3 cups all-purpose flour
1
tablespoon baking powder
2
teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1
teaspoon salt
1/4
teaspoon ground red pepper (cayenne)
1/2
cup cold unsalted butter or regular butter, cut into small pieces
6
oz Gouda cheese, shredded (1 1/2 cups)
1/4
cup cooked real bacon pieces
1
shallot, finely chopped
1
cup buttermilk
1
egg
Heat
oven to 425°F. Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray, or grease with
shortening. In large bowl, mix flour, baking powder, black pepper, salt
and red pepper. Cut in butter, using pastry blender (or pulling 2 table
knives through mixture in opposite directions), until mixture looks like
coarse crumbs. Stir in cheese, bacon and shallot.
In
small bowl, beat buttermilk and egg with fork or whisk. Reserve 1
tablespoon of the buttermilk mixture. Stir remaining buttermilk mixture
into crumb mixture; mix with floured hands until dough forms a ball. For
tender scones, handle dough as little as possible.
Place
dough on lightly floured surface. Pat dough into 8-inch round; cut into
8 wedges. Place wedges 2 inches apart on cookie sheet. Brush with
reserved buttermilk mixture.
Bake 15 to 18 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.
