Wake up the yeast. Warm your milk in the microwave for just 15 to 30 seconds. It should be lukewarm. Stir in the instant yeast. Let it sit while you prep the rest.

Mix the dry ingredients. Grab a large bowl. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt.

Cut in the butter. Chop your cold butter into small pieces. Drop them into the flour. Use your fingers or a pastry cutter to pinch the butter and flour together. Stop when it looks like coarse sand.

Make the dough. Crack one egg into your warm yeast milk. Whisk it well. Pour this into the flour mixture. Stir gently until the dough just comes together. Do not overmix.

Build the layers. Put the dough on a lightly floured counter. Roll it out into a 12×9 inch rectangle. Fold the dough in thirds. Just like folding a business letter. Roll it flat and fold it again. Do this three times total.

Cut the biscuits. Pat the dough until it is 1 inch thick. Take a 3-inch round cutter and press straight down. No twisting. Twisting seals the edges so they cannot rise.

Stamp the center. Take a small 1-inch pastry tip. Press the wide end gently into the middle of each biscuit to make a small dent.

Rest and preheat. Place the biscuits on a lined baking sheet. Let them rest for 20 minutes. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.

Apply the wash. Whisk your second egg with the vanilla extract. Brush this mixture over the tops of the rested biscuits. For a really shiny top, let the first coat dry and brush them a second time.

Bake. Put them in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes. Take them out when the tops are a deep golden brown.