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My friend Garrett was over the other day, and made for me these fabulous cheddar jalapeño biscuits. I’ve since made them several times and each time they disappear within minutes.
They are surprisingly light in texture and crumb, given the amount of cheese and cream.
The secret ingredient?
A quarter cup of cornmeal or polenta added to the flour.
Just that amount lends a slight crunch to the biscuit, without making it gritty. The cornmeal of course works beautifully with the jalapeños and cheddar cheese.
Garrett tops the biscuits with extra grated cheddar, giving them an even more cheesy edge. Perfect for breakfast, brunch, an afternoon snack, or served alongside a hot bowl of chili.
Garrett makes these biscuits as scones. Either shape works great!
Cheddar and Jalapeño Biscuits Recipe
Taste the jalapeño. If too mild, include the seeds, if hot, use just the flesh, not the seeds. Adjust the amount to taste. Pepper Jack or Monterey Jack cheese can also be substituted for the cheddar.
Ingredients
- 1 1/3 cups (175g) all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup (45g) polenta or fine milled corn meal
- 3 tablespoons (45g) sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Pinch cayenne pepper
- 6 ounces (1 1/2 cups packed, 170g) shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided (1 1/4 cup and 1/4 cup)
- 2 tablespoons diced fresh jalapeños (more or less to taste)
- 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons heavy cream (200ml), plus extra for brushing
Method
1 Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C).
2 Whisk dry ingredients, add cheese and jalapeños: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, polenta, salt, sugar, cayenne, and baking powder.
Stir in 1 1/4 cups of the grated cheddar cheese and the diced jalapeños.
3 Add the cream: Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Pour the cream into the center of the well and your (clean) hands to gently bring together the ingredients.
If you need to add a bit more cream then do so a tiny trickle at a time. You just want everything to get wet enough so that the dough will be sticky and clumpy.
4 Knead the dough, just enough: Turn the dough out onto a surface lightly dusted with flour. Knead the dough just a few times - maybe only three or four pushes. You just want it to just come together. (Over-kneading will result in firmer, denser biscuits.)
5 Cut out biscuit shapes: Form the dough into a disc about 3/4-inch to an inch thick. Use a biscuit cutter (or a small juice glass) to cut round biscuit shapes out of the disk. Combine the leftover dough and keep forming small round biscuit shapes until the dough is used up.
6 Brush with cream, sprinkle with cheese: Place on a silicone-lined or parchment lined baking sheet, with at least an inch or two between the biscuits. Brush the tops of the biscuits with a little more cream. Top the biscuits with a sprinkle of the remaining cheese.
7 Bake: Bake at 425°F (220°C) for 11-12 minutes or until golden and the cheese is nicely melted.
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Elise Bauer is the founder of Simply Recipes. Elise launched Simply Recipes in 2003 as a way to keep track of her family's recipes, and along the way grew it into one of the most popular cooking websites in the world. Elise is dedicated to helping home cooks be successful in the kitchen. Elise is a graduate of Stanford University, and lives in Sacramento, California.
Cheddar and Jalapeño Biscuits
Loved these! Used the substitution for heavy cream (3/4 cup milk plus 2 tablespoons melted butter) and worked great. Served hot with farmer’s omelets for brunch, and my husband loved them. Will make again and serve with soup.
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We loved these. Stuck at home with no bread, no yeast. I left out the sugar as we prefer things less sweet. I didn’t have fresh so used pickled jalapeño slices. I rolled the dough between pieces of Saran Wrap and used a small juice glass to cut out the biscuits. They went well with some soup for dinner. They also reheat well in a toaster oven.
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They didn’t rise properly like biscuits should. Too much sugar they came out like sugar disks.
Hi Katherine, sorry to hear that. Sounds as if perhaps your baking powder might be past its prime. Baking powder is the only leavener in this recipe, so if your biscuits did not rise, that would be the likely culprit. For what it’s worth, I usually keep baking powder only around for 6 months before replacing with a new package, for this very reason.
Husband said it was the best biscuit he has ever ate. Very easy to make and tasted amazing just as the recipe read!
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Can the dough be made ahead of time? Was hoping to make the night before and bake the morning of.
Hi Hallie, because these biscuits are made with baking powder, not yeast, they need to be baked as soon as you put them together. Once baked, you can freeze them and reheat in the oven.