Maple Bacon & Cheddar Buttermilk Biscuits

Do you guys love copycat recipes?  I know I do!!  You know, you go out to eat at a restaurant and eat something so great that you think, “I have to make that at home!!!”… then you spend some time searching the internet and/or coming up with your own versions.  My hunt for a Ruby Tuesday’s biscuit recipe is what led me to come up with this delicious maple, bacon and cheddar buttermilk biscuit recipe!

Some copycat recipes turn out great and are spot on the money!  Like my copycat Panera Bread Broccoli Cheddar Soup… oh man, it’s hot here in Ohio, and I still want that soup 🙂

Others, well, they turn out like this one… not really a copycat, but still delicious!!  If you have a Ruby Tuesday’s restaurant near you, you know those biscuits they bring out while you’re waiting on your food?  They’re so tasty, dare I even say better than Red Lobsters?  Eeek!  Once I tried them, I knew I was going to have to find a way to have them at home.  Through my trials in the kitchen, I developed these biscuits, and they’re really good!

There are two ingredients in these biscuits that may surprise you… firstly…. maple syrup.  It adds a hint of amazing sweetness.  Secondly, bacon grease.  Yep, you read that correctly.  These biscuits won’t be endorsed by the American Heart Association any time soon! 😉  It’s not a lot of bacon grease, and it could probably be substituted for some shortening or even just more butter.  But I just love the extra bacony (should be a word, seriously!) flavor that it adds!

These are a relatively low-maintenance biscuit to make… no rolling out the dough or using a biscuit cutter.

I let my food processor do the work of cutting in the fats and solids, but you could use a handheld pastry cutter if you’d like 🙂  Once you’ve combined all the ingredients except for the liquids, transfer the mixture to a large bowl.

Make a well in the center and pour in your buttermilk, milk and syrup.  Use a rubber spatula to stir it all together until it’s well combined, and is a sticky dough.

Use a large cookie/ice cream scoop to drop the biscuits onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet, and bake for about 15 minutes, until golden brown.  Once they’re finished baking, mix up a seasoned melted butter mixture and brush it on top of the biscuits.

So soft, so fluffy, so light, so flavorful!!

Now these buttermilk biscuits are completely delicious as-is… but you want to know what makes them crazy good?  A little drizzle of some honey or extra maple syrup!  I know, I know… it’s a bit decadent… but c’mon, you’re already eating biscuits, go for it and add the drizzle 🙂

These biscuits would be great alongside some parmesan crusted chicken, or some honey balsamic pork bbq sandwiches.  They would also make an excellent biscuit to make a fried egg sandwich with 🙂

You’ll definitely want to stop by next week when I share a recipe that includes a spicy honey bacon glaze, which I also drizzled over these biscuits 😉

I just wanted to say thank you for stopping by and reading my blog… I love hearing from those of you that have tried a recipe, and your comments just make my day 🙂

Maple Bacon & Cheddar Buttermilk Biscuits

Fluffy buttermilk biscuits that are both savory and sweet... flavored with cheddar cheese, crispy bacon and maple syrup, then brushed with melted butter!

5 from 3 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 mins

Cook Time 15 mins

Total Time 30 mins

Servings 12 biscuits

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• Biscuits:
• 2 cups flour - all purpose
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 3/4 tsp garlic powder
• 7 slices bacon - diced
• 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 2 Tbsp butter - cut into small pieces and chilled
• Tbsp Reserved bacon grease from cooking bacon - about 2
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1/3 cup buttermilk
• 1/4 cup milk
• Topping:
• 2 Tbsp butter - melted
• 1 tsp finely minced fresh parsley
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• pinch salt

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
• Dice bacon and cook in a small skillet until crispy. Remove to a paper towel lined plate with a slotted spoon. Pour grease into a small bowl and place in the freezer to chill. Cube your butter into small pieces and place in the freezer as well.
• In your food processor, add your flour, baking powder, garlic powder, and salt, and pulse to combine. Add chilled butter and bacon grease, and pulse until the fats are cut into the dry ingredients. Mixture will resemble wet fluffy sand with small pea-sized lumps.
• Add in the shredded cheese and crisped bacon and pulse a few more times to combine.
• Transfer mixture to a large bowl, make a well in the center, and add in buttermilk, maple syrup and milk. Mix with a spatula or wooden spoon to combine. If the mixture is dry, add a splash more buttermilk. You want the dough to leave the sides of the bowl.
• Use a 2-inch cookie scoop (or 1/4 cup measuring cup) to scoop out the dough and drop them onto the parchment lined baking sheet, with a few inches in between each biscuit.
• Bake for about 15 minutes, turning the baking sheet around halfway through.
• While biscuits are baking, melt your butter and stir in the parsley, garlic powder and salt. Once the biscuits are golden brown, remove them from the oven and brush with the butter mixture.
• Cool biscuits on a cooling rack.

Notes

** If you'd prefer, you can use bacon that's already cooked, but you'll still need bacon grease, so I only recommend this method if you keep bacon grease in your refrigerator.

Author The Chunky Chef

Tried this recipe?Mention @the_chunky_chef or tag #thechunkychef!