Cheddar Cheese Biscuits

One of the national resturant chains serves a great cheddar biscuit.  We tried to duplicate it.  We think this is every bit as good. 

It’s hard to get enough cheese in a bread to make it really cheesy without a little help. We accented the cheese with a touch of white pepper, garlic, and mustard. The combination didn’t overwhelm the cheese and yet was piquant enough to not be bland.

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground dry mustard
4 tablespoons cold butter
1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese lightly pressed into the measure
1/2 red bell pepper, diced and sautéed or steamed in the microwave until it is almost tender
1 3/4 cups buttermilk or enough to make a soft batter

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Grease a baking sheet.

1. Measure the flour by scooping some into a bowl and then spooning the flour into the measuring cup. (If you measure packed flour, you will have too much.)
2. Add the baking powder, baking soda, sugar, salt, pepper, garlic, and mustard and stir these ingredients into the flour. Slice the cold butter into the flour mixture. Use a pastry knife or two kitchen knives to cut the butter into the flour mixture. Work the butter into the flour mixture until you have a coarse, grainy mixture. Add the cheese and bell pepper.
3. Make a well in the middle of the flour and pour the buttermilk into the flour mixture. Stir until just moistened. The dough should be of a consistency like drop cookie dough or just a bit stiffer. If it is not moist enough, add another tablespoon of buttermilk.
4. Spoon the dough into twelve rounded mounds on the baking sheet leaving room for expansion.
5. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes or until the biscuits just begin to brown. Remove the biscuits from the baking sheet and place them on a wire rack to cool.