Addictive! Maple Bacon Cupcakes

I have a confession to make: I’m not much of a cupcake person. I’ll squeal with as much enthusiasm as everyone else when I see a picture of a super cute cupcake on Pinterest, but really, I have very little interesting in actually eating one. I just like cute and pretty food.

BUT …

Earlier this month I was reading the January issue of O! Magazine, and came across a recipe for Maple Bacon Cupcakes.

Now, if there’s one thing I absolutely adore, it’s maple and bacon, together. The sweet and the savory of maple and bacon are a marriage that’s meant to be, in my opinion.

So I emailed the recipe to Ward (I subscribe to O! on my iPad, and one of the handy things you can do with your subscription is email things to people. I like to plague my husband with recipes email my husband recipes from everywhere and anywhere, and hope for the best).

And the very next day, he made these:

Excuse me while I make my usual “bad photo” disclaimer: this shot was taken with my 3G iPhone and does not do the actual cupcakes any justice whatsoever.

But trust me, these cupcakes are absolutely, completely and addictively delicious. So delicious, I find I can’t ever eat just one. It’s like the potato-chip phenomenon, only when it involves a cupcake, that’s a mighty dangerous proposition.

Want to see how addictive these are for yourself? Here’s the recipe, courtesy of O! Magazine – and yes, I dare you to eat just one …

The following recipe is from the January 2012 issue of O! Magazine:

For cupcakes:
½ pound thick cut bacon (about 8 to 10 strips)
1 1/3 cup all purpose flour
2/3 cup cake flour
2 tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
16 Tbsp. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups granulated sugar
3 eggs, at room temperature
1 cup milk, at room temperature
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 tsp. maple extract (found in the spice aisle)
Maple syrup, to garnish

For cinnamon buttercream:
16 Tbsp. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 cups powdered sugar (a little less than 1 pound)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 Tbsp. milk
2 Tbsp. cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 375°. Lay bacon on a sheet pan and bake for 8 to 15 minutes until crisp and golden brown. Set aside 2 pieces of the bacon for topping, and dice the rest.
2. Lower heat to 350°. Line 24 muffin cups with paper liners.
3. In a medium bowl combine flours, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
4. Add the eggs to butter mixture 1 at a time, mixing well after each addition. Slowly add the dry ingredients and milk in 2 alternating batches, mixing well between additions. Then add vanilla and maple extracts and reserved diced bacon, and mix on medium speed for 2 minutes.
5. Scoop batter into prepared cupcake pan, filling each cuo 2/3 full. Bake for 22 to 26 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
6. Meanwhile, make cinnamon buttercream: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter on medium speed until smooth. Reduce speed to low and slowly add the powdered sugar until fully incorporated. Add the milk and vanilla and mix until combined. Slowly sprinkle in the cinnamon, adding more to taste.
7. When cupcakes are completely cool, frost with the buttercream. Chop the reserved slices of bacon into 24 pieces and garnish each cupcake with a piece. Drizzle maple syrup over the top and serve. If not eating immediately, refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Enjoyed this food-related blog post? Check out more delicious links at this week’s Weekend Cooking, hosted by Beth Fish Reads!

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Tagged as: bacon, cupcakes, maple, Weekend Cooking