I don't know the exact ingredients, but Bisquick is essentially just flour, leavening, fat, and salt. So you are paying a lot extra for the convenience. I think a 1-lb box of the low-fat stuff is like $2-$3 here. 5 lbs flour is $.69, a can of baking powder is $1.29, a can of salt is $.49, and there are some very cheap forms of fat (dairy-free margarine, vegetable shortening, vegetable oil).
I tend to keep low-fat Bisquick around, but usually only use it for quick biscuits because that's the only thing that actually makes it worth the convenience. Although, I know it's time-consuming, but I always like cutting in the fat into biscuit dough.
The regular Bisquick is really high in fat, which in itself doesn't necessarily make it unsafe -- if you're making something that requires more than just egg whites and milk, you might be able to ultimately balance out the fat -- but I'm thinking that it also has milk in it. I remember throwing it out when I went on Heather's diet.
You can also do subs for recipes that call for Bisquick. I know there are formulas out there for it, though I haven't looked in quite awhile. Since you didn't ask about subs, I'm assuming you asked for Bisquick precisely because you wanted the actual mix, but there are also tons of easy recipes out there for make-your-own-biscuit-mix.
(side note: I might be off on the convenience vs. cost thing, because I am really cheap. (As in miserly, not as in I wear thigh-high black leather boots and hang out at seedy bars.) That cutting in the fat thing? I always use two knives. Because I'm too cheap to buy a pastry blender.)
-------------------- jen
"It's one of the most serious things that can possibly happen to one in a battle -- to get one's head cut off." -- LC
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