Your perfect morning treat – Southern biscuits, so buttery they melt your heart.
While you are sipping on your first cup of hot coffee, you have to make the first grand decision of your day: sweet or savory breakfast. In case you opted for hearty, Mareike’s Cozy Corner has you covered. Buttery and flaky, these Southern biscuits with cheddar and bacon embrace the coziness of a perfect Sunday morning at home.
While “flaky” definitely is NOT a compliment, when it comes to people, it most certainly is, when it comes to Southern biscuits. This recipe makes sure; these buttery Southern biscuits are as flaky as they can be. Moreover, the garlic adds a bit of zesty-ness, which gives these dough-y morning companions a great extra kick.
Thanks to the cheddar and bacon, you really do not need much more to make this a well-rounded meal, apart from a bit of butter as a spread, some scrambled eggs or some good ol’ gravy.
Interesting historic fun fact: Southern biscuits with gravy actually go back to early European settlers in the 17th century. They brought this simple sailor food with them to the new world, when they made what would become America and Canada their home. The gravy became part of the equation to soften up the biscuits. It is however a true American original in its current form. Especially during the civil war it came into its own as a simple food that was not depending on a steady supply line, like yeast.
From the early concept of a hard wheat baking good, it evolved. As the availability of potential ingredients expanded, biscuits transformed. Nowadays, we enjoy their flaky, buttery texture and praise the queen of all biscuits: the Southern biscuits with buttermilk.
Good news: you can easily freeze the dough and thereby always have fresh home baked Southern biscuits with cheddar and bacon, by simply opening the door of your freezer.
Southern biscuits with cheddar and bacon at a glance
- Food category: Breakfast
- Servings: 10
- Calories per serving: 222 kcal
- Preparation time: 15 min
- Baking time: 15 min
- Total time from start to finish: 30 min
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250 grams) of flour
- 1 tablespoon of baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon of baking soda
- ½ teaspoon of salt
- 1 teaspoon of garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon of white granulated sugar
- 3 ounces (85 grams) of cold butter (unsalted and straight from the fridge, equivalent of 6 tablespoons)
- 2/3 cup (3.5 ounces/100 grams) of crumbled streaky bacon (approx. 8-10 slices)
- 2.5 ounces (71 grams) of grated cheddar
- ¾ cup (180 ml) of cold buttermilk (straight from the fridge)
How to prepare Southern biscuits with cheddar and bacon
Step 1: My first step with every dish that contains bacon, is to start with that. One super simple way of preparing bacon is to lay parchment paper on a baking tray, place the bacon strips on it and put it in the oven. ONLY NOW turn on the oven to 350 degrees Celsius (175 degrees Celsius) and bake the bacon for approx. 10 minutes until crispy.
Alternatively, place the bacon in a COLD! pan and bring it to lower medium heat. Flip the bacon to the other side after 5 minutes and let it cook for another 5.
Afterwards place it on a paper towel to soak up any excess fat. Then fold the towel and thus crush the bacon into small bits.
The reason for placing the bacon in a cold oven or a cold pan and only let the meat heat up gradually as the oven or the pan heats up, is the way the fat can render this way. All the excess fat thereby drizzles out and makes the end result more crispy and avoids having rubbery parts of fat.
Step 2: Place the flour, baking powder and soda, the salt, garlic and sugar in a large bowl and mix it a little. Then add butter milk and cold!!! butter. Ideally cut the butter into small chunks before adding them as it makes it easier to work it in. Also add the bacon crumble and the grated cheddar. Then knead all the ingredients until they are all combined.
The COLD part with regards to the butter is very important to makre sure your Southern biscuits with cheddar and bacon turn out exactly how you want them. Using cold butter for the dough prevents the biscuits from spreading out. Which is crucial as we want them to rise rather.
Step 3: Now roll the dough on a slightl floured surface into a flat rectangular shape. Then fold over the left third over the middle part and then the right third on top. Flatten it again and repeat the process.
Step 4: Now use a biscuit cutter, a cookie cutter or even a water glass to cut out the biscuits. You will end up with 10 Southern biscuits with cheddar and bacon.
Step 5: Place your Southern biscuits with cheddar and bacon on parchment paper. Make sure they all lay next to each other without any space between them. Thereby you force them to rise up rather than expand sideways.
Step 6: Bake them in the oven at 450 degrees F (230 degrees Celsius) for 15 minutes.
Southern biscuits are best enjoyed warm – Southern biscuits with cheddar and bacon are no different. So give them maybe 5-10 minutes and then enjoy!
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