Cinnamon Raisin Biscuits

Good evening from the US!  It's been a hectic few days here trying to get my house back to normal from last weekend's party, but I have a few recipes I'd like to share with you all.  The first one is for cinnamon raisin biscuits, a treat I have loved since childhood.  I can remember going with my dad to Hardee's (a fast food chain restaurant here in the southern United States) and getting an iced cinnamon raisin biscuit and hashbrowns.  Just thinking about it is making me hungry!  I just can't afford anymore to go out as often as I would like to be able to obtain my beloved cinnamon raisin biscuits, but I figured they shouldn't be too terribly difficult to make at home.  And I was right!

I had originally looked for a copycat recipe, but I have since decided that it is just as easy to simply modify my existing biscuit recipe, for which I need no recipe anymore.

This recipe is also very customizable to your own tastes and preferences.  If you would prefer a different dried fruit (blueberries would be good), go for it!  I have only used raisins myself, but I suppose any other similar fruits would work just as well.  You can also use as much or as little of the icing as you'd like.  If you want to make these whole wheat, I say why not!  It's totally up to you!

To make the biscuits as I make them, you will need:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 - 3/4 cup cold milk (soymilk will work beautifully as well)
1/2 - 1 cup raisins (depends on how heavily "raisined" you want it)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F or about 200 degrees C.  Lightly grease a 10" cast-iron skillet or a baking sheet.

In a medium mixing bowl, mix together the dry ingredients.  In a separate bowl, mix together the melted butter and 1/2 cup cold milk.  This will cause the butter to harden again slightly into little pieces.  I sometimes use this as a shortcut to cutting in the butter.

Mix together the wet and dry ingredients, adding more milk if the dough is too dry.  You want it to be a little sticky, but not falling apart.  Fold in the raisins till they are evenly-distributed.

Turn out onto a well-floured surface and pat or roll into a round about 1/2-inch thick.  Using a 2" biscuit cutter, cut out your biscuits and place in the skillet or on the baking sheet, making sure the sides touch.  This will make them rise higher.

After you've cut and placed all your biscuits (I got about 13 plus a small portion of one), bake for about 15-20 minutes or till noticeably golden brown on top.

Now for the really good part... the frosting!  You will need:

1 cup powdered sugar
1 tbsp milk or soymilk

Mix these two ingredients till well-combined and pour over all the biscuits while they are still hot.

I have a few more recipes to put up, but that will have to wait as it is way past my bedtime!  According to our Facebook poll, there seems to be a tie between Main Dish and Appetizer for next recipe (one vote did not count as it was my test vote!), so those will be put up tomorrow. Good night :)