Simple to Make−Coffee, Bacon, and Date Scones

Get the recipe from: The Flavor Bender

I’ll be honest. I’m snacking on one of these scones as I write this.

So, how does it taste, you ask?

Like diving into a lake of coffee and then being wrapped in a soft, warm coffee blanket.

If only that was a thing.

You get an immediate punch of coffee flavor that stays on your tongue and swirls with the salty/sweet combo of the bacon and dates when they drop onto your taste buds moments later.

WOW!

Makes me think someone should create a bacon date coffee creamer. I’d buy that!

By the way, I’m on my second scone right now. It’s required research. Trust me. I’m doing this for you.

Eight things to know about the Coffee, Bacon, and Date Scones recipe:

• The measurements in this recipe reference grams and/or ounces. I like to bake, but I don’t measure in grams, so this initially threw me for a loop. I had to do some research to convert 200g of dates and bacon to something I could wrap my head around. Keep reading…
• I used 4 cooked thick cut slices of applewood smoked bacon and an equal “amount” of chopped dates. Once I chopped the bacon and put it in a bowl, I chopped what appeared to be the same amount of dates. Equal parts dates to bacon gives you a taste of bacon and date in every bite, but that amount doesn’t overwhelm or weigh down the scones.

• The recipe calls for frozen grated butter which is essential to the texture of your scones. If you’re not a baker, I can’t stress the importance of this enough. Using frozen (and in this case grated) butter in the dough ensures the butter remains super cold until the baking process which, in turn, ensures a moist, flaky scone. Using frozen butter also keeps the scones from spreading out during baking. I used a box grater to grate my frozen butter. And then I put the grated butter back in the freezer until just before I needed to incorporate it into my dough.
• Again, if you’re not a baker, please note that you really, really, really need to sift your dry ingredients twice for this recipe. Your twice-sifted ingredients should take on the texture (or lack of texture) of the softest sandy beach you’ve ever dipped your toes into. Why is this important? Sifting aerates the flour which helps guarantee flakier scones.

• Steeping the milk with the sugar and coffee infuses all that coffee goodness into the liquid that you’re going to add to the dry ingredients. Using a strong coffee and steeping it even longer will up the coffee-forward flavor of the scones.

• Use the sharpest knife in your kitchen and wipe it clean between each cut of your dough. Don’t get lazy here. It’s a necessary step. The scone dough will be floured on the outside, but the interior will be sticky and your knife will pick up that sticky goodness. If you don’t wipe it, you’ll end up smushing (a technical baking term) the dough down because the knife will be sticking to the dough which will impede the rising process you’re looking for during cooking. Just wipe your sharpest knife clean with a damp paper towel between slices. Did I mention you should use your sharpest knife???

• Don’t skip the scone-resting-in-the-fridge step. Normally recipes will tell you to preheat your oven as the first step. This recipe intentionally moves the preheat down to AFTER you’ve mixed and cut your scone dough. The scones need this time to chill in the fridge. When you do put them in the oven, you want them cold (remember that frozen butter needs to be cold when you bake the scones).
• My scones only took 17 minutes to bake. The recipe stated 20 minutes. Just watch your scones and check for doneness by sticking a toothpick into the center of one of the scones. If it comes out clean, your scones are done!