Palmetto Pimento Cheese Biscuits

With only 4 simple ingredients, these Palmetto Pimento Cheese Biscuits are excellent served with any meal! They're also great with meat and served as an appetizer!

A perfect homemade biscuit is quintessential southern hospitality. Add creamy pimento cheese to the mix, and you've created something special!

These Palmetto Pimento Cheese Biscuits have a slightly dense, cheesy texture and a flavor that is out of this world delicious! Palmetto Cheese uses high quality mayonnaise, cream cheese, pimentos, onions, and spices in their recipes without any added sugars. Each variety has homemade quality and texture like it would be if you had made it at home.

These biscuits are excellent straight from the skillet. However, you can enhance them with a brush of melted butter or garlic butter. Another way we love to have these biscuits is as a sandwich. Split in half and add country ham, deli ham, bacon, sausage, or a piece of crispy fried chicken.

These biscuits can be made with any of their 4 delicious varieties of Palmetto Cheese: Original Homestyle, Pepper Jack, Bacon, or Jalapeño! Once you fall in love with these biscuits, you have to try my Spicy Sausage Balls and Southern Pimento Cheese Cornbread that are also made with these delicious Palmetto Pimento Cheese flavors!

Why You'll Love this Recipe

• Freshness: These cheesy flaky homemade biscuits taste better than any cheese biscuit box mix or frozen or refrigerated biscuit dough!
• Variety of Flavors: These incredible homemade biscuits can be made with any of the 4 varieties of Palmetto Cheese!
• Comfort Food Satisfaction: Like many homemade southern biscuit recipes, these pimento cheese biscuits give you all the warm and cozy feels!
• Serve Any Time of Day: These cheesy biscuits are incredible by themselves, but they're also excellent split and filled with country ham, sausage, bacon, and/or more Palmetto Cheese.

Ingredients to Make Palmetto Pimento Cheese Biscuits

Scroll down for specific ingredient amounts in the recipe card. 

• Butter: Coats the flour particles, preventing them from forming too much gluten and contributes a rich, buttery flavor to the biscuits.
• Self-Rising Flour: A pre-mixed combination of flour, baking powder, and salt. It ensures that your biscuits rise evenly and consistently, resulting in light and fluffy texture.
• Original, Bacon, Jalapeño, or Pepper Jack Palmetto Cheese: Contributes to the dense texture of the biscuit as well as adds a sharp, cheesy flavor!
• Buttermilk: Helps tenderize the gluten in the flour, resulting in a softer, more delicate texture and adds a slight tangy flavor.

WHAT IS SELF-RISING FLOUR? 

Self-rising flour is a type of flour that is commonly used in baking, particularly in recipes for biscuits, pancakes, and certain types of quick breads. It is called "self-rising" because it contains leavening agents, typically baking powder and sometimes salt, which are already mixed into the flour. These leavening agents help the baked goods rise and become fluffy without the need for additional yeast or baking soda.

If a recipe (like this one) calls for self-rising flour, and you don't have any on hand, you can make your own by combining all-purpose flour with baking powder and salt. The ratio is for every 1 cup of self-rising flour, you can use 1 cup of all-purpose flour, 1 ½ teaspoons of baking powder, and ¼ teaspoon of salt.

USING BUTTERMILK IN BISCUITS

Buttermilk contributes to a biscuits tenderness, flavor, moisture, and leavening. It has a tangy and slightly acidic flavor, which adds a yummy contrast to the richness of the biscuit's fat content. 

You can make a buttermilk substitute at home if you don't have any buttermilk on hand. There are a couple of methods you can use:

• Milk and Vinegar or Lemon Juice:
  • Ingredients: 1 cup of milk (whole milk or 2% works best) and 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice
  • Instructions: Pour the vinegar or lemon juice into a measuring cup. Add enough milk to reach the 1-cup mark. Stir the mixture gently. Let it sit for about 5 to 10 minutes to allow the milk to curdle and thicken. You'll see small curdles forming.
• Milk and Yogurt:
  • Ingredients: ½ cup of plain yogurt and ½ cup of milk (whole milk or 2% works best)
  • Instructions: Mix the plain yogurt and milk in a bowl until they are well combined. Use this mixture as a one-to-one replacement for buttermilk in your recipe.

The choice between whole or low-fat buttermilk for buttermilk biscuits often comes down to personal preference and dietary considerations. Here are some factors to consider when deciding which type of buttermilk to use:

• Whole Buttermilk (my personal preference):
  • With its higher fat content, it has richer flavor and enhances the tenderness.
• Low-Fat Buttermilk:
  • If you're looking to reduce the overall fat content in your biscuits, low-fat buttermilk can work as well. The biscuits may be slightly less rich and dense compared to those made with whole buttermilk.

Tools You’ll Need

• 12-inch Cast Iron Skillet or 13”x9” Baking Dish
• Mixing Bowl
• Liquid Measuring Cups
• Biscuit Cutter
• Rolling Pin (Optional)
• Pastry Brush (Optional)

How to make Palmetto Pimento Cheese Biscuits

1. In a small bowl, whisk buttermilk and Palmetto Cheese until well blended. Place in the refrigerator.

2. Grate frozen butter and toss with flour in a medium bowl, chill 10 minutes.

3. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Add cheesy buttermilk mixture and stir 15 times, dough will be slightly loose. Add 2-4 tablespoons buttermilk if the dough seems to dry.

4. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and form into a ball.

5. Roll with a rolling pin or pat the dough into a ¾” thickness. Cut with a 2 ½” floured round cutter, reshaping scraps and flouring as needed. 

6. Place biscuit rounds on a parchment paper-lined pan or a pre-heated buttered cast iron skillet. Bake at 450°F for 25-30 minutes or until lightly browned.

7. If desired, brush with melted butter or garlic butter.

Tips and Substitutions

• Make Mini Biscuit Appetizers: You can make smaller biscuits for appetizers. Roll or pat the dough to a half inch thickness. Adjust the baking time accordingly, as smaller biscuits will bake faster.
• Biscuit Cutting Technique: To prevent the biscuit cutter from sticking to the dough, dip it in flour before each cut. This helps the cutter slide through the dough more easily. Press the biscuit cutter straight down into the rolled-out dough without twisting. Twisting can seal the edges and affect the rise of the biscuits. Lift the cutter straight up to remove the cut biscuit.

Storage and Freezing

While these are best enjoyed when they are freshly made, you can store leftovers at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Reheat in the oven, toaster oven, or microwave until just warm for a couple of minutes.

You can also freeze the biscuits, simply wrap them individually in plastic wrap and freeze for 1 to 2 months. Thaw completely at room temperature.

Frequently Asked Questions

More Biscuit Recipes

• Homemade Biscuits and Gravy
• Easy Whipping Cream Biscuits
• Layered Cinnamon Sugar Biscuits
• Copycat Dolly Parton's Stampede Garlic Biscuits