Vegan Biscuits – the flakiest biscuits made by using a few simple tricks!
The other day I watched this video (see below at the end of the text) where Claire Saffitz from Bon Appetit Magazine makes her flaky biscuits. It looked so delicious and made me want to make my own. With several substitutions I turned this recipe into vegan.
I used margarine instead of butter and non-dairy buttermilk instead of regular buttermilk. I make my own non-dairy buttermilk using this super simple recipe:
Homemade Buttermilk Substitute
There are two keys to making successful biscuits. One is very cold margarine pieces which should not be too small. During baking, water will evaporate from margarine and form small pockets between layers of the dough which will make biscuits extra flaky. The other is stacking of dough which will create many layers in a simple way, without the old-fashioned need to roll and chill in between.
Before baking, biscuits can be either brushed with margarine or with a simple glaze that I made by mixing almond milk with agave syrup. The whole purpose was to give them a nice color, but that’s totally optional.
They are neutral tasting, neither sweet nor salty, so you can use them either way.
These Vegan Biscuits can be made ahead of time and frozen. No need to defrost them before baking, just bake them a little longer.
In this video Claire Saffitz makes non-vegan biscuits. To make vegan biscuits, just replace her ingredients with mine.
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp sugar
- 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup margarine, chilled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
- 1 cup non-dairy buttermilk
- GLAZE (optional):
- 2 Tbsp non-dairy milk
- 2 Tbsp agave syrup
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In a food processor, pulse baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar and flour until combined.
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Add chilled margarine and pulse until margarine pieces are the size of a pea.
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Transfer the mixture to a bowl and gradually drizzle with buttermilk while mixing with a fork.
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Transfer the dough onto a floured surface. Press the dough together with your hands to form 1"-thick square. The dough will seem dry and falling apart, but that's how it's supposed to be (see video).
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Cut the dough into 4 equal squares. Stack them on top of each other. Press them down to flatten.
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Roll the dough into a 1"-thick rectangle. Using a knife or a cookie cutter, cut out the biscuits. Transfer biscuits to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Put in the freezer for 10 minutes so that margarine hardens again.
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Take biscuits out of the freezer. Press each biscuits in the middle with your fingers to prevent them forming a “dome”. Brush tops of biscuits with the glaze made by mixing non-dairy milk with agave syrup.
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Place biscuits in 425 F (220 C) preheated oven. Immediately reduce the temperature to 400 F (205 C) and bake for about 25 minutes or until browned on top and bottom.
Perfect for the heat wave we are experiencing ! Pinning ! Lovely photos as usual ! Thank you so much !