Easy Healthy Drop Biscuits (with Gluten-Free and Vegan Options)
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These Easy Healthy Drop Biscuits come together in a flash, are very hearty and they taste great.
The recipe is super flexible too. You can make them with regular whole grain or gluten-free flour and they can be made vegan too. They're so easy to whip up, you'll want to make several batches and freeze a bunch to have on hand anytime.
I'm a super busy mom, so I'm always on the hunt for easy healthy recipes. This recipe for easy healthy biscuits is right up there with the best of 'em as far as easy goes.
As the weather starts to turn a bit cooler, my mind turns to baking again.
I've been pulling my grain mill out again and we are all enjoying the taste of fresh baked goods again.
But time is still tight and I am juggling a lot. Being a wife, a mom, homeschooling, this blog, our special needs son, special diets, and still having physically rough days of adrenal issues (that we later found out had to do with Lyme Disease). On those adrenal/Lyme days, not much gets done.
Clearly, I need fast recipes that can nourish my family without a bunch of fuss.
This is one of those.
Adapted from one of Sue Greggs's Breakfast recipes, this Easy Biscuit Recipe is a recipe that I turned to early and often in my whole grains lifestyle.
We LOVE these biscuits with Homemade Nut or Seed Butter on them and a bit of sweetener. We are on a candida diet, so I sprinkle a bit of xylitol or spread a bit of vegetable glycerine on them, or maybe fruit-only jam. And like almost everything else that I make, I typically double triple the recipe (at least) and freeze the extras (if they last that long!).
Read more on Saving Time and Money by Baking in Bulk. It's so nice to have some of these to grab for a quick lunch, snack, or breakfast.
One thing I will note about this gluten-free biscuit recipe is that the baking soda flavor is somewhat noticeable if you eat them plain. I'm going to see if I can work on that to make it less obvious and will update the post.
We do love them anyhow with all kinds of toppings, but our favorite is Homemade Nut Butter and some honey or jam, but they're particularly yummy with this Sugar-free Lemon Curd on top!
Recipe Tips
- Flour Type: I like to make these easy gluten-free drop biscuits with whatever mix of flours I have on hand. I'm not a perfectionist when it comes to flour usage in gluten-free baking. I typically do, however, like to:
– use some sweet brown rice as it adds a bit of stickiness to baked goods
– use a blend of flours since they work much better than just one type of flour
– not too much buckwheat or quinoa flour as they tend to have an aftertaste
– add at least some homemade oat flour for an “oat-ey” and nutty taste
- Light or Hearty?: This recipe makes a “hearty” biscuit. If you want a lighter biscuit and your diet permits it, then please use some white flour as a substitute for some of the whole grain.
- Flavor Notes: This biscuit is a little “baking soda-y”–that's just the way that they are. If time permits I will work on an update.
See my Gluten-Free Baking Tips for more helpful ideas for flour combinations to use in this easy biscuit recipe.
Recipe Notes
- Gluten-free Baking Help: For help with baking gluten-free, see my Gluten-Free Baking Tips.
- Baking Powder Alternative: If you would like to make your own baking powder, see Homemade Baking Powder. To avoid the starch, use 1 2/3 teaspoons baking soda and a splash more of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar instead of baking powder.
- Buttermilk Alternative: To make your own buttermilk, put 1/8 cup lemon juice or apple cider vinegar (I use this organic option) in a measuring cup and add enough milk to make 2 cups. You can use any milk or milk alternative like Homemade Coconut Milk or Homemade Almond Milk)
More Easy Healthy Recipes
Here are some more easy recipes we love.
– Homemade Protein Bars
– Low-Carb Oat Bran Muffins
– Silky Smooth Bean Fudge
– Nut Butter Truffles
5-Ingredient Easy Healthy Drop Biscuit Recipe (gluten free and vegan options)
Ingredients
- 4 cups whole grain flour (we use gluten-free flour)
- 5 teaspoons baking powder (6 1/4 baking powder if using gluten-free flour)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda (1 1/4 if using gluten-free flour)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups buttermilk (or DIY vegan option–see above notes)
- 3 tablespoons oil (I like to use melted coconut oil)
Instructions
- Add all dry ingredients to a bowl. Mix well.
- Combine milk mixture (or buttermilk) and oil.
- Add wets to dries and stir until just mixed and then beat another 10 strokes.
- Drop large golf-ball sized balls of dough onto a baking stone or cookie sheet, at least 2″ apart.
- Bake in a 425 degree preheated oven for 12 – 15 minutes until lightly-browned.
Notes
- Gluten-free Baking Help: For help with baking gluten-free, see my Gluten-Free Baking Tips.
- Baking Powder Alternative: If you would like to make your own baking powder, see Homemade Baking Powder. To avoid the starch, use 1 2/3 teaspoons baking soda and a splash more of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar instead of baking powder.
- Buttermilk Alternative: To make your own buttermilk, put 1/8 cup lemon juice or apple cider vinegar (I use this organic option) in a measuring cup and add enough milk to make 2 cups. You can use any milk or milk alternative like Easiest Coconut Milk or Easiest Almond Milk)
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is merely an approximation. Optional ingredients are not included and when there is an alternative, the primary ingredient is typically used. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on this site. Erythritol carbs are not included in carb counts since they have been shown not to impact blood sugar. Net carbs are the total carbs minus fiber.
Do you have a favorite “grab and go” snack or baked good to share?
What would you serve your Easy Drop Biscuits with?
Yummy…I definitely will be trying this out! Thanks for the share!
These look great! I try to eat GF and DF as much as possible due to an intolerance. I will mark this recipe in my bookmarks to try.
Do you think these could be frozen prior to baking and then pulled out of the freezer and baked as needed?
For your reader who asked about sweet rice flour, you can buy (white) sweet rice flour in Asian Food stores, or I buy mine inexpensively using vitacost.
Hi Kelly.
I don’t see why they couldn’t be frozen. Nice idea! Thanks for the tip!
THANK you! I”m excited to try it out. My husband would love to have fresh biscuits.
Dang. I’ve never seen sweet brown rice flour, or any sweet rice flour locally. Any other option? Sorghum isn’t available where I live, but I do happen to have teff at home. What holds it together if theres no egg, no gum, and no gluten?
Hmmm…I just grind my own sweet rice. I’d say just try whatever flours you have. They end up being more crumbly than gluten-filled baked goods, but they are still great. Let me know – I think the teff might be a good option and you could of course add some gum if you are used to using it. Let me know! And store them in a solid container rather than a bag or you’ll get a lot of crumbs!
Is sweet rice the same as short grain or round brown rice?
Sweet rice is different than short rice, though it is short. It is called glutinous rice, but has no gluten in it. It is the type of rice that they eat in China and Japan. You know – like sticky sushi rice. Hope that helps. They have it on Amazon – here is the link: Lundberg Sweet Brown Rice. It’s a lot cheaper through my co-op, but at least you can get it w/ free shipping. I am going to post about another health food resource soon. I see that they have Lundberg rice, but no sweet rice yet, but their prices are most likely going to beat Amazon. Let me know if you need more help.
Wow. I’m gluten free and dairy free, and I think my son is sensitive to eggs, so finding recipes for baked goods that comply to all those requirements is tough and wow, this fits the bill! Can you give an example of some of the flours you use for this? What mix of GF flours do you traditionally use? I can easily and cheaply make millet flour and brown rice flour; do you find this needs some heavier flours and then some starches like tapioca starch or potato starch? And does it work perfectly fine even without xanthan gum? Wow, I really want to try this one out!
Thanks for linking up with the Hearth and Soul Blog Hop!
Hi there. I actually never use starches in my baking since I am trying to bake only w/ whole grains. The only time I have used the starches in the past year was when I was making cupcakes for an even when another boy would be eating the treats as well (you can see their photo in my post on Natural Blue Food Coloring.
Anyway, I really do use whatever I have on hand, but I almost always include some sweet brown rice since it ads to the “stickiness” of the final product. I mainly use sweet brown, long brown, buckwheat and millet. If I have sorghum and teff around I will add them to the mix, but I usually don’t have them.
And I almost never use gums. They probably aren’t the best for digestive systems. I am open to working with them again, but I haven’t done it. My stuff might not mimic bakery goods, but they sure are better for you and some of them turn out really well. I try to share only the ones that I think will please a wide variety of people. It’s hard doing everything whole grain, but I think in the long run we are all better for it. It is since the advent of starch-laden baking that our health started deteriorating as a nation. Of course, other things are involved too, but I think that it a huge part of it.
Take care – ~Adrienne
I don’t use gums either, but often 1 T (or 2 T) of ground flaxseeds per cup of flour will substitute nicely for gums. I haven’t made these yet, but I’ll probably add them for the extra stickiness and shots of fiber/good fats.
Nice tip!
These look really good! I’m always on the lookout for baked goods made from freshly milled flour and I’ve bookmarked your page! I linked up to Learning the Frugal Life with a recipe for muffin mixes for the freezer – I use freshly milled hard white wheat and raw sugar.
These look super yummy! I am always trying to incorporate more whole grains into my family’s diet and this looks like an easy and frugal way to do that. I would love if you would share this recipe on my link-up as well so my readers can benefit from such a healthy recipe!
These look wonderful! Like you I have a super busy life. (Slightly different busy: Working full time as a special ed. teacher, 2 kids, 1 of whom is gf, a husband who works full time and is in grad school, plus dealing with my auto-immune disorder, and eating vegan.) This would be something I could easily make extras of for lunchboxes as well as meals. Thanks! I tend to bake in bulk and wrap individually and freeze. That way things can be grabbed for snacks or lunchboxes.
Hi Jen,
Thanks for stopping by! I am sorry to hear about your auto immune disorder. There is so much of that around these days. Just in case you are interested, did you read about the Nutritional Balancing that I am doing? I am seeing some very interesting changes and think that a lot of our issues have to do with metals, toxins and adrenals. Let me know if you have any questions (though I am still pretty new to this myself:-)!)
Could you give some info or point me in the right direction about metals, toxins, and adrenals? Past testing for me: found milk allergy, low adrenals, elevated liver enzymes, periods stopped, something about ammonia (kidneys), very low ferritin, low b vitamins (basically all of them), elevated phosphoric acid=need calcium, polycystic ovaries, yeast overgrowth. I would love to hear your story also!
Hi Kristie,
Wow. Sounds like you have a lot going on. Well, I should probably write more about my story on the web, but I must say that the everyday stuff of keeping the blog going is taking a lot of time. Were you able to check out my posts on adrenal fatigue? There is a link to Theresa Vernon on both posts, I believe. I have been working with her for about 9 months now and I think I am on the right track finally. She is quite reasonable, can work with you long distance and I find her to be quite knowledgeable. I’d be happy to correspond and help as much as I can. I tried a number of local natural practitioners but never really got anywhere. Now that we are really working on clearing out the metals I feel like progress is being made. Finally. I am still not out of the woods, but a number of issues have cleared up. And by the way, I share / shared a number of your conditions and my husband had horribly low ferritin. I am not a practitioner, but I gave him a good probiotic to start and that seemed to really help. He is working with Miss Vernon as well. Hope that helps.
Those look fantastic. I have never tried my hand at making biscuits before. I definitely need to try that. Thanks!
These are a breeze! I hope you like them!
Thanks for linking your great post to FAT TUESDAY. These look really good! Hope to see you next week!