Page 319 - Pie Squared

BISCUITS

5 cups (600 g) White Lily flour (not self-rising), plus more for dusting

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 tablespoon kosher salt
8 tablespoons (113 g) unsalted butter, frozen

1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk, cold

2 tablespoons (28 g) melted butter

For the crust: Heat the oven to 350°F; if you have one, place a
baking stone, Baking Steel, or inverted baking sheet on the center

rack to heat (see here). Place the crackers in a ziptop bag and bash
them with a rolling pin until they are in crumbs and small shards, but
not powdered. Pour the crumbs into a medium bowl, add the butter
cubes, and knead and work the cracker crumbs until a cohesive

dough appears. Press the dough across the bottom of the slab pie
pan and carefully into the corners and, if you have enough, up the
sides. Bake the crust (on top of the steel, stone, or baking sheet if
using) for 20 to 25 minutes, until browned in the corners and on the

edges. Cool completely on a rack.
For the filling: In a large skillet, cook the sausage over medium
heat, breaking it apart with two wooden spoons. When the pink is
gone, scatter the flour over the meat and increase the heat to toast

and brown the flour and the meaty bits. Keep stirring until the flour is
well browned, about 3 minutes. Pour in the coffee and increase the
heat to high while scraping up all the good bits stuck to the bottom of
the pan. When the coffee has reduced by half, another 3 minutes or

so, reduce the heat and add the milk and salt. Stir non-stop as the
mixture comes to a boil and thickens, about 4 minutes more. When it
is a saucy gravy, like heavy cream, remove the pan from the heat.
For the biscuits: Heat the oven to 475°F. Have a bench scraper

close at hand and generously dust the counter with flour. In the bowl
of the food processor, weigh the flour, then add the baking powder
and salt. Set the bowl on the processor base, place the metal blade,
and cut in the frozen butter, pulsing 12 times. Add the buttermilk all