By Sarah Dowling, a food writer and advocate of the Slow Food Movement. She’s also the co-host of the Making It in Asheville Podcast.
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When it comes to Southern-style biscuits, there are those that you remember and those that you don’t.
The biscuits at Benne on Eagle, a soul food-inspired restaurant that opened in downtown Asheville in December 2018, fall into the former category: one bite and you’ll never forget ‘em.
As a native Southerner, I know just how bold this statement may sound. After all, biscuits are to the South what pizza is to Italy, what tortillas are for Mexico, what baguettes are to France. They are, quite literally, our bread and butter – the epicenter of our table.
There are just a few ingredients that make a biscuit a biscuit: flour, fat, and some kind of leavening agent, usually in the form of baking soda or baking powder. Of course, every family has its own variation: some use lard while others use butter; some add buttermilk, while others avoid it altogether. And then, there’s the flour debate. There are those who swear by using self-rising White Lily flour. An institutional Southern staple, the pre-mixed blend contains leavening agents and soft red winter wheat. Other recipes insist that plain white cake flour gives biscuits a softer, lighter texture.
So what about the biscuits at Benne? What is their secret ingredient? Ironically, the answer lies in the restaurant’s name. Benne (pronounced like “bennie”) is the West African term for a tiny white seed that’s part of the sesame family. “It is a distinct plant that’s only associated with Africa,” explains Glenn Roberts, CEO of Anson Mills, one of the few growers of heirloom benne seeds in the U.S.
Aesthetically speaking, benne resemble conventional sesame seeds; however, their flavor is quite different. They are nuttier, more savory than sweet, and tend to amplify the umami flavors of other food. Many describe the taste as “deep-burnt honey.”
Roberts tells me how benne was introduced to America by African slaves during the late 17th century. Kitchen slaves would extract oil from the seeds and use it to add flavor to rice or thicken stews, following the traditions of African cuisine. They would also simmer benne seeds in water, extract the oil, then dry and pound them into a flour-like product called “bennecake” which could be used to make biscuits and breads.
Eventually, Carolina plantation owners discovered benne and its ability to improve soil quality (benne is draught tolerant and can prevent pesky weeds from growing). They began planting higher yields of it, rotating it with rice crops. Mass farming of benne ultimately led to a loss in its distinct flavor and heirloom properties, although Anson Mills has managed to revive the original variety.
Although I begged, Benne on Eagle’s head pastry chef Kaley Laird politely declined my request for the official Benne biscuit recipe. She did, however, explain to me some of her baking process.
“It’s made and baked more like a scone than a biscuit, loaded with butter start-to-finish and balanced with Maldon salt for that extra salty crunch. The Benne biscuit came to be as a request for the new restaurant. I play with many different flavorful, local flours here and benne cake flour is by far my favorite…[It] tends to be very rich, nutty, slightly bitter and seemingly salty on its own, so I had to play with the increments a little.”
Honestly, they’re so good that I can’t blame her for wanting to keep it a secret. Still, I had to experience these flavors again, so I decided to test out a few different recipes myself (some edible and some not so much). While I’m sure they aren’t exactly the same as Laird’s buttery cloud-like biscuits, the winning recipe comes pretty close. They’re soft and light in texture, yet still have that deep, burnt butterscotch flavor. They might not be the official Benne on Eagle biscuits, but one thing is certain: they surely make for a biscuit to remember.
Buttery Benne Seed Biscuits
Makes 6 biscuits
- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, frozen
- 1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup benne cake flour
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup buttermilk, chilled
- ⅛ cup benne seeds
- a pinch Maldon sea salt
Cut butter into small half-inch cubes. Transfer to freezer and chill until frozen.
In a large bowl, sift together all-purpose flour, benne cake flour, sugar, baking powder and kosher salt.
Add cubes of chilled butter to the flour and quickly “snap” the butter into the dry ingredients using your thumb and middle fingers. Continue working the butter into the flour until it resembles coarse flakes.
Make a well in the middle of the dough and slowly pour in the chilled buttermilk. Use your hands to gently mix the buttermilk with the dough until it just starts to come together. Do not overmix. The dough should be rather chunky and wet.
Using an ice cream scooper or large spoon, scoop out six portions onto an ungreased baking pan. Chill in the fridge uncovered for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375°F.
Remove biscuits from the fridge and sprinkle each with a pinch of benne seeds. Bake at 375º F for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown. Before serving, add a small pinch of Maldon sea salt on top and serve warm. The biscuits may be stored in an airtight tin or jar and reheated before serving.
