But getting back to the recipe, this is the first time I've ever made scones. From all the awful scones I've had, I had always assumed they were very difficult to make, but these came out beautifully first try.
Bacon Cheddar Scones
Makes 12 small scones
8 ounces sliced high quality peppery smoked bacon [If your bacon isn't peppered, add some pepper]
2½ cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon fine sea salt [I have no fine salt in the house so I ground up coarse sea salt in a mortar)
¾ cup high quality [European-style or organic] unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces, cold
2 large eggs, beaten, cold
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream, cold
4 ounces cheddar, aged at least one year, crumbled and cold
3 scallions, chopped
1. Fry the bacon over medium heat until crisp. Drain, chop, and place in refrigerator to cool.
2. Preheat oven to 375°F.
3. Sift the
4. Add
5. Transfer the dough to a well-floured board. Form two 7-inch rounds. Cut each into 6 wedges.
6. Transfer
7. Allow to cool and firm up for about 10 minutes before removing from sheet. Serve the same day [or, I'm hoping, freezing is OK. I haven't defrosted any to check how they're holding up yet.]
The author, Ari Weinzweig, suggests serving these with butter or bacon fat or mayonaise with tomato and arugula. I liked Chef Allan's Mango Tears chutney as an accompaniment.
These are crisp on the outside, soft and not-quite-crumbly not-quite-flaky on the inside. They're smokey, savory and sharp with a subtle herbal note keeping the richness from overwhelming. The best bits were where a piece of cheese was exposed and melted and browned over the surface. If you make these, sprinkle a little finely shredded cheese over top. Really quite lovely and a fine thing to have around as a snack. I think I'll try a sweet scone next as those would be pretty nice to have around as well.
6 comments:
These sound fantastic to me. Are they much heavier than a biscuit would be?
Scones, on average, are heavier than your average biscuit, but these turned out quite light as scones go. So that's about mid-range as biscuits go? I'm no expert on either so I don't know if I can give you an answer that makes much sense. Sorry.
I am much more of a savory baked-good in the morning type person which is probably why I've never cared to try making scones. I'm used to seeing berry/sweet varieties. These however sound right up my alley! I'll have to give them a try!
I'm thinking this will be a killer use for some of the bacon I've got lying around...and hey, Cheddar in the fridge, Chives in the yard. Sweet.
I'm pleased to be of service.
Mmmmmmmmmmm!!!!!
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