Yes, you read that right. Bacon. Cupcakes. As my good friend, the other Andrea Lynn, would say, "Oh. My. DAMN."
Here's the thing. I love breakfast food. I love BAD breakfast food. Bacon-y breakfast food. And I'm lucky enough to have a group of friends that love it just as much, if not more, than I do. So we made a club. The Breakfast Club. We get together to make artery clogging dinner parties that would make the fellas of Epic Meal Time proud. Damn proud.
Carmageddon decided to throw a sneak preview on the 405 last night, making it impossible for The Hubs and I to get to Redondo Beach for rib grillin' with some of our club. After staring at brake lights for over an hour, we'd only made it to Skirball. Defeated, we turned back around. As we sadly made our way back to the Valley we made plans to head back down tomorrow morning for brunch. Our host sent a challenging text. "Pumpkin waffles."
Pumpkin waffles? I see your pumpkin waffles, DCP, and I raise you BACON CUPCAKES. Get ready for a mouthgasm tomorrow morning.
Lady B's Cardiac Arrest Cupcakes
9 tablespoons butter (1 stick and some more), room temp
1 tablespoon bacon drippings (left in fridge to solidify. You know, so it's healthy.)
2 eggs
10 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 cup maple syrup
2 1/2 cups self rising flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 cup of milk
1 package bacon, cooked & drained
Cook bacon in fry pan. Reserve drippings and place in fridge to solidify. Mince up all the bacon.
Beat butter and bacon fat (yep, I just told you to do that. Try not to think about it too much.) until it's light and creamy. Add brown sugar and maple syrup until well combined. Add eggs one at a time, beating at medium speed until it's all harmonizing together.
Sift flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder.
Add some of the flour mixture into butter mix, beating until well combined. Add milk and continue blending. Alternate between dry and wet ingredients, ending and starting with the dry stuff.
Taste test and add more syrup, milk or flour if you're so inclined. I tended to add a bit more syrup for some extra sweetness. NOT TOO MUCH though. A little goes a long way.
Fold in the bacon. Taste test again cuz it's just damn good.
Use an ice cream scoop (best way to make evenly portioned cupcakes) to divide batter in to cupcake-lined muffin tins. Bake at 350 for 18-22 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean when placed in the center. Rotate your muffin tins at the 15 minute mark to keep them evenly cooked, especially if you've got a wonky uneven oven like mine.
Let cupcakes cool entirely before frosting. While cooling, hey! Make frosting!
Maple Butter Frosting
8 tablespoons butter (yep, a whole other stick of butter)
4 tablespoons maple syrup
2 cups powdered sugar
Combine syrup and butter until well blended. Add powdered sugar a bit at a time, whisking at high speed.
Pipe onto cupcakes. Sprinkle remaining bacon bits on top of frosting. Eat one. Die with a sugary, bacon-y smile on your face.
