When Louisiana chef Melissa Martin makes biscuits, she adds an unexpected ingredient: 7-Up soda.
“This recipe probably came out of the box, but it has become a family favorite,” Martin writes in her new cookbook, Bayou: Fasting Through the Seasons of a Cajun Life.
The original recipe called for a ready-made baking mix, but Martin adapted the recipe in her cookbook “to avoid food additives with unpronounceable names.”
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These biscuits are best eaten warm, but “they're also delicious in the toaster the next day,” she says.
Additionally, she said these biscuits can be made with any type of fat, including butter, lard, and “Crisco if you like.”
Melissa Martin from Louisiana shared her family's 7-Up Biscuit recipe with Fox News Digital. She is the author of a new cookbook, Bayou: Fasting Through the Seasons of a Cajun Life. (Todd Cole)
Martin says it's also very important to bake the biscuits as soon as the dough comes together.
“I immediately transfer the biscuits to a baking sheet and then to the oven,” she said.
7-Up Biscuit Recipe by Melissa Martin
Makes 12 large biscuits
material
2 ounces cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for flouring
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon raw sugar
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2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 ounces lard or unsalted butter, chilled
7 up 1 cup
3/4 cup fresh cream
Butter and preservatives (for serving)
Melissa Martin's biscuits contain an unexpected ingredient: 7-Up soda. (Artisan Books; Getty Images)
direction
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. If your oven is hot, heat it to 375 to 400 degrees.
2. Place the butter in a 9-inch square baking pan and place in the oven to melt the butter. Set a timer for 3-5 minutes so you don't forget. Once it melts, take it out.
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3. Combine flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. (You can sift these together, but you don't necessarily have to.) Add the cold fat (not melted butter) and cut in with your fingers until it resembles coarse pebble flour.
4. Make a well in the center and add 7-up and cream. Mix with a fork until the dough comes together. The mixture will become very sticky.
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5. Turn the dough out onto a clean, lightly floured surface and shape into a rugged rectangle with short edges on each side. Fold the left side of the rectangle to meet the right side, then fold the right side to meet the left side. Press the dough (no need to roll it) into a rough rectangle about 1 inch thick and 8 x 13 inches.
Cookbook author Martin says these biscuits are best eaten warm or the next day in the toaster. (Artisan Books)
6. Using a sharp, floured knife or bench scraper, cut the rectangle into 4 equal pieces. Dust the knife with flour after each cut. Divide each part into 3 biscuits, you will get 12 biscuits. Place the biscuits snugly in a saucepan of melted butter.
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7. Bake immediately for 20 minutes, rotating the pan after 10 minutes. The biscuits are done when they are golden brown on the outside and the internal temperature registers 200 degrees Fahrenheit on a thermometer.
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8. Remove from the oven, place a clean kitchen towel on a plate and let the biscuits rest for 5 minutes. Serve warm with butter or jam.
This recipe belongs to Melissa Martin and was shared with Fox News Digital.
