Bouchon’s Bacon Cheddar Scones

Bouchon Bakery never ceases to amaze me. When Thomas Keller was thinking about adding a new scone, he wanted a savory one to add to their repertoire. Typically scones are sweeter and traditionally eaten at breakfast, bacon was a natural addition given its rich flavor and breakfast history, white cheddar, and chives for the onion flavor and the color it adds.

The great thing about these is they can be eaten at basically anytime, makes for an amazing breakfast and goes great at dinner time as well. Oh, and your house is going to smell great while you are making these because of the bacon, and then during the bake as well.

Overall this recipe takes a fair amount of time, but the bulk of time for this recipe is from chilling the dough in two separate sessions. So make sure you factor in that amount of time into your cook.

Ingredients –

• 107 grams (about 3/4 cup and 1 tsp) all purpose flour
• 196 grams (about 1 1/2 cup and 1/2 tbsp) cake flour
• 8.1 grams (1 1/2 and 1/8 tsp) baking powder
• 1.6 grams (3/8 tsp) baking soda
• 27 grams (2 tbsp and 3/4 tsp) granulated sugar
• 3.6 grams (1 1/4 tsp) salt
• 132 grams (4.7 oz) cold unsalted butter
• 71 grams (1/4 cup and 1 tbsp) heavy cream
• 89 grams (1/4 cup and 2 1/2 tbsp) creme fraiche
• 340 grams (12 oz) cooked applewood smoked bacon
• 144 grams (2 cups) grated white cheddar cheese plus additional 36 grams (1/2 cup) for topping
• 10 grams (1/4 cup) minced chives
• black pepper

Tools –

• Stand mixer
• Scale
• Sifter
• Silpat or parchment paper
• Baking Tray
• Pastry Brush

Cookbook – Bouchon Bakery

Step 1 – Create dough

Put the paddle attachment on a stand mixer and add the all-purpose flour to the bowl. Next sift the cake flour in the bowl along with the baking powder, baking soda, and sugar. Mix together on low speed just to combine. Add in the salt and mix again.

Next, cut the butter into 1/4 inch pieced and add it into the bowl. Pulse the mixer and then keep on low speed for three minutes until the butter is combined with the dry ingredients.

Now slowly pour in the cream and creme fraiche with the mixer on low speed. Keep on low speed for about 30 seconds until the dry ingredients mix in with the wet and the dough starts to stick on the paddle.

Cook and dice the bacon, then add to the mixture. Add the cheese and chives as well and then pulse the mixer so that everything mixes together.

Step 2 – Form, cut, and chill

Create a large ball with the dough, pressing everything together. Place it on a piece of plastic wrap and start to form a rectangle. Add another piece of plastic wrap on top and continue to form into a 7 inch by 9 inch rectangle. Do your best to flatten the top and straighten the sides. The dough will not change shape after this, so the more even the better. Ensuring that the dough is still covered in plastic wrap, chill for 2 hours in the refrigerator.

Once chilled, take out the dough and cut it in half lengthwise. Next cut each side into 6 equal sized rectangle pieces, weighing about 70 grams. Place them on a Silpat or parchment paper lined baking tray and cover with plastic wrap. Place in the freezer for at least two hours.

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Step 3 – Bake

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Take the frozen scones and make sure there is at least an inch between them. Using a pastry brush, brush some cream on the tops and then add the remaining cheese and black pepper.

Bake for 35 minutes or until golden brown and then place on a cooling rack to completely cool.

Now for the ratings!

• Difficulty of ingredients to find – 2/5 stars – Might have everything at home
• Perceived difficulty going into the recipe – 3/5 stars – First time making scones, seemed intimidating
• Difficulty after recipe – 2/5 stars – Didn’t end up being too bad!
• Time taken – 5/5 stars – Cooling and freezing time added up
• Taste – 4.5/5 stars – Bacon, cheese, and chives = perfection
• Make again? 3/5 stars – Would make for a special occasion; requires lots of planning to accompany a meal due to the cooling/freezing time