4 ounces
Bacon
cooked ¾ of the way, sliced in ⅓ inch pieces, save drippings
1/4 cup
Honey
Topping
4 ounces
raw bacon
cut into thirds
1/3 cup
Maple Syrup
Instructions
Place two racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment. Pull out a ruler and set it near where you are working; you’ll use it later for measuring rectangles of dough.
Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl, pouring back into the bowl any bits of grain or other ingredients that may remain in the sifter.
Cut the butter into ¼ inch pieces and add them to the dry mixture. Rub the butter pieces between your fingers, breaking them into smaller bits. Continue rubbing until the butter is in small pieces varying in size from rice grains to flattened peas. The more quickly you do this, the more likely the butter is to stay solid, which is important for the success of the recipe. Stir the cheddar cheese, cooked sliced bacon and any bacon drippings into the dry mixture.
In a small bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and the honey. Using a spatula, add the wet ingredients to the bowl of the dry ingredients and gently combine.
Use a pastry scraper or a spatula to get the dough onto a well floured surface. If the dough is sticky, flour the dough and knead it together 3 times until a soft ball can be formed. The dough should be dry enough that it can be moved around on the counter and patted down without sticking, yet moist enough that the knife will be sticky when the dough is being cut into squares. Flour your hands and pat the dough into a rectangle. With a rolling pin, roll the dough into a rectangle that is about 7 ½ inches by 9 inches and about 1 inch thick, flouring the work surface, the rolling pin and your hands as needed.
Use a sharp knife to slice the rectangle into quarters both lengthwise and crosswise, making 16 rectangular pieces, about 2 ¼ inches by 2 inches. Place the scones a few inches apart on the parchment-lined baking sheets.
Brush the top of each scone with the syrup. Top with a piece of bacon and brush again with syrup.
Bake the scones for about 22 to 24 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through. The scones are ready to come out of the oven when the tops are dark golden brown and the bacon is cooked. They are best eaten warm from the oven or later that same day.