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Why You’ll Love My Recipe
Do you need a simple, quick recipe for an afternoon snack? You can have these tea biscuits made in under 30 minutes! Slather them with butter while they’re still warm, top them with your favourite jam, and you’ve got a filling treat.
For more similar baking dishes, why not make The Best Biscuits Ever? Or try The Best Scones Ever instead? Top these flaky, yummy biscuits off with some homemade Strawberry Freezer Jam or Traditional Saskatoon Berry Jam. Maybe even make some Whipped Cream Cheese to slather on top.
Reader Review
I just pulled a batch out of the oven, used your recipe exactly as written and made some delicious tea biscuits. Ate a few with a variety of jams and they were great. Reminded me of the tea biscuits I ate when I was growing up in Cape Breton. A simple recipe which yields great and tasty results.
Karlynn’s Recipe Notes
- Skill Level: This recipe is easy, especially if you have a way to measure dough thickness.
- Total Time: These biscuits are ready to serve in 25 minutes.
- Variations: While this specific recipe is generally kept fairly plain and then topped with jams and creams, you could add in some grated cheese or chopped chives to make them more savoury. If you want to stay close to British tradition, serve them with some homemade Strawberry Freezer Jam and a batch of Old Fashioned Whipped Shortbread cookies.
- Tools Needed: The main things you’ll need for this recipe are a large bowl, a rolling pin, a cookie sheet, and something round (a cookie cutter or a glass) to cut your biscuits with. A pastry cutter will come in handy but you can make do with a fork or some butter knives. If you happen to have a rolling pin with thickness guides, that will make your life easier.
What You’ll Need For Ingredients
Flour: All-Purpose
Butter: You could also use margarine or lard.
Milk: Whatever you have in your fridge.
Baking Powder and Salt.
How To Make Tea Biscuits
This is a brief overview of the recipe. The full list of ingredients and step-by-step instructions are in the recipe card below.
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease cookie sheet or line it with parchment paper.
- Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry cutter or a fork.
- Add milk and mix gently with fork until dough forms. Knead dough 8-10 times and then roll out to a thickness of 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch.
- Cut the biscuits with a glass or a cookie cutter. Place them on a cookie sheet and let them rest for 5 minutes.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes.
Karlynn’s Tips and Tricks for Making Tea Biscuits
Don’t Overmix: Like for many other butter recipes, you want some little chunks in there. Those are what make things flaky and crispy. So don’t mix too much or you’ll lose some of that flakiness.
Serve Warm: Serve these still slightly warm from the oven or reheat for a few seconds in the microwave. There is something heavenly and satisfying about a warm biscuit slathered with melted butter.
Make In Advance: Biscuits are one of the things that freeze well and are delicious reheated. Bake yourself an extra big batch and keep them in your freezer in an airtight container or vacuum sealed bag. You can take one or two out and microwave them to have with some tea anytime you want.
Storage Instructions
Keep these biscuits in a sealed container at room temperature for a day or two. They’ll also keep well in the freezer for several months as long as they’re in an airtight container. They’ll be a delicious snack to take out as needed and microwave for a quick treat.
Other Delicious Biscuit Recipes
Looking for more Biscuit recipes?
For something great with soup or stew, try Bisquick® Biscuits, Buttermilk Biscuits, or Simple Cheddar & Chive Biscuits!
For your next tea party, check out these Lemon Scones, Popovers, or Strawberry Yogurt Scones.
Have a holiday party coming up or just craving fall spices? Try Pumpkin Spice Scones or (Christmas) Ginger Scones.
There you have it, friends! A quintessential British favourite that you can make in time for afternoon tea. Try this recipe, or some of my other biscuit and scone recipes, and let me know how they turn out.
Happy Baking!
Karlynn
Tea Biscuits
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup butter
- ¾ cup milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F
- Lightly grease a baking sheet or line it with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder, and salt.
- With a pastry cutter, cut the butter in until it has a fine crumb texture.
- Add in the milk with a fork to make a soft dough.
- Knead 8 to 10 times only, and then roll out to a thickness 1/2 inch – 3/4 inch thick.
- Cut with a cookie or biscuit cutter or a glass.
- Place them on the cookie sheet and let them rest for 5 minutes.
- Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until they have risen and are starting to brown on top.
- These are best if served warm with a bit of butter.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Sharon MacLeod says
I made these biscuits last night. They certainly were a big hit with my family. They were very flaky and huge. I will be making these very soon again. Thanks for sharing your recipe🩷
Rachel says
I love this recipe. I’ve made it three times now. Once, someone recommended I freeze the butter in advance, which certainly made it easier to work with, but the biscuits were inedible and ended up in the bin. The other two times, I just followed the recipe as best I could, and my biscuits turned out nice!
Betty says
I made these biscuits and spot on .. now don’t panic when you read knead only 8 to 10 times .. trust the process. mine turned out beautiful .. the kids ate them down like it was their last meal lol.. only down fall.. I should have made 2 batches lol .. Thank you Karlynn will be 100% making these again.
Claire says
They are exactly what I was looking for, delicious and simple, we enjoy them in different ways, today is with soup.
Glen Miller says
I just pulled a batch out of the oven, used your recipe exactly as written and made some delicious tea biscuits. Ate a few with a variety of jams and they were great. Reminded me of the tea biscuits I ate when I was growing up in Cape Breton. A simple recipe which yields great and tasty results.
Kathy says
Hubby and I loved these. Added grated cheese and enjoyed with chili. 2 thumbs up.👍👍
Mary Mason says
This is almost the same recipe that I use, but I put a cup of grated cheese in before I add the milk, (I use 1 cup of milk)
So good !!
Wendy says
I don’t quite know what these are supposed to be , but they certainly aren’t English rich tea biscuits, (British biscuits are what you call cookies) and are absolutely not what Prince William was referring to as his favourite. Sorry.
Patti says
I love how pleasant people are these days.
It would have been nice if she referred to HER recipe she worked hard making and posting.
Thank you for the recipe Karlynn.
Dayle says
Couldn’t just move along, just had to let everyone know all your negative thoughts. Nobody is saying you need to love everything, and I didn’t realize that you are the be all, know all on what a biscuit is. It’s okay to just think your negative thoughts and then keep them to yourself … like adults do. Have a fabulous day Wendy. I’ll be waiting with baited breath for your perfect recipe and some other knowledge of what Prince William likes and doesn’t like.
Merri says
Wendy’s statement wasn’t very negative, but direct and factual. When you truly respect cultures, then you would want to know those facts and go from there. Tea biscuits are what we refer to as cookies. What we call biscuits are similar to what the British, and many others around the world, call scones.
Kilby McCann says
I made these biscuits for Father’s Day with Haskap jam. Wonderful and flakey. With the cost of food these days it’s a lovely simple treat . Tea biscuits are not scones but something special a child can make. When paired with jam it’s my Mom’s favourite dessert .I doubt Prince William will be over anytime but we will enjoy our version of a good biscuit.