I recently purchased the Huckleberry cookbook (yes, I am a cookbook junkie) and while I rarely make recipes in their entirety without modifications, I am trying out some of the recipes for the first time. Up first from Huckleberry was this Maple Bacon Biscuit recipe. It happens to also be on the theme of maple syrup (see previous post) and … well, bacon is bacon, and bacon is good. While I these were spectacular straight out of the oven (with a bit of butter) and I m sure that they would also pair well with soup or bisque, I decided to make an egg and bacon breakfast sandwich which was fantastic.
Ingredients
15 slices thick-cut bacon
6 cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 cup sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
2 cups unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/2 cup cold maple syrup, plus 3/4 cup maple syrup for glaze
3/4 cup cold buttermilk
1 egg + 2 tablespoons water, for egg wash
fleur de sel, for sprinkling
Directions
Preheat oven to 375F.
Lay bacon on a sheet pan and bake until golden brown, about 15-20 minutes. Allow the bacon and bacon fat to cool. Chop the bacon into 1/2 inch pieces and set aside. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the render bacon fat (save the rest for another use or discard). You can turn off the oven for a bit now.
In a very large work bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt. Toss well. Throw in the cold butter and work it with your fingertips under the pieces are pea sized. Add the 1/2 cup maple syrup, buttermilk, bacon and reserves bacon fat. Toss to combine.
Immediately dump everything onto a clean surface with more than enough space to work the dough. Using only the heel of your palm, quickly flatten out the dough. Gather the dough back together into a mound and repeat. After two or three repetitions, the dough should begin holding together. Avoid overworking. You should still see some pea-sized bits of butter running through it.
Flatten the dough into a 1 inch thickness and cut out the biscuits. Transfer to an ungreased baking sheet. Very gently push the scrap back together and cut once more. Freeze for at least two hours before baking, or up to a month, tightly wrapped.
Preheat oven to 375F again.
Remove the biscuits from the freezer and place them with plenty of room between them on two parchment-lined baking sheets. Brush with the egg wash and sprinkle with the fleur de sel. Bake from frozen, until cooked through and staring to brown, about 25 minutes. Pour 2 teaspoons over each biscuit to glaze and bake for an additional 5 minutes. Best served immediately or same day.
