Maple-Bacon-Cheddar Biscuit Bake

Maple-Bacon-Cheddar Biscuits for two

I have no idea how I stumbled upon this Maple-Bacon Biscuit Bake recipe, but I bookmarked it as a good Breakfast Club candidate.  I hadn't planned on modifying it... but you know how I am.  I grabbed some cheddar as I was mixing the dough, thinking it would go well with the sweet glaze.

It's an easy recipe, although I hit one snag:  the middle refused to cook.  It was a combination of misreading the instructions (425F is not the same as 475F) and my misbehaving oven.  I ended up baking it twice as long as instructed.  Regardless, the biscuits must have turned out alright in the end - there wasn't a crumb left by mid-morning.  All of the Breakfast Club members agreed that I must bring this in again.

I adjusted the recipe and made a batch over the weekend (downsized for two).  I used a little less glaze, based on notes I found on the original recipe.  It was a bit more biscuit-y and less like sticky buns.  I think the heavy glaze overpowered the cheddar in the biscuit.  The flavor was better with the lighter glaze.  However, both versions are delicious, and it probably comes down to personal preference.

Maple-Bacon-Cheddar Biscuit Bake
8 oz bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 Tbs flour
3 Tbs maple syrup
2 Tbs reserved bacon fat
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup cold butter
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup cold buttermilk or milk

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees.  Line a 9-inch round pan or 8-inch square pan with parchment paper, and spray with cooking spray.

Cook the bacon in a skillet until browned and crispy.  Transfer the cooked bacon to a paper towel, and reserve 2 tablespoons of the rendered fat.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the syrup, flour, brown sugar, and rendered fat.  Spread over the bottom of the baking pan, and sprinkle the bacon evenly over the top.

For the biscuits, mix the dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl.  Add butter and cheese into the mixture, and using a pastry blender work it into the dry ingredients until the mixture is crumbly and has pea-sized pieces of butter.  Add the milk, and stir to make a sticky dough.  Drop the dough over the maple-bacon mixture using large spoon.

Bake for 10 minutes, turn off the oven, and leave the pan in the oven for an additional 5 to 10 minutes, until the biscuits are golden brown.

Remove from the oven and immediately invert onto a serving plate.  Lift off the pan and the parchment paper, and serve.

(For two people, I made one fourth of the recipe, put it into a 4.5" ramekin and baked it in the toaster oven at 450F for 15-18 minutes.)