Sweet Potato Biscuits with Cane Syrup Butter

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Pastry cutter or two forks
• •2 1/2-inch round biscuit cutter
• •Rimmed baking sheet
• •Parchment paper

Instructions

1. 1

   Roast the sweet potato

   Preheat your oven to 400F. Pierce the sweet potato several times with a fork and place it directly on the oven rack with a sheet pan below to catch drips. Roast until completely tender when pierced with a knife, about 45 minutes to an hour depending on size. The skin will be caramelized and pulling away from the flesh. This is what you want. Roasting concentrates the natural sugars and gives you a depth of flavor that boiling never will.

   You can roast the sweet potato up to three days ahead. Store it in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before using.
2. 2

   Prepare the sweet potato puree

   Once cool enough to handle, split the potato and scoop the flesh into a bowl. Mash it smooth with a fork, leaving no lumps. You need exactly one cup of puree. If you have extra, save it for another use (stir it into oatmeal or spread it on toast). Let the puree cool to room temperature. Warm potato will melt your butter and ruin everything.

3. 3

   Make the cane syrup butter

   While the potato cools, beat the softened butter in a bowl with a wooden spoon or hand mixer until fluffy and light, about two minutes. Drizzle in the cane syrup slowly, beating constantly. The mixture will look broken at first, but keep beating and it will come together into something beautiful. Add the salt and cinnamon, beat once more, then taste. Adjust sweetness if needed. Transfer to a small crock or ramekin.

   Real Louisiana cane syrup (Steen's is the gold standard) has a complex, almost smoky sweetness nothing else can match. Maple syrup is not the same thing, though it will work in a pinch.
4. 4

   Mix the dry ingredients

   Reduce oven to 425F. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Whisk thoroughly so the leavening distributes evenly. Uneven baking powder means some biscuits rise beautifully while others sit there like hockey pucks.

5. 5

   Cut in the cold butter

   Add the cold cubed butter to the flour mixture. Using a pastry cutter, two forks, or your fingertips, work the butter into the flour until it resembles coarse meal with some pea-sized pieces remaining. Those butter chunks are the secret to flaky layers. They'll melt in the oven and create steam pockets. Don't overwork this. Stop when you can still see butter.

   If your kitchen runs warm, freeze the butter cubes for fifteen minutes before cutting them in. Warm butter makes tough biscuits.
6. 6

   Combine wet and dry

   In a small bowl, whisk together the cooled sweet potato puree, cold buttermilk, and vanilla until smooth. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in the wet ingredients. Using a wooden spoon or rubber spatula, stir gently just until a shaggy dough forms. You should still see streaks of flour. Stop stirring the moment it comes together. Overworking biscuit dough is the fastest way to tough results.

7. 7

   Fold the dough

   Turn the dough onto a well-floured surface. With floured hands, pat it into a rough rectangle about one inch thick. Fold the dough in thirds like a business letter. Turn it ninety degrees and pat it out again. Repeat this folding process three more times. This laminating technique builds the layers that make biscuits rise tall and flaky. After the final fold, pat the dough to about one inch thickness.

8. 8

   Cut the biscuits

   Using a sharp 2 1/2-inch round cutter dipped in flour, cut biscuits by pressing straight down without twisting. Twisting seals the edges and prevents proper rise. Place biscuits on a parchment-lined baking sheet with sides touching. Biscuits that touch rise higher because they support each other. Gather scraps gently, pat out once more, and cut remaining biscuits. The second-cut biscuits won't be quite as tender, but they'll still be delicious.

9. 9

   Bake until golden

   Bake at 425F for 15 to 18 minutes until the tops are golden brown and the sides look set. The kitchen will smell like Thanksgiving morning. When you tap the top of a biscuit, it should sound hollow. Remove from oven and immediately brush the hot tops with melted butter. Let them glisten.

10. 10

    Serve with warmth

    Serve these biscuits warm with the cane syrup butter. Split them open (use your hands, not a knife, to keep the interior tender), and let a generous pat of that sweet butter melt into all the crevices. Close your eyes with the first bite. That's the bayou way.

Chef Tips

• •Louisiana sweet potatoes (often labeled 'yams' in grocery stores, though they're not true yams) have a deeper orange color and more moisture than other varieties. They make the most tender biscuits.
• •If you can't find Steen's cane syrup, look for pure ribbon cane syrup at specialty stores. As a last resort, use a mix of two parts dark corn syrup to one part molasses, though it won't be the same.
• •These biscuits are best within an hour of baking. If you must make them ahead, freeze the cut, unbaked biscuits on a sheet pan, then transfer to a bag. Bake from frozen at 400F for 22 to 25 minutes.
• •The buttermilk matters. Use real cultured buttermilk, not the watered-down stuff. The acidity reacts with the baking soda to give you lift and tang.

Advance Preparation

• •Sweet potato can be roasted up to three days ahead and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before using.
• •Cane syrup butter can be made a week ahead and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before serving so it spreads easily.
• •Unbaked, cut biscuits freeze beautifully for up to two months. Bake directly from frozen, adding five to seven minutes to the baking time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 110g)