This recipe came to me when I was “wicked” pressed for time, so instead of rolling these babies out, I decided to simply plunk them down onto a baking sheet and cook them, while cleaning up the rest of the mess from supper preparation. With no rolling pin to clean, no counter to scrape and no flour to dust off half of the kitchen, these biscuits came out beautifully.

Aromatic Old-fashioned Cheese Drop Biscuits

2 cups flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup milk

1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted and cooled slightly

1 cup extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

3 tablespoons plain yogurt

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Preheat oven to 475 degrees. In a large bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, sugar, baking soda and salt. Add remainder of ingredients and stir to combine well.

On a greased baking sheet, dollop quarter-cup mounds of dough, leaving a couple inches between each. It may help to spray the inside of your measuring cup with nonstick cooking spray or dip a paper towel in oil and rub the inside to moisten to help prevent sticking.

Bake for 9-12 minutes, or until the tops are lightly browned and crispy. Remove drop biscuits from the pan and cool on a rack or platter to prevent continued browning on bottom.

— Chef Jim Bailey is The Yankee Chef and an authority on New England food and its history. He is a respected food columnist from Maine and is married with four children. You can email questions or comments to [email protected] and visit theyankeechef.blogspot.com.