Homemade Biscuits are so easy to make, and these are the fluffiest biscuits you’ll try – buttery and super soft! I’ll share my best tip for cutting them to get that impressive rise. This Biscuit Recipe has just six simple ingredients that come together fast, and there is no rising time required.

Homemade Biscuits served in a bread bowl

This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.

Of all of the different breads I bake, I’m convinced that biscuits are the easiest home-baked bread! There’s no kneading or waiting as with yeast doughs, and you don’t need any fancy equipment. Watch my video tutorial below, and you’ll see how easy it is to whip up a batch of biscuits from scratch. These are so good on their own, but also excellent in Strawberry Shortcake or Biscuits and Gravy.

Homemade Biscuits Video

Helpful Reader Reviews

“I forgot to move my butter from the freezer to the fridge the night before, so I just grated it directly into the dry ingredients. It worked very well. I’ve been trying out a lot of biscuit recipes recently and this is by far the best one! So delicate and moist inside with a nice crust on the top and bottom.” – Johanna ★★★★★

“These are the very best biscuits I’ve ever made! This recipe is my ‘go to’ because they are tall, flaky, and have an excellent crumb! I freeze and shred my butter into the flour before adding the half & half. It all comes together so well and the biscuits are delicious! Thank you for posting!” – Brenda ★★★★★

Biscuit Recipe

If you love homemade bread and fresh dinner rolls, but don’t like to wait for them to rise and proof, this biscuit recipe is for you. They’re perfect for any cooking skill level and taste way better than store-bought biscuits out of a can.

Up close fluffy homemade biscuit with soft layers

Ingredients for Biscuits

I love that this uses pantry and refrigerator staple ingredients.

  • Flour – all-purpose flour works best for a tender crumb
  • Baking Powder – use aluminum-free and make sure to sift if you see clumps in your baking powder.
  • Salt and sugar – add just the right amount of flavor.
  • Unsalted Butter – be sure it’s cold, right from the refrigerator. If you prefer to use salted butter, you will want to reduce the salt in the recipe.
  • Half and Half – this is also called “light cream.” If you don’t have half and half, you can make it by combining equal parts of milk and heavy whipping cream.
Ingredients to make biscuits with butter, flour, half and half, baking powder, salt and sugar

Tips for the Best Homemade Biscuits

  • Measure flour correctly – spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level the top. Read our post on how to measure ingredients.
  • Dip your pastry cutter into flour between each cut. This will create a cleaner cut for a better rise.
  • Cut Biscuits straight down. Don’t turn your cutter side to side and do not use a sawing motion. Cutting straight down is the KEY to help the biscuits rise better.
  • Use cold butter. The key to making great biscuits is to use cold butter. We dice up the butter and then refrigerate it until ready to use. Cold butter will produce the fluffiest layers in your biscuits.
  • Do not over-mix – once liquids touch the flour, mix just until dry ingredients are moistened.
Cold diced butter for the best biscuits

Tools for Making Biscuits

The best thing about making homemade biscuits is that you don’t need any fancy equipment. Here are the tools we use to make the process super quick and easy:

  • Baking Sheet – line it with a sheet of parchment paper
  • Biscuit Cutter – we used a 2 1/2″ diameter round cutter. You can also use a knife or bench cutter to cut the biscuits into squares.
  • Pastry Blender – to cut butter into the flour. You can also use a fork with wide tines, two knives, or a food processor (see instructions for this below).
  • Mixing Bowl – this dough comes together in 1 bowl (we used a 4 qt).
  • Wooden spoon or spatula – to stir in the liquid ingredients
Biscuit cutter for making biscuits

How to Make Biscuits

  • Dice butter – Cut into 1/2″ cubes and refrigerate until needed.
  • Whisk dry ingredients – In a mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Whisk until really well combined before adding butter and liquids.
  • Add diced butter to the flour mixture and cut it into the flour until the largest pieces are pea-sized. It’s easy with a pastry blender.
  • Add liquids -Pour in all the half and half at once and stir it in until the dry ingredients are just moistened then transfer to a floured surface. If the dough is too moist, dust the top with flour.
  • Shape the dough into a rectangle and fold in half. Shape into a rectangle again and fold a second time. Shape dough into a 5×10″ rectangle and cut out 8 2 1/2″ diameter circles. You can pull together the scraps to form 2 more biscuits.
  • Bake – Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake at 450˚F for 12-15 minutes or until golden. Brush hot biscuits with melted butter.
step by step how to make biscuit dough

Pro Tip:

For the Softest Biscuits, be sure not to overmix the dough so it doesn’t develop gluten strands, which can cause the biscuits to be tough. Mix just until it comes together and you should still be able to see bits of butter in the dough.

how to cut out biscuits and bake

Can I Make Biscuits in a Food Processor?

To use a food processor, pulse together dry ingredients, then add chilled diced butter and pulse just until the largest pieces are pea-sized. Add just 3/4 cup half and half and pulse only until combined.

What is the Secret to a good biscuit?

There are a few ‘secrets’ that are important for good biscuits. Make sure you don’t overwork the dough, cut straight down when you cut out your biscuits, and avoid overbaking.

three fluffy biscuits stacked

Serve Biscuits with

  • Gravy – there’s nothing more classic than biscuits and gravy.
  • Jam – spread sweet jam over biscuits and enjoy them with tea.
  • Honey Butter – we love how butter melts onto a warm biscuit
  • Breakfast Sandwiches – break the biscuit in half and use it for a sandwich.
Biscuits served with jam

Make-Ahead and Storage

It’s easy to make biscuits in advance. You can prep them in advance and enjoy freshly baked biscuits in the morning.

  • Overnight Make-Ahead Biscuits – Cut the biscuits, place them on a baking sheet, then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Uncover and bake before serving. Bake the cold biscuits in a fully preheated oven.
  • Storage – once the biscuits are cooled, store in an airtight container for up to 2 days at room temperature or up to a week in the refrigerator. Biscuits can also be frozen for up to 3 months.
Make ahead biscuits cooling on wire rack

Homemade biscuits truly are easy and such a treat. These always disappear fast and are a hit with our whole family. The kiddos can’t resist a warm buttered biscuit.

More Quick Bread Recipes

Quick Breads are great because they don’t need rising time. Instead of using yeast, they use baking soda or baking powder for leavening to give them a beautiful rise. If you love these homemade biscuits, then you won’t want to miss our top-rated quick-bread recipes.

Easy Homemade Biscuits

4.98 from 479 votes
Homemade Biscuits served in a bread bowl
This is the only Biscuit Recipe you will need. Homemade Biscuits are super soft and these are quick and easy to make with just 6 ingredients.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients 

Servings: 10 biscuits
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp baking powder, (aluminum free)
  • 1 tsp granulated sugar
  • 3/4 tsp salt, (we use fine sea salt)
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold (8 Tbsp = 1/2 cup)
  • 1 cup half and half (minus 2 Tbsp)*
  • 1/2 Tbsp melted butter, to brush the baked biscuits

Instructions

Make the Biscuit Dough:

  • Dice butter into 1/2" cubes and refrigerate until needed.
  • In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Whisk thoroughly.
  • Add diced cold butter and cut it into the flour using a pastry blender (or two knives or a fork), until the largest butter pieces are pea-sized.
  • Add 1 cup – minus 2 Tbsp of Half and Half all at once and stir until mixture comes together and is mostly moistened. Do not over-mix.

Fold Dough and Cut Biscuits:

  • Turn dough out onto a floured surface. If dough is very sticky, lightly sprinkle the top with flour.
  • Pat dough into a rectangle then fold it in half and pat into another rectangle. Fold a second time and pat into a 5"x10" rectangle or 3/4" thickness. Dip a 2 1/2" round biscuit cutter into flour and cut out 8 biscults. Pull together scraps and form into a rectangle to cut an extra 2 biscuits.

Bake Biscuits:

  • Place biscuits on a parchment-lined baking sheet 1-inch apart and bake at 450˚F for 12-15 minutes or until tops are golden brown and biscuits are baked through. While biscuits are hot, brush tops with 1/2 Tbsp melted butter. Transfer to a wire rack to cool 10 minutes then serve.

Notes

*Notes on half and half – you can substitute with equal parts heavy cream and milk. In very humid climates, reduce the amount of half and a half to 3/4 cup. 

Nutrition Per Serving

212kcal Calories21g Carbs3g Protein13g Fat8g Saturated Fat35mg Cholesterol193mg Sodium240mg Potassium1g Fiber1g Sugar387IU Vitamin A1mg Vitamin C110mg Calcium1mg Iron
Nutrition Facts
Easy Homemade Biscuits
Amount per Serving
Calories
212
% Daily Value*
Fat
 
13
g
20
%
Saturated Fat
 
8
g
50
%
Cholesterol
 
35
mg
12
%
Sodium
 
193
mg
8
%
Potassium
 
240
mg
7
%
Carbohydrates
 
21
g
7
%
Fiber
 
1
g
4
%
Sugar
 
1
g
1
%
Protein
 
3
g
6
%
Vitamin A
 
387
IU
8
%
Vitamin C
 
1
mg
1
%
Calcium
 
110
mg
11
%
Iron
 
1
mg
6
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Course: Bread, Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Keyword: biscuit recipe, biscuits, homemade biscuits
Skill Level: Easy
Cost to Make: $
Calories: 212
Natasha's Kitchen Cookbook
4.98 from 479 votes (284 ratings without comment)

Leave a Comment

Recipe Rating




Comments

  • Zach S
    May 21, 2022

    Thank you! had some extra half and half I needed to use up and I also added additional 2 tbs bacon fat to the butter mix to make it taste more savory! so amazing

    Reply

    • NatashasKitchen.com
      May 21, 2022

      Hi Zach, that sounds great! Thank you for sharing your experiment. So glad you enjoyed these biscuits.

      Reply

  • Giselle
    May 14, 2022

    Is it true that the biscuits should be slightly touching when you place them on the sheet pan so they rise better?

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      May 14, 2022

      Hi Giselle, if you have biscuits touching they will be taller rather than a normal height biscuits. That will also require a longer cooking time.

      Reply

  • Celeste Parker
    May 10, 2022

    These biscuits turned out great! I did not have half and half so I used milk. Will use this recipe again!

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      May 10, 2022

      Hello Celeste, good to know that milk worked well too! Thank you for your review and for sharing that with us.

      Reply

  • Norma
    May 4, 2022

    Absolutely the best biscuits! I’ve made quite a few biscuits over the years but these are the best. Thank you Natasha for another wonderful recipe.

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      May 4, 2022

      That’s so great! It sounds like you have a new favorite, Norma!

      Reply

  • Laura
    May 1, 2022

    These are great for layers and fluffiness, however I would recommend pulling back on the baking powder- the finished biscuits tasted HEAVILY like leavening, that thick metallic after flavor that lingers. If anything, I’d likely reduce to 3/4 tsp.

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      May 1, 2022

      Thanks for your thoughts and suggestions, Laura.

      Reply

  • Wendy
    April 30, 2022

    Can you use a baking stone instead of parchment lined baking sheet?

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 30, 2022

      Hi Wendy, I haven’t tried it with a baking stone, but I bet that could work! If you happen to experiment please let me know how you like that!

      Reply

      • Wendy E Riggall
        May 2, 2022

        Next time I will experiment with the baking stone and will comment. This time I used your method. They came out great.

        Reply

        • NatashasKitchen.com
          May 2, 2022

          Sounds great! Thanks for sharing.

          Reply

  • Lanell
    April 30, 2022

    I used milk instead of half and half and placed the biscuits touching each other on a baking sheet. I also baked them at 350. They came out higher and softer.

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 30, 2022

      Thank you so much for sharing that with me!

      Reply

  • Sandy Neustaedter
    April 20, 2022

    Could buttermilk be substituted for the cream?
    They were delicious and so easy. I used my food processor. They were fluffy and layered and so good. Definitely a do-over.

    Reply

    • NatashasKitchen.com
      April 20, 2022

      Hi Sandy! Thank you, I’m glad you enjoyed them. I have not tested buttermilk but I think it could work.

      Reply

  • Teresa Harper
    April 18, 2022

    Can I substitute Self Rising flour for the ap, salt and baking powder? Also, is 1 cup half & half minus 2 Tbsp. Correct?

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 18, 2022

      Hi Teresa, I don’t use self-rising flour to advise on the outcome, but one of my readers commented mentioning it works well. If you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe.

      Reply

  • J.T.
    April 18, 2022

    Biscuits were amazing but instructions got a little mixed up.
    In the substitute for half and half it says ½heavy and ½ milk.
    Also in the actual directions it says to add 1 cup minus 2 table spoons.
    The ingredients list say 1½ cups of half and falk minus 2 tbl spoons.
    So on accident I only added 1 cup minus the 2tbl spoons and was definitely not enough but quick fix and they tasted awesome.

    Reply

    • Natasha
      April 18, 2022

      HI JT, the substitution is equal parts of milk and heavy creamy. I’m sorry for the confusion. That is on me. I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe and thank you for pointing that out.

      Reply

  • Kat
    April 14, 2022

    Delicious – my favorite biscuit recipe…fluffy, flaky, tender, & tasty! Had them with butter along-side a bowl of comforting chicken & rice soup and a glass of red wine. Thank you, Natasha!

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      April 14, 2022

      Delicious, what a great combo and I’m glad you enjoyed it!

      Reply

  • Key
    April 12, 2022

    Maybe I did something wrong here but I followed the recipe and they were pretty dry.. they cooked pretty fast on the heat and for the time given. Maybe I needed more butter so that is actually probably on my part. Thanks for the recipe!

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 12, 2022

      Hi Key, I recommend ensuring there were no substitutions made to the recipe of the process, also it sounds like your oven is likely running hotter? I recommend ensuring it’s calibrated and you’re using normal bake mode.

      Reply

  • Idahomay
    April 11, 2022

    I use many of your recipes so don’t take this as rude. I am curious as to why you use butter and half and half. Why not just use heavy cream? The reason I ask is I just use self rising flour and heavy cream and that is it and they are alway fluffy and amazing. Is there a benefit to using butter?

    Reply

    • Natasha
      April 12, 2022

      Hi, I don’t use self-rising flour but that is great to know that it works well. There are many ways to make biscuits and as long as your liquid to fat ratios work for you, that is great!

      Reply

  • Holly Smithers
    April 11, 2022

    Hi Natasha! I’m just wondering if you’ve made these with raisins? I want to try them with raisins but I’m not sure if I need to add any extra steps. Thanks! I love all of your recipes. I’m waiting patiently for your cookbook! 🙂

    Reply

    • NatashasKitchen.com
      April 11, 2022

      Hi Holly! Here’s what one of my other readers said, “Thank you Natasha for this delicious recipe My family loves these biscuits.
      I often change them up by adding shredded cheddar cheese, raisins, or dried cranberries and orange zest.” I hope that helps.

      Reply

  • Tee Gabrielle
    April 6, 2022

    Natasha, I always come to your page for recipes and ideas and you have never let me down. From one chef to another, I thank you. The biscuits were a HIT!!!!!

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 6, 2022

      You’re so nice! Thank you, Tee!

      Reply

  • Michael
    April 5, 2022

    I’ve tried so many of your recipes this one was great! I’m surprised you did not use buttermilk.

    Also our prayers to your extended family in Ukraine.

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 5, 2022

      I’m so glad you loved it, Michael! Thank you so much!

      Reply

  • Rick H
    March 25, 2022

    I was going to make this recipe today, but was told at the last minute that We were short on LP and had to save it for other things. That’s fine because it gives me a chance to ask if you have a hack recipe that would turn these Fluffy Biscuits into Sweet Rolls or something of the like? I look forward to trying the main recipe, but would like to make a Iced Sweet Roll too if there is a way. Thanks. Rick H.

    Reply

  • Angela Paris
    March 17, 2022

    Amazing!
    My bisquits never turn out but these ones were a miracle.
    So soft and fluffy just like biscuits should be, now I feel confident about making biscuits following this recipe a keeper thanks!

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      March 17, 2022

      I’m so glad these were a hit! It sounds like you found a new favorite!

      Reply

      • Lisa w.
        April 2, 2022

        These biscuits are fantastic!! I will never use another recipe again. Made them tonight with dinner. Thank you for another amazing recipe!!

        Reply

        • Natasha's Kitchen
          April 3, 2022

          Love it! Thank you for sharing that with us, Lisa.

          Reply

  • DeeAnn
    March 6, 2022

    This is a great, uncomplicated recipe for baking powder biscuits. They were indeed fluffy and light! I had never thought to cube the butter from the refrigerator and then return again to keep cold while cooking bacon and making gravy. Perfect!

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      March 6, 2022

      Thanks for the fantastic feedback! I’m happy to know that you loved how it turned out.

      Reply

  • Shannon
    February 27, 2022

    Do you have a Sausage Gravy recipe to go with your biscuits?

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      February 27, 2022

      Hi Shannon, none at the moment, it definitely needs gravy! I have it on my list to post good biscuits and gravy recipes. Stay tuned!

      Reply

As Featured On

Never Go "Hangry" Again!

Get weekly updates on new recipes, exclusive giveaways plus behind the scenes photos.