Southern Biscuits

my preferred breakfast has always been a late brunch of vegetarian breakfast burrito with avocado. one has to adapt to their surroundings, the result being that this California girl has eaten more biscuits since moving to the South than thought possible. it was high time to do biscuit testing long ago...
this recipe is the best i've come across yet, but i'm sure a Southern grandma could easily top them (using lard, no doubt)

4 c. self rising flour (White Lily is a good 'un)
2/3 c shortening (or mostly shortening in the measurer and then a dab of butter at the end)
2 c buttermilk

1. cut the shortening into the flour until it resembles a coarse meal
2. mix the buttermilk in with your fingers until its a sticky mass
3. turn onto a floured counter and lightly knead a few times (most people agree that in general, the less you mess with it the better your biscuits turn out. the jury is still out on that here at casa de rosebud)
4. wrap in plastic and refrigerate overnight. (you can omit this step but they won't rise as high)
5. pat (don't roll!) into a 1" thick disc and cut into rounds. when you cut, move the cutter straight up and down or else your biscuits will rise unevenly. i like to put the scraps onto a separate baking sheet and bake them first, while i'm not sure if the oven is quite ready. they make nice snacks, and re-kneading makes inferior biscuits anyway. at this point if you've say, tripled the recipe for a special occasion dinner, you might like to brush the tops with melted butter. this is too much trouble for me most of the time.
6. bake at 425 for 12-15 minutes on an ungreased baking sheet with biscuits 1/2" apart.
makes about 12-14 biscuits.
now, eat your delicious biscuits with jam! or...
if sausage gravy doesn't send you into a calorie counting frenzy, try this southern heart attack waiting to happen:

"real" Southern sausage gravy (thanks to Matthew Kelly for this recipe)

1 lb Neese's Sausage (it's a Southern thing...sub for a another ground sausage you like, if you must)
1 pint heavy cream (or 1/2 & 1/2)
1/4 c flour

brown the sausage nicely. whisk the flour into the cream until lump-less and add to the sausage. cook until thick. serve over biscuits.