This post may contain affiliate links.

Light, fluffy and slightly sweet, these Glazed Orange Buttermilk Biscuits are bursting with bright, citrusy flavor from sugared orange zest and a tart orange glaze. As good as any scone, these “sunshine biscuits” are perfect for brunches, afternoon coffee and weekend breakfasts. Plus, I’m sharing all my secrets and tips for fool-proof biscuits in this very easy-to-follow homemade biscuit recipe!

Fluffy buttermilk biscuits with loads of orange flavor and drizzled with a sweet orange glaze.

RELATED RECIPE: Blackberry Lemon Biscuits with Lemon Glaze

Why You’ll Love These Orange Biscuits

These glazed orange biscuits will have you thinking of your favorite orange scone but with all the southern feels of a tender, flaky buttermilk biscuit!
This is no “hint of orange” recipe. I am sharing my super secret to get loads of sunshine-y orange flavor out of your zest (works for lemons and limes too)!
I’m also sharing simple step-by-step instructions along with little tips that take the mystery out of biscuit making. Your biscuits are going to be the BEST from now on out!
This really is a special recipe. Glazed orange biscuits were made for serving at brunches, family breakfasts, showers, and luncheons. They’re perfect with a cup of coffee or tea in the mid-afternoon. Simply put, you’re going to love them anytime and all the time.

Orange buttermilk biscuits for breakfast start the day with loads of citrus flavor.

What is the Difference Between a Biscuit and a Scone?

A scone and a biscuit are similar, but yet not quite the same. Scones are made with eggs and sometimes heavy cream. Biscuits are not. Good biscuits tend to be fluffy, even light inside. While scones have more crumble than flake. Scones came from Scotland. Biscuits are synonymous with the American south.

But the differences stop there. Both biscuits and scones are made with some combination of flour, baking powder and/or soda, salt, sugar, a milk and butter (or another fat). And since they share mostly the same ingredients (with the exception of eggs), they do end up tasting relatively similar to each other.

Ingredients

I’ll walk through an overview of ingredients & steps in this section along with helpful tips!

Look for specifics at the end of the post in the recipe card.

all purpose flour
baking soda
salt
frozen salted butter
buttermilk
orange zest
orange juice
sugar
vanilla extract
For the Glaze: powdered sugar, orange juice, orange zest

How to Make Glazed Orange Buttermilk Biscuits

plenty of orange zest, grated frozen butter and lightly mixing ingredients are keys to making good orange biscuits.

Zest. This first step is what creates real orange flavor in these orange biscuits! It releases the essential oils from the orange zest and also sweetens the zest. In a small bowl, mix together the zest of one large orange and ¼ cup sugar. Use your fingers to rub the zest and the sugar together until they become a paste.
Mix together the dry ingredients. (the flour, baking powder and salt)
Add the butter. Quickly grate 5 tablespoons from a frozen stick of butter using a box grater. Cut the grated butter into the dry ingredients using a pastry cutter or fork.
Add the wet ingredients. Make a hollowed out well in the center of the flour mixture. Mix together buttermilk, orange juice and vanilla extract. Pour it into the well. Add the orange zest paste to the well. Gently mix the dry and wet ingredients together just enough to incorporate them. Don’t over mix.

Folding and Cutting Biscuits

Gently patting and folding the dough instead of kneading makes light, fluffy, laminated biscuits.

Turn the soft dough out onto a floured surface. Sprinkle a little extra flour across the top of the dough if it is too sticky. Gently pat and shape dough into a rectangle. Don’t knead the dough. Too much handling is what makes tough biscuits, and we want light and fluffy orange biscuits!
Make the fluffy biscuit layers. Fold the rectangle into thirds by folding one end of the rectangle to the center and then folding the other end over. Gather any crumbs and gently pat and shape into a rectangle again. Repeat this process 2 more times. Always handling and touching the dough as little as possible.
Cut the biscuits. Pat the last rectangle out to 1 inch thick. Use a biscuit cutter or small glass to cut out the biscuits. Use a stamping motion, pressing down instead of twisting to cut the biscuits. (see the tips below for why)
Brush & chill. Place biscuits onto the prepared baking sheet about an inch or so apart so they have room to rise. Gently press a shallow thumbprint into the top of each biscuit, and lightly brush the tops with the extra buttermilk. Place in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to overnight to chill.
Bake for 10-15 minutes or until biscuits have risen and are golden brown.
Glaze & serve. In a measuring cup, mix together the ingredients for the glaze. Drizzle over your orange biscuits and enjoy!

Glazed orange biscuits are tender, lightly sweet and are similar to glazed orange scones.

Tips + Tricks for Making the Best Biscuits

Rubbing the orange zest and the sugar together is the key to punchy orange flavor. The “sugar scrub” releases the essential oils from the orange zest, but also sweetens the zest at the same time making it an all around delicious addition to your biscuit.
Be ready to work quickly & with a light touch. Have all of your ingredients out, measured and ready to go for a smooth, quick process that doesn’t leave time for your milk and butter to warm up.
Frozen butter and ice cold buttermilk are the key to fluffy biscuits that RISE! Unlike soft butter which becomes a part of the other ingredients when mixed, frozen butter stays in little bits that melt and make steam while baking. Those pockets of steam push your biscuits up, up, up!
That’s also why it’s important not to handle the dough too much. The heat from our hands will break down the fats in the butter and in the milk. Breaking down the fats by over working the dough results in thin, tough biscuits.
This is also why the chill time before baking is so important. It makes sure any ingredients that warmed a little up during the mixing, patting and folding process are cooled down and set before baking.
Lastly, when cutting your biscuits, never twist your biscuit cutter. The twisting motion seals the edges of the dough together and will keep your biscuits from being free to rise.

An orange biscuit on a breakfast plate with a cup of coffee and glass of milk.

What to Serve with Orange Biscuits for Breakfast or Brunch

Freezing & Storing Suggestions

Freezing. These glazed biscuits can be frozen before or after they are baked. If you want to freeze before baking, just put them in an airtight container before brushing with buttermilk. They can be brushed with buttermilk and popped right in the oven while frozen. No need to thaw! Just add a 5-10 minutes to the cooking time.

Leftovers. Store leftover orange biscuits in an airtight container for 2-3 days, in the fridge or on the counter. (I prefer on the counter.)

More Muffin & Biscuit Recipes

If You Make This Recipe, I Can’t Wait To Hear About It!