Granny's lye soap redux

[Susie]

The only recipe I saved was the recipe for my grandma's fruitcake. Other than that, I'm trying to learn to make biscuits. My mom never passed that down. I can make cornbread easy peasy but biscuits are a mystery. You just can't have biscuits and gravy with crappy biscuits.

The secret is frozen lard, frozen flour, and cutting in with your fingertips, according to my grandmother. She is long gone, but her biscuits live on.

 

[KristaY]

The only recipe I saved was the recipe for my grandma's fruitcake. Other than that, I'm trying to learn to make biscuits. My mom never passed that down. I can make cornbread easy peasy but biscuits are a mystery. You just can't have biscuits and gravy with crappy biscuits.

Yes! ^^^^ Grandma's biscuits just aren't the same when they come out of my kitchen. Some of my aunts told me what they "think" she put in but I'm not even close yet. I'll never forget her peach cobbler. She'd send us kids out to pick the peaches off the trees while she put the dough together. I haven't eaten peach cobbler since she passed away because NOTHING will ever be that delicious.

 

[TeresaT]

The only recipe I saved was the recipe for my grandma's fruitcake. Other than that, I'm trying to learn to make biscuits. My mom never passed that down. I can make cornbread easy peasy but biscuits are a mystery. You just can't have biscuits and gravy with crappy biscuits.

This makes me laugh. My biscuits are "thump-ums" and my gravy comes from a can. I tried to make those scratch biscuits once and the dogs wouldn't even eat them. Their milk bones were softer.

 

[topofmurrayhill]

The only recipe I saved was the recipe for my grandma's fruitcake. Other than that, I'm trying to learn to make biscuits. My mom never passed that down. I can make cornbread easy peasy but biscuits are a mystery. You just can't have biscuits and gravy with crappy biscuits.

Generally speaking, biscuits are so easy. There are a few little important details. Susie highlights how to cut in the fats. Also don't overwork the dough. Depending on where you live, a BIG issue could be the protein content of the flour available to you. Unless you can get something like White Lily, start with a 50/50 mix of all-purpose and cake flour. If you don't use a low-protein flour (or blend) the biscuits will be too hard.

I'm sure a number of recipes make good stuff if your flour and techniques are on point. I use Alton Brown's recipe with lard in place of vegetable shortening:

2 C flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
2 T butter
2 T lard
1 C chilled buttermilk

15 mins @ 450 F or until done. Should take 20 mins max or your oven temp is probably too far off.

 

[dibbles]

Lol, it was so fun to see you use the words 'uffda' and 'lefse' in a scentence. I am very familiar with those terms, haha : )

Great, now I want a piece of lefse... Nam nam! (you know that one?)

My mother's side of the family is of Norwegian ancestry (100%). My dad's is half Norwegian and half Irish. So I heard a LOT of uffdas growing up! My children have heard a few as well.

 

[Susie]

Generally speaking, biscuits are so easy. There are a few little important details. Susie highlights how to cut in the fats. Also don't overwork the dough. Depending on where you live, a BIG issue could be the protein content of the flour available to you. Unless you can get something like White Lily, start with a 50/50 mix of all-purpose and cake flour. If you don't use a low-protein flour (or blend) the biscuits will be too hard.

I'm sure a number of recipes make good stuff if your flour and techniques are on point. I use Alton Brown's recipe with lard in place of vegetable shortening:

2 C flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
2 T butter
2 T lard
1 C chilled buttermilk

15 mins @ 450 F or until done. Should take 20 mins max or your oven temp is probably too far off.

That's really close to my grandmother's recipe. She used 1 tablespoon of vinegar in 1 cup of evaporated milk to make "buttermilk", and used 1/2 teaspoon baking soda to 3 1/2-4 teaspoons of baking powder. She used more if the humidity was high.

 

[Arimara]

The secret is frozen lard, frozen flour, and cutting in with your fingertips, according to my grandmother. She is long gone, but her biscuits live on.

Generally speaking, biscuits are so easy. There are a few little important details. Susie highlights how to cut in the fats. Also don't overwork the dough. Depending on where you live, a BIG issue could be the protein content of the flour available to you. Unless you can get something like White Lily, start with a 50/50 mix of all-purpose and cake flour. If you don't use a low-protein flour (or blend) the biscuits will be too hard.

I'm sure a number of recipes make good stuff if your flour and techniques are on point. I use Alton Brown's recipe with lard in place of vegetable shortening:

2 C flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
2 T butter
2 T lard
1 C chilled buttermilk

15 mins @ 450 F or until done. Should take 20 mins max or your oven temp is probably too far off.

Thank you two but I'm not sure I can eat anything with straight lard in it. Afull strip of bacon can mess up my stomach. Only my daughter and mother can eat regular bacon and not be doubled over in pain. Would shortening be a close enough substitute?

 

[Misschief]

Thank you two but I'm not sure I can eat anything with straight lard in it. Afull strip of bacon can mess up my stomach. Only my daughter and mother can eat regular bacon and not be doubled over in pain. Would shortening be a close enough substitute?

I make my biscuits with frozen grated butter and they come out really light and fluffy. My brother makes his with, believe it or not, mayonnaise! And they're surprisingly good!

 

[Arimara]

I can't do mayo either but butter is a huge win.

 

[Misschief]

I can't do mayo either but butter is a huge win.

Butter is always a win in my book!

 

[Susie]

You can use butter and shortening in place of the lard. Just freeze the butter and shortening and grate it in like Mischief said. You sort of dip the frozen butter in the flour as you go to keep it grating along. Otherwise your fingers melt it. If you don't like grating by hand, cut the butter into VERY small pieces before freezing (think 2 mm). Then just cut the shortening in using your fingertips. Cold hands help here.

 

[topofmurrayhill]

Thank you two but I'm not sure I can eat anything with straight lard in it. Afull strip of bacon can mess up my stomach. Only my daughter and mother can eat regular bacon and not be doubled over in pain. Would shortening be a close enough substitute?

The original source of that recipe specified veggie shortening. I changed it to lard. Whichever works for you.

 

[dosco]

Arthur, you have my sympathies on trying to replicate rolls. I struggled for several years to try to replicate my grandmother's rolls. I finally found a recipe that is amazingly close. It is actually a french bread recipe. Which rather makes sense, since my grandmother is Cajun.

Now that I've read the rest of the thread and it's drifted into food territory ... are you interested in sharing? I bake sourdough and I'm generally interested in European breads.

Thanks.

-Dave

 

[dixiedragon]

My aunt is an amazing cook (she makes awesome biscuits) and she always uses White Lily.

Other thing - her biscuits are on the smallish side. She uses a glass slightly bigger than a jelly jar to cut them. It may be easier to get the biscuits done all the way and not brown on the inside if they are smaller? Also, she flattens out her biscuit dough, cuts the biscuits, then does that one more time - then she takes the bits left and bakes them as is! When call them biscuit crunchies.

 

[dixiedragon]

And that's not necessarily a bad thing!
We saved old cooking grease for soap making.

Got several coffee mugs of bacon grease I've been saving for that!

I see that you joined in January, but since this is only your second post, welcome! I think you will be impressed by our devotion to lard. BTW, we switched from Crisco to lard in our chicken and dumplings - AMAZING.

 

[dosco]

Got several coffee mugs of bacon grease I've been saving for that!

I see that you joined in January, but since this is only your second post, welcome! I think you will be impressed by our devotion to lard. BTW, we switched from Crisco to lard in our chicken and dumplings - AMAZING.

I've got 2 quart-sized yogurt containers filled with mixed fats ... beef grease (from meatloaf), chicken runoff ... all mixed with a liberal dose of olive and grapeseed oils used for cooking. Also some bacon grease.

I'm wondering if I should try the "Spanish superlye cleaning soap" recipe for this mixed bag of fats?

-Dave

 

[DeeAnna]

Dosco -- If you want my advice, having made a couple of batches of superlye soap -- I wouldn't go there if your goal is to get the soap made in a time efficient way. If you like a challenge that can be time consuming with a good chance of interesting problems to solve on the fly, however, by all means go for it.

If you want to ensure your "grease" is all or almost all saponified but keep things fairly simple, just make a normal CP or HP soap with fresh NaOH, your best guess about the fat content, a 27% to 28% lye concentration (higher water), and a zero to -3% lye discount. Typical CP or HP soap made with up to a -5% lye discount (5% excess NaOH, corrected for purity) is very likely to be skin safe after a 6-8 week cure. Even so, it's wise to be cautious -- handle with gloves at first, give it a good cure to ensure excess lye is reacted, and test the soap before use. I'd use a zap test and even split a bar open and test the center of the soap -- that's where it will be alkaline for the longest time.

JMO, so take it with a grain of sa ... no, a flake of soap!

 

[Susie]

Now that I've read the rest of the thread and it's drifted into food territory ... are you interested in sharing? I bake sourdough and I'm generally interested in European breads.

Thanks.

-Dave

I am happy to share!


2 1/2 cups warm water (I use hot tap water because by the time I get it into a cold measuring cup, then into a cold bowl, it is that perfect 110F.)
3 Tablespoons instant dry yeast
4 teaspoons sugar (honey can be substituted, but it changes the flavor and texture)
6-7 cups AP flour (Bread flour does not yeild the same texture, and texture was one of the main things I was having trouble with matching of my grandmother's.)
4 teaspoons sea salt
2 Tablespoons melted butter

Add the sugar to the water, then sprinkle the yeast over it. I let it proof while I measure out the rest of the ingredients.

Add half the flour (3 1/2 c), stir, add salt and butter. Add flour in 1/2 cup increments until it pulls away from the bowl.

Dump out onto floured surface and knead JUST until it bounces back. Not one bit more. It should still be somewhat sticky and nothing like the smooth ball of dough of other recipes.

Grease the bowl, and put the dough ball back in, and allow to rise to doubled. Form the dough how you like, then allow to rise to double again. Bake at 400F. Baking time will be dependent on form of bread.

If you are making traditional "french" bread, slash the tops of the loaves (recipe makes two loaves), and egg wash with one egg beaten with one tablespoon of water. Be sure to get the egg wash down in the slashes.

 

[Soapmaker145]

Thank you two but I'm not sure I can eat anything with straight lard in it. Afull strip of bacon can mess up my stomach. Only my daughter and mother can eat regular bacon and not be doubled over in pain. Would shortening be a close enough substitute?

Shortening shouldn't be used in food because of the trans fat content. The substitute for lard is palm oil, not palm kernel. It works beautifully.

 

[Susie]

Shortening shouldn't be used in food because of the trans fat content. The substitute for lard is palm oil, not palm kernel. It works beautifully.

You are certainly entitled to your opinion. However, it is your opinion.

My grandmother used lard and shortening to make her biscuits at various times. The shortening was touted as being more healthy than lard, so my mother and my aunts forced her to change. Now we know otherwise. But palm oil is often in vegetable shortening, and it is much more widely available than palm oil. And biscuits are not an everyday food in most of our kitchens. It is an occasional food.

Maybe you aren't old enough to have lived through the whole "Eggs are bad. No, eggs are good. Carbs are great, carbs are horrible. Low fat/cholesterol diets are a must, no, it is not the fat you eat that is the problem." rigamarole of whatever little tidbit the media chooses to scream, "The sky is falling!" about this week, but I have. And I while I am a nurse, and I follow all the current reliable, verifiable medical information, I still fail to get on whatever bandwagon the media is touting this week. I have a really strong feeling that trans-fats are the next thing we hear about not being as bad as they thought.

I avoid palm oil and PKO due to environmental concerns. But that is my opinion, and I do not force it down anyone else's throat.