Not too long ago, I shared my recently new found love for scones, strawberry basil buttermilk scones to be exact. I couldn't get enough of the scones so this time I made a savory-sweet version - maple bacon buttermilk scones! Most maple bacon scones recipes use regular bacon and sprinkle brown sugar on the scones to bring the sweet element. This recipe uses my favorite maple dijon bacon and folds that into the batter to make the bacon as delicious as ever (as if bacon is not already delicious!). Combining two singularly delicious items, such as buttermilk biscuits with maple bacon, is a formula for a winner pastry.

Recipe

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Maple Bacon Scones

Yields 16 scones

Total Time45 minutes mins

Course: Breakfast, Snack

Cuisine: British

Keyword: bread, pork

Servings: 16

Author: Christine Ma

Ingredients

Maple bacon

• 8 strips thick bacon
• 4 tablespoon maple syrup
• 2 tablespoon dijon mustard
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

Scones

• 3 cups flour (444 grams)
• ⅓ cup sugar (67 grams)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¾ cup unsalted butter, cut into small chunks (170 grams)
• 1 cup buttermilk (250 ml)
• 1 tablespoon buttermilk, for brushing
• 1 tbsp coarse sugar for sprinkling

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place a wire rack on top and set aside.
• Combine maple syrup with dijon mustard and black pepper. Lay bacon on the wire rack and brush the syrup evenly on each bacon strip. Bake for 15 minutes. Flip the bacon over, brush on the remaining syrup and bake another 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and transfer the bacon to a cutting board. Cut into bite size pieces.
• Increase oven to 400 degrees F.
• Mix together dry ingredients in a large bowl including flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Add butter and use a pastry cutter, a knife or your hands to mix until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add buttermilk and mix until just combined. Fold in chopped bacon.
• Lightly dust flour onto work surface. Divide dough in half. Working with one batch at a time, shape dough into a ¾ inch thick square. Cut the dough into 8 equal pieces. Lay them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and repeat with the remaining dough.
• Brush the tops of scones with buttermilk and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.

**Helpful tips and common mistakes

If you haven't yet, check out my recipe for strawberry basil buttermilk scones for hints and tips.

When baking the bacon, line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place a wire rack on top and then lay the bacon. The sugar from the maple syrup can make the edges of the bacon burn if it is not placed on a wire rack while the foil on the bottom allows an easier cleanup.

Add the buttermilk to the butter-flour mix, mixing just until combined. You can use a pastry cutter or get down and dirty and use your hands. I know some people like to use a food processor but there's a risk of overprocessing the dough.

Instead of strawberries, fold in the maple bacon to the batter. Shape as you would normally, brush with buttermilk, and sprinkle sugar on top.

Bake the scones for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Shortly after, out come out these beauties!

The maple bacon is the star of this scone as it should be. When making fresh fruit scones, you have to be careful to not add too much or the pastry will be soggy. In the case of these bacon scones, a heavy hand of the bacon doesn't hurt! Maple bacon scones  - how can you go wrong?

For more breakfast pastry inspiration check out this bostock with blood orange marmalade!