These maple bacon scones are the perfect marriage of sweet and salty in a soft and moist glazed scone. Neither too sweet nor too savory, the flavors meld together in harmony, giving you those flavors of salty bacon and sweet maple in each bite.
Scones are a breakfast biscuit, perfect for morning coffee or an afternoon tea break. They are quick to make with few steps and ingredients and keep well in an airtight container.
Ingredients
The key to a good scone is making sure they are moist and light. Dry, heavy scones are akin to chewing cardboard, and we want to avoid that at all costs. The key to a light and airy scone is the right ingredients.
In this recipe, we use heavy cream to boost the moistness of the scones-it’s high-fat content helps keep the dough moist.
Maple sugar sweetens the scones and imparts a mild maple flavor to them. The sugar is packed when measuring, just like brown sugar. Add a little bit of salt to balance the sweetness. When combined with the salty bacon, it is the perfect amount.
Now, on to the butter-flaky pastry, which requires cold butter. Let’s take it further in this recipe and use frozen butter. With frozen butter, it is easiest to grate it into small pieces. These pieces are then easily incorporated into the dry ingredients with a few gentle stirs, coating the butter curls in flour. There is no messing around with a pastry blender here.
Make the Scones
To make the scones, mix the dry ingredients in a bowl. Add the grated butter and stir to coat the butter with the flour and sugar mixture. Stir in the bacon. Add the heavy cream to the bowl and stir until just combined. The dough should be coming together now. Don’t over-mix the dough; it makes for a tougher scone.
Flour your surface and turn out the dough. Gently shape into a rectangle and use your hands to pat the dough into a one-inch thick shape. Cut the rectangle into 12 triangles. Scones are a free-formed rustic baked good. There is no need to look perfect.
Brush the scones with the last few tablespoons of heavy cream. The added cream helps brown the scones beautifully and keeps them moist. Bake at 425 for about 15 minutes. Cool the scones on a cooling rack.
The Glaze
This glaze. This glaze puts the scones over the top. It has an intense maple flavor and is thicker and creamier than your average sugar and milk glaze.
We use maple sugar and Cinn-a-maple Syrup to strengthen the maple flavor. The Cinn-a-maple syrup adds the spicy hint of cinnamon, while the maple sugar kicks the flavor up a notch.
In a small saucepan, melt one tablespoon of butter. Once melted, add the two tablespoons of packed maple sugar and two tablespoons of maple syrup.
Remove from the heat and whisk briskly to dissolve the sugar. Add one cup of powdered sugar and stir, then add one tablespoon of milk. Stir to combine. Add remaining sugar and milk and stir until smooth. If you need more milk to make it easier to drizzle, add a little at a time until it reaches the desired consistency.
Drizzle the scones with the glaze. Sprinkle them with some chopped bacon. Enjoy
Ingredients
2 c. flour
1 T. baking soda
¼ c. packed Droscha Sugarbush Maple sugar
¼ t. salt
5 T. frozen butter, grated (keep frozen until ready to mix in
1 ½ c. heavy cream plus about 2 T.
½ c. cooked bacon, chopped
- Preheat oven to 425.
- Mix together flour, baking soda, and maple sugar.
- Add bacon and grated butter. Gently mix until all bits of butter are coated in flour.
- Stir in 1 ½ cups of heavy cream until the dough comes together.
- Turn the dough out on a floured countertop.
- Use your hands to shape and gently pat dough out into a rectangle about 1 inch thick.
- Cut scones into 12 -16 triangles, depending on your size preference.
- Place scones on a baking sheet.
- Brush the top of the scones with the remaining half and half.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until scones are lightly browned and baked through.
- Let scones cool on a baking rack.
Glaze Ingredients
1 T. butter
2 T. packed Droscha Sugarbush maple sugar
2 T. Droscha Sugarbush Cinna-a-Maple syrup
1 ½ c. powdered sugar
2 T. whole milk
- Melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat.
- Add packed maple sugar and maple syrup to melted butter and whisk until sugar dissolves.
- Add 1 cup of powdered sugar and one tablespoon of milk. Mix well.
- Add remaining powdered sugar and mix well. Add the remaining milk and a little more if needed to get the right consistency. The glaze should be somewhat thick and able to drizzle off of a spoon.
- Glaze your scones. Top with a bit of extra chopped bacon