Creamy Whole Wheat Flaxseed Biscuits

Okay, okay…I know that recipe title just screams “I probably taste like cardboard!” But these are SOOOO good. Promise.

I wanted to make my favorite biscuit recipe healthier but was struggling with adding whole wheat. It ended up tasting dry and well…like cardboard! I realized that because I was using a denser flour, I need to get creative and adjust the recipe to match the new ingredient.

To accommodate the denser whole wheat flour I added more fats by increasing the amount of heavy cream and incorporating flax seed, increased flavor by adding more honey, and helped it rise more by increasing the baking powder amount.

This time it was pure success. So good, I love it way more than the original white flour version.

And thus the..

…recipe was born. It is a spin off of the original creamy biscuit recipe from the America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook.

It is really fast and easy too. Start to finish it should only take you 20 minutes tops! Seriously. Wish you could see my serious face. 🙂

Here we go…

Ingredients:

2 cups White Whole Wheat Flour (this is a lighter variety of wheat)
plus more flour for the forming the biscuits
2 *heaping* teaspoons of baking powder (probably approximately 2 1/2 tsp.)
1/2 teaspoon of iodized salt
1-2 Tablespoons of milled Flax Seed (to your liking)
3 Tablespoons of honey (or sugar)

1 2/3 c. heavy whipping cream

Simple ingredient list for simply delicious biscuits. 🙂

Preheat your oven to 450 F and place the top rack in the middle.

Whisk your dry ingredients together plus your honey.

This is the milled flax seed I use. It adds good fats that boost both nutrition and texture to the biscuits. Remember to store it in your fridge after you open the box!

You should end up with a crumbly mixture if you use honey. You can use sugar but you lose out on flavor and health benefits since honey has a lower glycemic index.

Now bring out your trusty wooden spoon and add your heavy cream. Do not substitute this step with milk. The fat in the cream is why you don’t have to add butter or oil to this recipe and it gives it wonderful flavor.

Stir sparingly. I find that my biscuits turn out best when I don’t handle the dough too much.

Once you gently fold the ingredients together, dump it out on a floured counter top. With well floured hands form it into a 3/4-1 inch disk. If you need to add a few tablespoons of flour do it now. It is a fairly wet dough but when you knead it {barely!} and bring it together with your hands it will come together just fine.

You can use a biscuit cutter to cut out circular biscuits but that means you’ll have to rework the scraps over and over with each set of cuts. The dough is forgiving enough for this.

I prefer, though, to work the dough as little as possible for optimum creaminess and tenderness. So I take my dough scraper and cut the round into wedges. And for a weeknight meal, this is just plain faster.

Bake on a parchment lined baking sheet at 450 degrees F for 10-15 minutes.

Pull your biscuits out when the tops are cracked and a deep golden brown. I err on the side of under-cooking because I like it when they are slightly raw in the middle. 🙂 yum!

Add butter and drizzle honey on top for a bite of biscuit perfection.

You can slice them through the middle first but it’s not as pretty. 🙂 These are very tender biscuits that can fall apart in your hands when cut, but melt in your mouth when eaten.

Here is a copy friendly version of the recipe:

Creamy Whole Wheat Flax Seed Biscuits

Ingredients:

2 cups White Whole Wheat Flour (this is a lighter variety of wheat)
plus more flour for the forming the biscuits (about 1/4-1/2 cups)
2 *heaping* teaspoons of baking powder (approximately 2 1/2 tsp.)
1/2 teaspoon of iodized salt
1-2 Tablespoons of milled Flax Seed (to your liking)
3 Tablespoons of honey
1 2/3 c. heavy whipping cream

*Preheat your oven to 450 F and place the top rack in the middle position.

*Whisk together dry ingredients and honey.

*Stir in heavy cream with a wooden spoon.

*Transfer to a well floured counter and knead just barely with well floured hands. Dough will be somewhat wet.

*Cut biscuits in rounds or in wedges as desired

*Bake on parchment or oiled baking sheet at 450F for 10-15 minutes, until tops are cracked and are a deep golden brown.

I hope this recipe will help convince you, as it did me, that healthy baked goods can taste amazing.

Enjoy!