Cathead Biscuits

Fluffy Southern Cathead Biscuits Recipe – The biggest, softest, most amazing biscuit recipe with buttery golden tops! Flaky on the outside, pillowy inside!

Why We Love Cathead Biscuits

There are biscuits, and then there are biscuits.

The jaw-dropping, mind-blowing, knee-buckling, eyes-roll-back-in-your-head kind of biscuits made from scratch.

Although there’s nothing wrong with popping open the canned variety on occasion, nothing compares to a buttery scratch-made biscuit straight out of the oven.

After much trial and error, I learned that light airy biscuits come from gentle, yet speedy, hands.

Our Fluffy Southern Cat Head Biscuits have the most delicate texture on the inside, yet are crispy and flaky on the outside. The light airy flavor of butter and wheat creates a perfect platform for all sorts of toppings. Basically, they are what all biscuits aspire to be.

Why Are They Called Cathead Biscuits?

In the south, cathead biscuits are all about size… They are roughly the same dimensions as a cat’s head. Meow.

Weird name and association, but ridiculously enormous biscuit perfection! I mean, who wants a scrawny biscuit? Not me. As far as biscuit recipes go, the bigger the better!

Ingredients You Need

• All-Purpose Flour
• Granulated Sugar – for just a hint of sweetness
• Baking Powder & Baking Soda – so the biscuits get super fluffy
• Sea Salt – or regular salt
• Butter – make sure to use cold butter
• Butter-Flavored Shortening – also known as Crisco, alternatively you can use lard
• Buttermilk – to create tangy, moist buttermilk biscuits

How to Make Southern Cathead Biscuits

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F and grease a 12 inch deep dish cast iron skillet and set aside.

Next, prep the dry ingredients. Sift the flour, then scoop and level to measure the accurate amount. Place the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a food processor. Pulse to mix.

Add in the cold shortening and 1/4 cup cold butter. Pulse again until the fat is mixed into the flour creating a pebble texture. Continue pulsing as you add in the buttermilk.

Once the dough is thoroughly mixed, stop pulsing. The dough should look wet, but even.

Dump the dough onto a floured surface. Press and pat it flat with your hands until it is smooth, in an even 2-inch thick disk. Use a drinking glass, or a 3-inch biscuit cutter, to cut out 8 biscuits. If needed, cut out 7 and then gather the dough and cut out the last biscuit.

Place the biscuits in the skillet. Then brush the tops with melted butter and place in the oven immediately.

Bake in the center of the oven until the tops are golden brown and the biscuits have risen at lease 1 inch above the top of the skillet. Around 30-35 minutes. Make sure to move the oven racks, if needed, to allow room for growth.

Use a spatula or knife to separate the biscuits before lifting them out of the pan. Enjoy!

Tips & Tricks

• Fluffy Southern cat head biscuits have the best texture and taste when the dough is cold as it goes into the oven, it hasn’t been over mixed, and the flour is well sifted prior to adding it to the dough. So use cold ingredients and move fast to get these into the oven!
• If the dough isn’t cold anymore after mixing and cutting them out, you can place the biscuits covered with plastic in the refrigerator until the dough is cold again, then pop into the hot oven!
• Using cold ingredients like buttermilk, butter, and refrigerated shortening creates a cold dough. When the cold dough is placed in the oven, it quickly creates an outer crust while the dough is still cool on the inside. The outer crust causes the biscuits to grow up, instead of flattening out, once the insides start to bake. Cold dough, that hasn’t been over-worked, is the secret to making the best biscuits ever!
• Baking this Fluffy Cat Head Biscuit recipe in a deep skillet serves two purposes. First, the sides of the skillet offer support so that the biscuits rise to ethereal heights. Second, the biscuits edges on the outside of the pan turn crispy, while the center edges are soft and feathery. That way you get a little crunch and a whole lot of tender goodness.

Frequently Asked Questions

Biscuits for Every Occasion

The holidays are quickly approaching. Why not give these big beauties a try? Southern Cathead biscuits are perfect to serve a crowd for any special occasion.

You might decide they need to be on your Thanksgiving table or at Christmas morning brunch this year!

See The Recipe Card Below For How To Make Fluffy Southern Cat Head Biscuits. 

other recipes you might like:

• Kahlua Banana Bread
• Blackberry Bread Pudding Recipe
• Savory Breakfast Scones
• Magic Mug Low-Carb Bread Recipe
• Grandma Barb’s Southern Buttermilk Biscuits from Divas Can Cook
• One Pan Sausage Biscuit Gravy Skillet Cobbler from The Cookie Rookie
• Skillet Apple Pie Biscuits from Melissa’s Southern Style Kitchen
• Pumpkin Biscuits from Recipe Girl

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Cathead Biscuits Recipe

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes minutes

Fluffy Southern Cat Head Biscuits Recipe – The biggest, softest, most amazing biscuit recipe with buttery golden tops! Flaky on the outside, pillowy inside!

Servings: 8 biscuits

Ingredients

US Customary – Metric

• 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, well-sifted
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons baking powder
• 2 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup butter, divided (half cold, half melted)
• 1/3 cup butter-flavored vegetable shortening, cold
• 2 cups buttermilk, cold

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Grease a 12-inch deep dish cast iron skillet and set aside.
• Sift the flour, then scoop and level. Place the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a food processor. Pulse to mix.
• Next, add the cold shortening and 1/4 cup cold butter. Pulse again until the fat is mixed into the flour creating a pebble texture. Continue pulsing as you add in the cold buttermilk.
• Once the dough is thoroughly mixed, stop pulsing. The dough should look wet, but even.
• Dump the dough out onto a floured work surface. Press it flat with your hands until it is smooth, in an even 2-inch thick disk. Use a drinking glass, or 3-inch cutter, to cut out 8 biscuits. If needed, cut out 7, then gather the dough and cut out the last biscuit.
• Place the biscuits in the skillet. Then brush the tops with the melted butter, and place in the oven immediately.
• Bake in the center of the oven until the tops are golden and the biscuits have risen at least 1 inch above the top of the skillet. Around 30-35 minutes. Make sure to move the oven racks, if need, to allow room for growth.
• Use a spatula or knife to separate the biscuits before lifting out of the pan.

Video

Notes

Biscuits have the best texture when: A. the dough is cold as it goes in the oven, B. hasn’t been over mixed, and C. the flour is well-sifted. Use cold ingredients and work fast! Do not over-mix the dough in the food processor or when cutting. If possible, cut all the biscuits out without re-gathering the dough. To ensure the dough is cold, you can prep the biscuits then place in the refrigerator to chill before baking.

Nutrition

Serving: 1biscuit, Calories: 497kcal, Carbohydrates: 64g, Protein: 9g, Fat: 23g, Saturated Fat: 11g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 7g, Trans Fat: 2g, Cholesterol: 37mg, Sodium: 1022mg, Potassium: 463mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 9g, Vitamin A: 454IU, Calcium: 214mg, Iron: 4mg

Course: Biscuits

Cuisine: American

Author: Sommer Collier

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