Biscuits for a Crowd

Makes about 45-50 Biscuits (depending on the size you cut 'em)

• 8 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup baking powder
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 cups very cold butter
• 4 eggs
• 2-2/3 cups milk

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. One handy trick is to freeze the butter and grate it or you can use a knife to cut it into smaller chunks. The colder it is, the flakier the biscuits. If you're worried that your butter got too warm while mixing it, simply place the bowl in the fridge for a few minutes.
2. Beat egg with milk; stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. It should look soupy and gloppy. (heavy duty terminology there!)
   
3. Turn onto a well-floured surface; sprinkle flour all over the top. Pat the mixture gently to form a rectangle. Carefully, fold the rectangle like a tri-fold letter. Sprinkle with a little more flour if it gets sticky. Form it into a rectangle with your hands again and repeat the tri-fold. And do it one more time. In other words, you will form a rectangle three times and fold it into a tri-fold letter three times.
   
4. Roll to 3/4-in. thickness; cut with a floured biscuit cutter. I use a drinking glass or an old jelly jar. Arrange the biscuits on the baking sheet so that the sides are touching. Bake at 450 degrees F for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.

These make yummy sandwich biscuits! Also, a note on the butter: you can use one cup shortening in place of the butter OR you could even use half butter/half shortening. Just make sure it's cold.

Don't need to feed a crowd? Just a family?

Here's the family size ingredient list (mixing/prep instructions are the same):

2 cups all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

3 teaspoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)

1 egg

2/3 cup milk