Warm Vanilla Egg White Biscuits

When winter winds are howling, these fragrant egg white biscuits can be whipped up in a jiffy to fill the house with the comforting scent of vanilla, lemon, and blueberries. Before you know it, the cold will be a distant memory as you slather hot biscuits with salted butter or pile them high with freshly whipped cream.

These egg white biscuits are a great way to use up leftover egg whites and they're so easy they can quickly be made on the fly for unexpected guests dropping in for afternoon tea or as a welcome addition to a family brunch.

How to Make Egg White Biscuits

Biscuits are usually made with the whole egg adding richness and color from the yolk. Thankfully, these lovely nibbles are just as nice using only the whites. They are light, tender, and buttery and look so pretty studded with fat blueberries.

The dough is flavored with a generous spoonful of real vanilla extract and the zest of an entire lemon. The lemon zest is not only delicious paired with the blueberries, it also looks beautiful in the dough. Since there are no egg yolks in this dough, it is quite pale and really shows off the blue of the berries and the yellow of the zest. They'd also be great with lime or mandarin zest for even more vivid color contrast.

These biscuits are made with a full cup of ripe blueberries. They soften and sweeten through the baking process and don't bleed through the dough like other softer berries do.

That said, you can easily substitute other berries such as raspberries, strawberries, or boysenberries if you wish, though the mixing process will be messier. The biscuits would also work well with chunks of fresh peaches, plums, or nectarines as long as they're firm so they don't turn to mush while you're adding them to the dough.

Egg white biscuits lack the richness given by egg yolks, so it's essential to use real butter instead of lard or shortening. The butter not only adds a bit of warming color to the dough, but it also brings a depth of flavor that cannot be beaten. If you really must use shortening, choose a butter-flavored variety so you don't miss out on that lovely flavor.

Finishing Touches

If you're serving these biscuits for a tea party, you might want to drizzle them with a sweet lemon juice glaze first. This adds a festive look and turns them into more of a dessert feature.

For this version, I've gone with a simple beaten egg wash dusted with granulated sugar. This gives the biscuits a shiny top that browns easily and a glistening crust that glitters in the light.

Once the warm vanilla egg white biscuits are baked, be sure to cool them to room temperature before serving since the berries will be very hot and the juices could easily burn the tongue if eaten too soon.

After they've cooled sufficiently, the biscuits can be eaten as is or split and spread with salted butter, whipped cream, or clotted cream. If you like them extra sweet, a layer of blueberry jam would be a delightful addition.

If you have leftovers, split them in half horizontally, butter, top with a slice of aged cheddar or creamy Havarti then place under the broiler until the cheese melts and bubbles for a simple but scrumptious snack.

Tea Pairing

These egg white biscuits go particularly well with a steaming cup of berry tea. I served mine with Huckleberry Happiness black tea sweetened with real maple syrup, but they would also be nice with our Blackberry Mojito black tea with sprightly lime, warm maple, and cool spearmint or our Gratitude Blend Strawberry Earl Grey tea.