Pumpkin Spice Biscuits with Homemade Pumpkin Butter

I love biscuits!  After all I am from the south!  Growing up that was one of my favorite things that my grandmother would make.  Every time we went to her house she would always make me a pan of biscuits.  Of course, when I found out what went into my grandmother’s biscuits I didn’t have the heart to tell her that they no longer were my favorite.  Growing up in the south lard was a regular add to recipes.  This of course was the ingredient that made me change my mind about my grandmother’s biscuits.  I’m the healthy eater in my family and they often shake their heads at me at holiday dinners.  My husband and I aren’t close to family now so most holidays I do the cooking and you can count on me doing healthier versions of some of my southern favorites.

This biscuit recipe is not only using whole grains but it has my favorite fall ingredient….pumpkin!  My husband has already requested these for Thanksgiving this year (even though he loves the sweet potato version I usually make).  Your house will smell wonderful while these biscuits bake.  I like them warm with a little bit of pumpkin butter.  Once you take a bite you will be amazed how delicious a whole grain biscuit can taste.  My husband doesn’t even know they are whole grain!  I didn’t have the heart to tell him after he sat eating most of the pan and requesting them at thanksgiving.

 Another note, I’m sure you can substitute the pumpkin for sweet potato too for a great sweet potato biscuit.  Enjoy!    

Pumpkin Spice Biscuits

• 1 ½ cups white whole wheat flour
• ½ cup unbleached bread flour
• ½ tsp salt
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 2 Tbsp brown sugar
• 5 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cubed
• 1 cup pumpkin
• 1 Tbsp Honey
• ¼ to ½ cup Greek Yogurt (0% or 2%)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Mix together the flours, salt, baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice and brown sugar.  Place cubed butter into dry ingredients and blend with a pastry blender.  Blend thoroughly.

Stir in the pumpkin puree and honey into the dry ingredients.  Add enough yogurt so that a ball of dough forms.  Dough will be slightly sticky – this is fine.  Knead the ball of dough 8-10 times until everything is thoroughly mixed together.

Drop tablespoon size biscuits onto a parchment lined baking sheet.  I used a ice cream scoop and it worked great.  Bake the biscuits about 10 -12 minutes until tops are golden.

Great served warm with pumpkin butter.  See below for homemade pumpkin butter.

Homemade Pumpkin Butter

Adapted from AllRecipes

• 1 (29 ounce) can pumpkin puree, about 3 ½ cups
• ¾ cup apple juice
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• ½ tsp ground cloves
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground nutmeg
• Juice of half a lemon (optional)

Combine pumpkin, apple juice, spices, and sugar in a large saucepan; stir well.  Bring mixture to a boil.  Reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes or until thickened.  Stir frequently.  Adjust spices to taste.  Stir in lemon juice (if using), or more to taste.

Once cool, pumpkin butter can be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator.