Every day at 10:21 AM (on bell schedule one), the bell rings at E.D. White Catholic High School for recess. Many students walk to their locker and pack for the remainder of the day. Those who know better find their way to the Student Union as quickly as possible, and hurry to the line forming along the counter where the biscuits are served.

In a Cardinal Chronicle exclusive interview, Ms. Marie LeBlanc tells the tale of how the biscuit came to E.D. White. "When I ran the diabetics department at Assumption General Hospital, the cooks would make them (biscuits) for the employers, guests, and patients on regular diets. Mrs. Karen Oncale, who used to work for me at A.G.H. and here at E.D. White for a half year, started making the biscuits and taught the rest of us how to make them. We (E.D. White) started selling biscuits in November of 1993—one month after we opened the Union," she recounts. "I knew the students would enjoy them, and I wanted to implement a breakfast program."

Each morning at 6:00 AM, Ms. Peggy Barrilleaux begins the process of making biscuits. She makes 175-200 biscuits, 35-45 of which contain egg and cheese. The ingredients of the biscuits are General Mills buttermilk biscuits mix, 1% lowfat milk, and margarine. Besides being sold at recess, biscuits are available before the bell rings to signal the beginning of school. Plain biscuits are sold for fifty cents, while egg and cheese biscuits cost one dollar.

The mouth-watering butter scent of the biscuit is alone worth the half dollar. The margarine seeps through the best biscuits, forming almost a puddle on the plate and saturating the fingertips. Not as unhealthy as one might think because of its unmatchable taste (these things must have been growing on trees in the Garden of Eden), a plain biscuit on average is 91 grams total with 278 calories, 5 grams of protein, 14 grams of fat, and 33 grams of carbohydrates. As a comparison, a 41 gram Hershey’s bar with almonds has 230 calories and 20 grams of carbohydrates with equal amounts of fat and protein.

Students have different ways of eating their biscuits. Some eat them plain, while others pile on sausage, bacon, more butter, jelly, or a combination of these to satisfy their hunger. Some wash them down with soft drinks, others with chocolate or white milk, and still others with apple or orange juice. Some students eat multiple biscuits at an astounding rate, while others take their time and savor the taste.

All biscuits sold are high quality, but some are better than others. A decision of which biscuit to choose must be made quickly, or else the student will experience increasingly annoying prodding from Ms. Marie and sometimes Coach Cole. "Pick one. They’re all the same," they say. Touching them is obviously not allowed when selecting a biscuit, but the experienced eye can decipher between a good biscuit and a really good biscuit. A smooth, moist, melt-in-your-mouth, buttery biscuit cooked just the right amount is the final goal, and it can be consistently achieved with practice.

Most seniors are busy figuring out what their plans are after high school. "Where do I want to go to college? What do I want to be? What is the meaning of life?" they ask themselves. In addition to these, many ask perhaps a more difficult question : What will I do next year without biscuits?

Scott Harang