Does anyone remember those California Raisins commercials ? The California Raisins were at their heyday when I was a child, so naturally, I was completely obsessed with them. I had all sorts of California Raisins swag--from a beloved sleeping bag to some 30 different figurines... (bless my mom's heart, she still has all of them in a box in her attic).
But perhaps what I loved most about the California Raisins is that every weekend I was able to drag my parents to Hardees for their Raisin Biscuits (You see, kids got a California Raisins figurine back then, if their parents bought biscuits).
Really, I couldn't have been happier. I loved those biscuits. and I got a free toy!
Anyway, I'd forgotten all about those biscuits until a recent visit with my parents. My mom was kindly reminding me that she had all this stuff from my childhood in her attic ( I'm telling you, Lindsay, you should sell that stuff on ebay! ) when my Dad butted in to ask me if I remembered the California Raisins... and because parents always like to go that extra step to make sure you do remember, he starts singing "I heard it through the grapevine" (my Dad is really cute). Then, mid-chorus he stops himself and says "Do you remember those raisin biscuits at Hardees? Gosh, I really loved those. They're probably not healthy... Hey! You should try to make those vegan!"
I love my Dad.
So the task was upon me to make these biscuits---and I have to say, I'm overwhelmed with pure joy at how well they came out.
They're whole wheat but still so light and fluffy... I mean, just look at them:
And even though they're "drop biscuits" (forgive me, I'm too lazy to roll out dough) they still manage to bake into a nice, circular, biscuit shape.
The icing, however, has created quite a stir in our household! I like to add a little lemon or orange juice to the icing (that's how I remember the biscuits tasting--with a hint of citrus) but Scott swears almond extract is where it's at. I tried it both ways (and also with vanilla extract, and just plain soymilk) and really, you can't go wrong. It's all really delicious.
I also found (& tried--I'm obsessed, clearly!) with Susan FFVK's pumpkin-raisin muffins . I got the idea from her to use white whole wheat flour instead of pastry here -- and I think that's the trick. Her biscuits are more traditional and need kneading and cutting, but I really love the idea of pumpkin being added in.