How to Use Leftover Biscuit Dough

Carrie Morey has operated Callie’s Hot Little Biscuit, a handmade biscuit company with two locations in Charleston, South Carolina (plus a thriving shipping and distribution business), for over 20 years. During that time, Morey estimates that she’s mixed, cut, and baked over 15 million of her trademark treats. The secret to her standout recipe? “Keeping it simple and using really great ingredients, and most importantly, making them by hand,” she says.

But biscuits are just the beginning of what you can make with the buttery, multipurpose dough, according to the entrepreneur and author of two cookbooks, Callie’s Biscuits and Southern Traditions and Hot Little Suppers.

“It’s a dough that has flour, fat, and liquid, just like a pizza dough has flour, yeast, and a little bit of fat and liquid,” explains Morey. “You can make just about anything with [biscuit] dough, fresh or leftover.” 

At the upcoming Food & Wine Classic in Charleston, Morey will host a seminar with her brother, Miles White (sommelier and co-owner of Graft Wine Shop), and mother, Callie White (the company’s namesake), that explores biscuit dough’s versatility. Mix up a batch of your favorite biscuits — or gather your scraps — then read on for all the inventive ways to put the versatile dough to use, from savory crackers to edible ice cream bowls and more. 

Biscuit crackers 

“The reason that we have a biscuit cracker line now is because it drove me crazy that we were throwing away scraps of dough and it was just being wasted,” Morey says. “There’s too much gluten that has been worked into the dough so we can’t use it for a biscuit, but what if we were to roll it super-thin, dock it (prick holes in it), cut it, and bake it?” 

The result: crunchy, supremely buttery crackers that are delicious on their own or as a canvas for flavor variations like everything bagel spice or rosemary and Parmesan cheese. And a good reminder to heed Morey’s advice to “never throw away your leftover dough because those scraps can be something fabulous.”

“Southern churros”

“If you’re making a small batch of biscuits and you don’t fill the tray, you need the leftover biscuit dough to create the ‘snake,’ which is what butts up against the biscuits on the edge so that they all rise tall,” explains Morey, who places her biscuits touching on the baking sheet to ensure the best rise. Beyond its utility during the baking process, this supportive strip can turn into a repurposed snack afterward. “When that comes out of the oven, you can pull the snake apart, brush it with butter, and roll it in cinnamon sugar” for a treat she cheekily dubs a “Southern churro.”  

Biscuit bowls 

“We also take the leftover dough and fold it over the backside of muffin tins and turn those into biscuit bowls,” shares Morey. No need to get too precious with them — in a pinch, she uses the top of a quart container to stamp the dough — since the beauty of the bowls is in their rustic shape. “Some of them are a little bit thicker than others, some may have a couple of holes, some may be wider-spread — they’re kind of their own individual unique little creations,” she says. 

Morey uses the buttery vessels in her restaurants to hold creamy slow-cooked grits, but the sky’s the limit for what you can stuff inside: Think macaroni and cheese, cozy soups, and even ice cream (for dessert bowls, a sweet biscuit dough works well, says Morey). Biscuit bowls also freeze beautifully, making them a fun option to have on hand for jazzing up a solo dinner or impressing last-minute guests. 

Cinnamon biscuit “stickies”

Who says traditional cinnamon rolls should get all the love? According to Morey, this biscuit riff (which she calls “stickies”) is actually “better than a cinnamon roll, because it’s got that great crunch and texture that biscuits have.” 

“This is probably my favorite childhood memory of a biscuit formation,” she adds. “It’s really special.”

Using leftover dough is key. “We’ve tried to make them fresh, but the dough is just too tender,” says Morey. “You need that dough to be tough, so when our bakers are baking, they just set aside the little scraps of dough until they get a ball big enough.” Then they “roll it super thin, chill it, and brush it with a paste of butter, brown sugar, white sugar, and cinnamon” before rolling it into a log, cutting it into pieces, and baking them off. For a decadent finish, drizzle the stickies with glaze and sprinkle with chopped toasted pecans. 

Creamsicle biscuits 

Biscuit dough is a wonderfully versatile canvas for flavor as well as form, and Morey’s orange-and-vanilla–kissed homage to the nostalgic flavor proves it. “If I were making the creamsicle biscuit on its own, it would be made with vanilla, sugar, and whole milk,” explains Morey, who recommends fresh (rather than leftover) biscuit dough for this treat. For her demo, she’ll be tweaking her base buttermilk dough and adding a flavored glaze. “I’m going to make a big batch of buttermilk [biscuit dough] and then set some aside and add in tons of fresh orange zest, orange juice, and some more sugar and vanilla,” she says.  

Savory cobblers and casseroles 

“We’ve done tons of cobblers where you put already-baked biscuits that are frozen [atop] the cobbler and then you bake it,” Morey notes. A quick weeknight dessert made with frozen biscuits and a fruit filling is always welcome, but savory cobblers and casseroles — like the breakfast version she recently offered at Callie’s — open up an entire world of craggy, toasty topping possibilities.

“We took the dough and dropped little portions of biscuits so that it would be kind of crunchy all on the top and covered the entire thing like you would a piecrust, but it had peaks and valleys,” she says of the hearty dish packed with hash browns, eggs, cheese, and bacon. “And then you brush it with butter and it’s so crunchy and textural and delicious.”