Guinness Blue Cheese Biscuits

Ingredients

• 3
  
  cups all purpose flour
  
• 1
  
  tablespoon baking powder
  
• 3/4
  
  teaspoon baking soda
  
• 1 1/2
  
  teaspoons kosher salt
  
• 3
  
  tablespoons potato flakes
  
• 1
  
  tablespoon fine cut orange marmalade
  
• 3/4
  
  cup grated aged white cheddar
  
• 1/4
  
  cup cold unsalted butter
  
• 1/4
  
  cup grated blue cheese
  
• 1/4
  
  cup cold buttermilk
  
• 1
  
  cup Guinness beer, cold
  
• 1 1/2
  
  tablespoons buttermilk,extra for brushing tops
  

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.
   Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
   Wrap a piece of blue cheese in several layers of plastic foil and place in the freezer
2. Measure out 1 ½ cup all purpose flour (aerate, spoon into the cup and level off with a knife) in a dry mixing bowl and add the cold butter, cut into cubes. Work the butter in with a pastry blender or your fingers until no discernible pieces remain. Add the remaining 1 ½ cup all purpose flour,baking powder, baking soda and salt and whisk the whole mixture well to evenly distribute leaveners. Add the potato flakes and do the same. Grate the blue cheese on the fine holes of a grater ,measure out ¼ cup and stir through the flour mixture. Add the grated cheddar.
3. Pour Guinness into a measuring cup,down the side of the inner wall , aiming to create less bubbles than you normally would. Let it settle for about a minute or a few. You want to have 1 c of liquid and about ¼ c of cream on top. Besides air suspended in bubles, the cream does contain a percentage of extra liquid as well, which is needed here for proper balance.
4. Mix the marmalade and buttermilk well in a small dish and add to the dry ingredients along with the beer and gently but quickly stir until the dough comes together.
5. Scoop the dough out onto a dry countertop barely sprinkled with flour and gently pat to an even ¾ inch thickness. Cut with a 2 ½ inch cutter and place on the prepared sheet, about 1 ½ inch apart. Cut the scraps into bite sized pieces and place them randomly on the sheet as well – those are for the cook. Alternatively cut the patted circle radially into scones. Brush the tops of the biscuits lightly with the extra buttermilk and bake in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving.