Craving savory carbs? If you’re nodding your head yes, let me introduce you to beer and Manchego cheese biscuits, a twist on a favorite creation. I baked a batch days ago … and devoured it.
Beer and Manchego cheese biscuits are a great snack or addition to any meal. Serve them straight up at happy hour or as a side for dinner. The flaky pastries go just as well with a cold beverage as a meaty main or vegetable course (such as Joseph Lenn’s collard green gratin).
You can use any kind of pale lager when preparing beer and Manchego cheese biscuits. I tapped into a bottle of Warsteiner German Pilsener that was sitting in my fridge. Likewise, feel free to sub in another semi-hard cheese (like Asiago or cheddar). Basically, do whatever is convenient for you. The result will be the same: delicious!
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1¼ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper, plus more for finish
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ cup grated Manchego cheese
- 6 tablespoons frozen unsalted butter, grated
- ¾ cup + 2 tablespoons beer
- heavy cream or half-and-half (for finish, optional)
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, pepper, salt and baking soda. Add the Manchego cheese and butter and stir to combine.
- Add the beer and stir until just combined.
- Turn out dough onto a lightly floured work surface and pat into a 1"-thick rectangle. Fold the dough in half, turn it 90 degrees and pat into a 1"-thick rectangle. Repeat the process 3 more times, flouring your work surface as necessary to prevent sticking.
- Fold the dough into thirds, like a business letter, and pat into a 1"-thick rectangle. Repeat the process 1 more time, flouring your work surface as necessary to prevent sticking.
- Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut the dough into 6 smaller rectangles and transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Freeze biscuits for 15 minutes.
- Remove biscuits from the freezer and brush tops with heavy cream or half-and-half, if using. Sprinkle with pepper.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes until golden brown. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Those are gorgeous looking biscuits! You can really see the separation between the layers and how they expanded. They look great to pull apart.
Thanks so much! A good “freeze” before baking does wonders!
These look amazing! Any thoughts on whether they could be frozen for later use?
Hi Paula – Thanks so much! Yes, you can keep the biscuits in the freezer (stop at Step 7) until you’re ready to bake them. Enjoy!
Thanks! I wonder how baking time might change (if they’re rock solid) – and I wonder if I should let them ‘warm up’ a bit first in the fridge? I am definitely going to try this out! They look scrumptious!
No need to thaw the biscuits – bake them straight from the freezer, adding a few minutes in the oven if needed.