Homemade Bisquick Is Way Better Than the Boxed Stuff

For some people, a weekend just isn’t complete without a stack of pancakes or a tray of golden brown biscuits. While a dedicated few prefer to bake completely from scratch, many rely on Bisquick. The packaged batter mix is a premeasured breakfast delight—suddenly, an all-morning recipe comes together in minutes. As easy as it is to buy the mix, homemade Bisquick is actually even simpler to prepare. Sure, making a batch of homemade Bisquick requires about 10 minutes of your time, but isn’t that less time than it would take you to get to the grocery store? Once it’s made, homemade Bisquick can do anything the packaged stuff can: biscuits, waffles, pancakes, quick breads, muffins, and oh so much more.

Cut ¾ cup of butter (vegetable shortening works too) into ½-inch pieces and place in the refrigerator to stay cold.

Sift 5 cups all-purpose flour, 2 ½ tablespoons baking powder, and ½ tablespoon kosher salt into  into a large bowl or into the bowl of a food processor. If using a regular bowl, whisk the mixture for at least 15 seconds (whisking aerates the flour in a similar manner to sifting the mixture). If using the food processor, pulse the mixture for a few seconds to fully blend and aerate the mixture.

Drop the cubed butter or vegetable shortening into the flour mixture. If not using a machine, use your fingers or a pastry cutter to work the cold fat into the dry ingredients until the mixture is well blended. If using a food processor, cut the butter into the flour mixture by running the machine for 15 seconds or so.

Transfer the DIY Bisquick to an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to three months. Technically, if you used vegetable shortening, the mixture should be OK kept out of the fridge (in a sealed container, of course), but as an overeager member of the food-safety police, I like to keep this mixture in the fridge to stay as fresh as possible for as long as possible.