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Makes
about 10-12 biscuits
Author Notes
As Easter approaches, the thought of hot cross buns flit through my mind. I've had weirdly bad luck making hot cross buns in the past, though. On the other hand, I've been completely loving cream biscuits lately. I'm ceaselessly in awe of how simple they are to throw together and how they have the perfect texture every time. Then it occurred to me that the biscuits could have different flavors added to them—thus hot cross biscuits, and I love them! —fiveandspice
Ingredients
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2 cups
all-purpose flour
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1 teaspoon
salt
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1 tablespoon
baking powder
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2 tablespoons
sugar
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1 teaspoon
ground cinnamon
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1/4 teaspoon
ground allspice or cloves
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1/2 cup
golden raisins
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1 to 1 1/2 cups
heavy cream, possibly more for brushing
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1 teaspoon
lemon zest
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1 teaspoon
orange zest (or use more lemon zest)
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1 to 2 teaspoons
lemon juice
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1/4 cup
confectioners' sugar
Directions
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Heat your oven to 425° F. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt, baking powder, sugar, cinnamon, allspice, and raisins. Make a well in the center and add 1 cup of cream plus the lemon and orange zest.
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Stir the dough together, adding more cream as necessary, just until it all holds together but isn't sticky. Gather the dough into a ball with your hands and press it out into a 1/2 inch-thick round. Cut the dough into 2-inch circles with a biscuit or cookie cutter, gathering the scraps and patting them back out to cut a second round of biscuits.
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Put the biscuits on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, brush the tops lightly with a little extra cream (if desired), and bake until they are lightly browned on the tops and edges, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, transfer to a cooling rack, and allow to cool completely.
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To make the icing, mix a little lemon juice into the confectioners' sugar bit by bit, just until you've made an icing that is thick enough that it will make a nice, slow drizzle from a spoon (I go by feel and never actually measure how much I exactly use, so I'm just guessing on the quantity listed in the ingredients). Drizzle the icing over the biscuits in a cross shape. Serve fresh!
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