Description
These easy Irish soda bread scones are the lovechild of traditional Irish soda bread and buttermilk scones. Think individual soda breads in the form of a scone but with a bacon and cheese twist! Serve them alongside a hearty soup for an easy supper.
Ingredients
Scale
- 150g bacon, diced
- 2+3/4 c self raising flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp sea salt flakes
- 70g unsalted butter
- 100g grated mature cheddar cheese
- 270ml buttermilk + 1 extra tbsp to brush to tops of each scone with
- 1 tbsp runny honey
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
- In a small skillet, saute the diced bacon on low to medium heat until just starting to brown. Remove the bacon from the pan onto a plate lined with paper towel to drain off any excess fat. Pop aside to cool.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine all the dry ingredients. Give them a good whisk in order to remove any lumps and aerate the flour.
- Add the chopped butter pieces. Using your fingertips, and working quickly, rub the cubes of cold butter between your fingers to create a mixture that resembles coarse crumbs.
- Add the grated cheese and bacon bits to the dry ingredients and stir through.
- In a small bowl, combine the buttermilk and honey. Give them a quick mix with a fork to combine. In the dry mixture bowl, make a well in the center and pour the buttermilk mixture into the well. Using a wooden spoon, gently combine the wet ingredients into the flour, being careful not to overwork the dough. It should come together into a rough, scraggy, soft dough.
- Pop the dough into a lightly floured work surface and with a rolling pin, lightly roll the dough out to be about 3cm thick. Using the scone cutter, cut scones out of the dough and place them onto a prepared baking sheet a couple of centimeters apart from each other.
- Brush the top of the scones with a little extra buttermilk. Bake in a preheated oven for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Turn onto a wire cooling rack to cool.
Notes
- When working soda bread dough, my rule of thumb is to work it as little as possible. Form it into a rough ball and then flatten slightly with a rolling pin is about as much work as it requires.Â
- Avoid twisting the cutter when cutting out scones. Twisting can cause the scones to spread rather than rise, losing the crumbly, fluffy layers. For the fluffiest scones, aim for the dough to rise upwards, not outwards.Â
On a hot day, consider freezing the butter before grating it coarsely into the bowl. Then, quickly work it through with your fingers in the flour mixture. Incorporate the butter quickly to avoid overworking the dough.
Achieving a good scone is about creating a light, fluffy texture. That’s why I whisk the dry ingredients to aerate them. Alternatively, sifting them into the mixing bowl can also aerate the flour.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 scone
- Calories: 258
- Sugar: 4.9 g
- Sodium: 803.5 mg
- Fat: 13.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 26.8 g
- Protein: 7.1 g
- Cholesterol: 31.6 mg