Cathead Biscuits

Ingredients

• 3 cups self-rising soft wheat flour, plus 1/2 cup for shaping
• 1/2 cup cold lard or vegetable shortening
• 1 1/2 cups cold buttermilk, plus more as needed
• 3 tablespoons bacon drippings or butter, for the skillet
• 2 tablespoons melted butter, for brushing

Before you cook

• Heat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Put the bacon drippings in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet and set the skillet in the oven to heat.
• Cut the lard into small pieces and keep it cold until you need it.
• Put the half cup of extra flour in a shallow bowl for shaping.

Steps

1. Put the three cups of self-rising flour in a large bowl and make a wide well in the center.
2. Work the cold lard into the flour with your fingertips until the pieces are about the size of peas.
3. Pour the buttermilk into the well and stir with your hand in a circular motion, drawing in flour as you go.
4. Stop as soon as the dough is uniformly wet and looks closer to a thick batter than a dough.
5. Scoop a heaping half cup of the sticky dough and drop it into the bowl of extra flour.
6. Roll the mound in flour and cup it between your palms into a rough ball about the size of a cat's head.
7. Carefully pull the hot skillet from the oven and set the biscuit into the sizzling fat.
8. Shape and add the remaining biscuits, nestling them tightly against each other.
9. Turn each biscuit once in the fat so both sides are coated.
10. Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, until the tops are golden and the bottoms are deeply browned.
11. Brush the tops with melted butter and let the biscuits sit for five minutes before pulling them apart.