Martha White flour or all-purpose flour
(sift before measuring)
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
5 tablespoons chilled vegetable shortening
or lard (makes the best biscuits)
1 cup buttermilk
Preheat oven to 440 degrees with rack in the middle. In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. . Add shortening, coating it with flour, then rub between your fingertips until coarsely blended with some 1/2-inch lumps. Make a well in the flour mixture and then add buttermilk, stirring with a fork just until dough forms and holds together (it will be soft and sticky.)
Turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead 8 to 10 times. Too much kneading leads to tough biscuits. Roll out dough with a floured rolling pin into a 12-inch round (1/2-3/4 inch thick) and, using a fork dipped in flour, prick all the way through about every 1/2 inch.
