Homemade white cheddar biscuits with sage topped with rye and drizzled with sweet honey and butter. They are actual heaven and rise SKY HIGH. Your new favorite flaky biscuit recipe!
I’m loosely southern. Meaning that while I’m from Florida, which is technically the south, if you ask anyone from Georgia, Alabama, or Louisiana if us Floridians are included in the roundup of southern states, they’ll likely roll their eyes then throw out a comment about how we’re just a bunch of old retired Jewish people from New England. They’d be mostly correct.
And while I am neither old or retired (I’ve got the Jewish thing going for me, at least…), I am proud to say that this sort-of-kind-of-a-little-bit southern girl has mastered biscuits. Hooray! It was a process, for sure, but these sage and cheddar biscuits were worth the struggle, and I know I’ll be pocketing this recipe for a lifetime.
So how’d I do it? A lot of research, and a lot of trial and error. Should I experiment with whole wheat dough? (A resounding no.) Should I use butter or shortening? Drop biscuits or cut?
It took multiple batches, a lot of cursing, and far too many carbs in my house before I settled on this homemade buttermilk biscuits recipe. My pants may not thank me, but my family surely will. Say hello to the cheddar biscuits of your dreams!
What’s in these sage and cheddar biscuits?
If you’ve never made biscuits from scratch before, don’t fret too much. They’re really not that tough to make, and these insanely flaky cheddar biscuits are worth every minute of effort you put into them.
To make these fluffy buttermilk biscuits, you’ll need standard biscuit ingredients like all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, kosher salt, unsalted butter, and buttermilk. Then comes the fun part: the flavorings. I stirred some grated white cheddar cheese into these homemade buttermilk biscuits, along with chopped fresh sage.
To top these babies, I used honey, rye, maldon sea salt, and freshly cracked black pepper. Trust me, these cheddar biscuits are ones you won’t ever forget.
How to make cheddar biscuits
To make these sage and cheddar biscuits, you first need to whisk together the dry ingredients, then cut in the cold butter with a fork or pastry cutter. Mix in the chopped sage, grated cheddar, and buttermilk.
Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and shape into a rectangle. Cut the dough into four equal-sized pieces, then stack them on top of each other. Roll out the stacked dough until it’s about an inch thick. Cut out the biscuits, then place them on a baking sheet and freeze for a few minutes.
Before baking the biscuits, brush them with a mixture of melted butter and rye and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Bake these biscuits until golden on top and risen. I like to serve my cheddar biscuits warm with honey and butter.
Is there a buttermilk substitute I can use?
Because buttermilk is one of the star ingredients in this recipe, I don’t recommend substituting it. Get your hands on some real buttermilk for the best flavor and texture.
Can I use a different type of cheese?
I’m sure you can! You need to use a cheese that’s similar in texture to cheddar that you can grate. If you make these cheddar biscuits with a different type of cheese, leave me a comment below letting me know how your experiment turned out.
Tips for the best homemade biscuits
Before cutting the butter into the flour mixture, it must be extremely cold. If the butter is too warm when it’s cut into the flour, you won’t wind up with sky high flaky biscuits.
Also note that you should buy a block of white cheddar cheese and grate it yourself. Pre-shredded cheese is often coated in cornstarch, which may alter the consistency of these flaky buttermilk biscuits.
If you don’t have rye on hand, you’re welcome to omit it. These cheddar biscuits are still delicious without it, though you’ll be missing out on a great flavor combo.
If you make these Cheddar and Sage Biscuits, please let me know by leaving a review below! And make sure to sign up for my newsletter and follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook for more Well Seasoned recipes!
For more brunch ideas, check out the following:
Mini blueberry streusel muffins
Creamy baked eggs with spring asparagus
How to create an epic bagel board
Blueberry streusel coffee cake
Sage and Cheddar Biscuits with Honey and Rye
Ingredients
- 3 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 ¼ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 ½ tsp kosher salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter (very cold, diced)
- 1 Tbsp fresh sage (chopped)
- ½ cup white cheddar (grated)
- 1 cup buttermilk (very cold)
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter (melted)
- 1 Tbsp rye whiskey
- ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ tsp maldon sea salt
- Honey (for serving)
- Room temperature butter (for serving)
Instructions
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Use a pastry cutter to cut in butter until pea-sized pieces form.
- Pour in chopped sage, grated cheddar, and buttermilk, mixing just until combined. Pour out onto a lightly floured surface and gently pat into a rectangle about 1” tall.
- Use a bench scraper to cut the dough into 4 equal rectangles, then carefully stack them on top of each other. Use a lightly floured rolling pin to gently roll out into a 1” tall square (the shape isn’t as important as keeping the height!).
- Cut into 12 biscuits, then carefully transfer to prepared baking sheet lined with parchment paper, leaving about 2” between each. Place biscuits in freezer for 10-15 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 425 F.
- Combine melted butter in a small bowl with rye whiskey, then brush tops of biscuits. Sprinkle each biscuit with freshly ground black pepper and a few maldon sea salt flakes.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes or until tops are golden brown. Serve with honey and butter.
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Hi! At no point do you specify what you mean by “rye.” Do you mean rye flour or rye whiskey? Neither makes a whole lot of sense to me, but I want to know what flavor I’m missing before I omit.
Rye whiskey! Melted butter and rye are mixed together and brushed on top of the cooked biscuits. Def feel free to omit, butter is obviously a no-fail option for biscuits! xo, Ari