Miso-Maple Biscuits with Strawberry-Gochujang Jam

Biscuits

1. Preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C) and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
2. In a small bowl, whisk the miso, 2 tbsp maple syrup and whole milk together. Set aside to let the flavors come together.
3. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder and sugar to combine.

From here on out, speed matters. Keep the butter cold. If you think it’s starting to melt into the flour, put the dough in the freezer for 5 to 10 minutes.

4. Cut the frozen butter into rough ¼-inch cubes. They don’t have to be perfect, just quick. (A coarse grater works too.)
5. Pinch the butter into the flour mixture, working quickly to flatten the chunks a little without melting them.
6. Make a shallow well in the flour and butter and pour in the milk-miso-maple mixture. With a fork or wooden spoon, stir until the dough just comes together. A few dry crumbs at the bottom are fine. If it’s definitely too dry, add a small splash of milk at a time.
7. Generously flour a large cutting board or work surface. Form the dough into a rough ball, dust the top with flour and roll it into a rectangle roughly 12 by 18 inches. Again, speed beats precision.
8. Fold the dough lengthwise like an envelope (in thirds), then widthwise like a magazine (in quarters). It won’t be perfect, and that’s OK.

How’s your butter looking? Now’s a great time to pop the dough in the freezer if it’s getting soft.

9. Once the butter is cold again, dust your surface and repeat the roll, fold, fold. It should be a more regular rectangle by now. You’ve made 12 layers of rough puff biscuit dough.
10. Roll the dough out one last time to about ½ inch thick. Cut rounds with a biscuit cutter or drinking glass (2 to 3 inches across) and place them on the baking sheets.

If you re-roll the scraps, chill the dough at least 5 minutes, then do one more book or envelope fold to preserve some layers. If you have time and space, freeze the cut biscuits on their sheets for 5 to 10 minutes so they hold their shape in the oven.

11. Egg wash: Whisk the egg with a splash of milk and brush it on the biscuits right before they go in the oven.
12. Bake at 450°F for 15 to 20 minutes, until deep brown on top. Darker miso makes a darker dough, so look for a deeper brown than on regular buttermilk biscuits. There’s enough butter between the layers that these are hard to overbake.
13. Maple glaze: While the biscuits bake, melt 1½ tbsp butter in a small bowl, then whisk in ¼ cup maple syrup. Add another tablespoon of syrup for a harder set.
14. As soon as the biscuits come out of the oven, brush with the glaze; their residual heat sets it. Sprinkle flaky salt over the glaze while it’s still hot and sticky. Cool on a wire rack for a few minutes, but these are best warm.

Jam make ahead

1. Hull and quarter the strawberries and place them in a large saucepan.
2. Stir the sugar and pectin (if using) together and pour over the strawberries. Give a quick stir and let the berries macerate at room temperature for at least 20 to 25 minutes.
3. Add a pinch of kosher salt and cook over medium-high heat.
4. Temper the gochujang: Once the berries are bubbling, put the gochujang in a small bowl, spoon in several tablespoons of the boiling juices and whisk with a fork. Stir it back into the pan. This keeps the gochujang from clumping.
5. Keep cooking on medium-high, stirring frequently, until the jam reaches 210°F in Denver or 220°F at sea level. Jam sets at 8° above boiling at your altitude. Frozen berries take longer to boil off the extra water.

No thermometer? Wait until the jam falls off the back of a spoon in sheets. It will be ruby red and smell deeply of gochujang. If you’re tasting as you go, err on the side of extra heat; the spice mellows as it cools.

6. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice and black pepper. Cool fully and store in the refrigerator.

I’m not a canner, so I make no guarantees as to whether this jam is shelf stable.