Memaws Old Time Biscuits for a Crowd

So, we went to a breakfast place and ordered the special. And they bring out the eggs, sausage, and grits with a basket of biscuits. Classic, right? Nope! Biscuits, like pie, should be round, not square! It looked like a cake, to be honest. Just to make sure this wasn't a fluke, we tried another place a few weeks later, only to get served square biscuits and gravy (the gravy wasn't square) and, once again, it looked like a cake. And then there are canned biscuits. They're okay. But there's no challenge to making them other than opening the can and, to be honest, they taste like they're out of a can. I've had requests for the recipe for my northern biscuits. They're a little denser than southern cake biscuits but they're crumbly and good and perfect for syrup and biscuits or with white cream gravy. This recipe feeds a crowd of people.

• 5 cups sifted All-Purpose Flour
• 1 Tbsp plus 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 Tbsp kosher salt (fine grind)
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup very cold lard, butter, or hard shortening (Crisco Stick)
• 1 1/2 cups cold, well-shaken buttermilk

1. Preheat oven to 425
2. Sift flour only one time.
3. Set aside in its own bowl.
4. Measure out 1 level cup at a time for a total of 5 cups. You should have flour leftover. Hold on to it- you'll need it!
5. Whisk into the flour: salt and baking powder
6. Cut up your cold lard (or whatever) into cubes.
7. Using a pastry cutter, cut in the lard into the flour. Do this until all large particles are gone. Scrape the cutter if needed.
8. Slowly mix in the buttermilk, gently folding in the flour as you go.
9. The dough should be a little wet. If it's still dry, add more buttermilk.
10. Fold out your dough onto a floured surface, dust your rolling pin, and lightly flour top of dough mound. 
11. Begin the folding process until it tightens and is no longer sticky. Do not knead!
12. Roll to 1-1/2 in thickness. Cut out with a biscuit cutter. Lay on a papered baking tray. 
13. Butter tops with melted butter.
14. Pop into the oven and watch for light golden browning on top (about 15-20
15. minutes).
16. Remove and let cool.

BEST SERVED: with butter and jam or underneath Grandma's homemade white gravy. I once made this at a cabin on a church retreat. Yep, took up the whole counter to make but it was worth it and, if you don't have a biscuit cutter, use a glass!