Bacon Cupcakes

Let's be honest: cupcakes have a pretty prissy reputation. From their pop culture debut during the '90s via Magnolia Bakery's appearance in Sex and the City to the current endless, maddening debates about where the best cupcake can be found and what "the next cupcake" is, mention cupcakes in front of anyone older than 6 years old and you're likely to be greeted with an eye roll and a heavy dose of sarcasm. That's all fine, and I'd even argue that the eye-rolling is warranted. That doesn't mean that there isn't room for exploration, though, in this very played-out field. Enter the bacon cupcake. Molasses spice cake with cream cheese frosting is surprised by a wallop of porcine goodness (there is a not inconsiderable amount of rendered bacon fat lurking in that frosting) and then, gloriously, crowned with a strip of candied, perfectly crisp bacon. It's unexpected, perverse, even obscene... and it's pretty damn good. Click here to see the Bacon: It's What's for Dinner story.