Spelt Herb and Feta Breakfast Biscuits are a savory take on the classic buttermilk biscuit, made with wholegrain spelt flour, crumbled feta, and a handful of fresh herbs.
They bake up golden on the outside, with a soft, tender crumb inside. Spelt flour gives a nuttier flavor than all-purpose flour and keeps the texture light instead of dense.
I make a batch on Sunday and keep them in the fridge for quick breakfasts through the week. About 17 minutes in a 220 C / 425 F oven and they come out ready for butter or a fried egg on the side.
One thing to watch: don’t overwork the dough once the buttermilk goes in. Overmixing pulls out the gluten and the biscuits turn tough instead of flaky.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Wholegrain spelt gives a nutty flavor without a dense crumb
- Feta and herbs mean no butter or jam required
- Dough comes together in one bowl with no mixer
- Bakes ahead and reheats in under 10 minutes
Ingredient Notes
- Spelt flour: Gives a nuttier, slightly sweet flavor than all-purpose flour. If you don’t have spelt, whole wheat pastry flour works but the crumb will be a bit denser.
- Feta: Use a block of feta packed in brine and crumble it yourself for the best texture. Pre-crumbled feta is drier and can make the dough less moist.
- Fresh herbs: Chives and dill are my go-to, but flat-leaf parsley or a mix with thyme works too. Skip dried herbs here since they don’t give the same fresh bite.
- Cold butter: Keep the butter cold, even frozen and grated, so it stays in small pieces through mixing. This is what creates the flaky layers when the biscuits bake.
- Buttermilk: Adds tang and helps activate the baking soda. If you’re out, stir 1 tbsp lemon juice into 180 ml regular milk and let it sit for 5 minutes.
- Baking powder and soda: Both are needed here, the powder for lift and the soda to react with the buttermilk’s acidity. Check that your baking powder isn’t expired or the biscuits won’t rise well.
Spelt Herb and Feta Biscuits: Soft, Savory, and Easy
Description
These drop biscuits use spelt flour for a nutty bite and cold butter cut into pea-sized pieces for flaky layers, with feta and herbs folded in so no jam is needed.
Ingredients
Dry ingredients
Wet ingredients and mix-ins
Instructions
Make the dough
- Heat the oven to 220 C / 425 F and line a baking sheet with parchment.
- Whisk the spelt flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and pepper together in a large bowl.
- Scatter the cold butter over the flour and rub or cut it in until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs with some pea-sized pieces.
- Stir in the feta, chives, and dill until evenly distributed.
- Whisk the egg and 180 ml buttermilk together, then pour into the dry mix.
- Stir gently with a fork just until the dough comes together and no dry flour remains. It will look shaggy, not smooth.
Shape and bake
- Turn the dough onto a floured surface and pat gently into a 2.5 cm thick round.
- Cut biscuits with a 6 to 7 cm cutter, pressing straight down without twisting.
- Gather scraps once, re-pat, and cut remaining biscuits.
- Place biscuits on the tray so edges just touch, then brush tops with the remaining buttermilk.
- Bake for 16 to 18 minutes until the tops are golden and the bottoms sound hollow when tapped.
- Cool on the tray for 5 minutes before moving to a wire rack.
Nutrition Facts
Servings 8
- Amount Per Serving
- Calories 260kcal
- % Daily Value *
- Total Fat 14g22%
- Saturated Fat 8g40%
- Cholesterol 55mg19%
- Sodium 420mg18%
- Potassium 150mg5%
- Total Carbohydrate 26g9%
- Dietary Fiber 3g12%
- Sugars 2g
- Protein 8g16%
- Vitamin A 350 IU
- Vitamin C 1 mg
- Calcium 140 mg
- Iron 1.6 mg
- Vitamin D 10 IU
- Vitamin E 0.5 mg
- Vitamin K 3 mcg
- Thiamin 0.15 mg
- Riboflavin 0.15 mg
- Niacin 1.8 mg
- Vitamin B6 0.1 mg
- Folate 25 mcg
- Vitamin B12 0.3 mcg
- Phosphorus 160 mg
- Magnesium 30 mg
- Zinc 0.9 mg
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Note
Additional Notes
- Keep butter and buttermilk cold straight from the fridge until the moment you mix them in.
- Don't twist the biscuit cutter when cutting rounds, or the layers seal shut.
- Crumble feta by hand instead of using pre-crumbled for a moister crumb.
- Check biscuits at 15 minutes since oven hot spots vary and tops brown fast.
