Thanksgiving cupcakes: maple buttercream with bacon sprinkles

04 November 2015

4 mins

We're welcoming in the Thanksgiving season with our version of Nigella's Maple buttercream cupcakes with bacon sprinkles.

This salty sweet cupcake recipe makes the perfect Thanksgiving treat and we think it tastes just like eating fluffy American pancakes drizzled with sticky syrup and streaky bacon! Yum. We'll be tucking into them whilst watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Maple cupcakes with maple frosting and bacon sprinkles

ingredients

- For the cupcakes:
- 225g plain flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
- 1 pinch of salt
- 100g very soft unsalted butter
- 100g soft light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 75ml plain yoghurt
- 75ml maple syrup
- For the topping:
- 125g very soft butter
- 300g icing sugar
- 100ml maple syrup
- 6 rashers thin-cut streaky rindless bacon
- 1 teaspoon oil

serves:12

difficulty:medium

1 hour

Method:

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF and line a 12-cup tin with paper cases.

1. Step 2: Next fry the bacon rashers in 1 teaspoon of oil until crisp. Remove to a plate lined with kitchen paper and allow to cool. Once cool, crumble them to resemble sprinkles. Set aside.

1. Step 3: In a bowl, combine together flour, baking powder, bicarb and salt.

1. Step 4: Cream together the butter and sugar, using a freestanding mixer, handheld electric mixer or just a bowl and a wooden spoon. Then beat in one egg, followed by half the dry ingredients, mixing well before adding the second egg and the remaining dry ingredients. Again, mix well, and then add the yoghurt and maple syrup, beating and folding to give a smooth batter.

1. Step 5: Divide the mixture among the cupcake cases and bake in the oven for around 20 minutes until a case tester comes out clean.

1. Step 6: Turn the cupcakes out on to a wire rack to cool completely before icing.

1. Step 7: To make the buttercream icing blitz the icing sugar in a food processor to remove any lumps. Add the butter, blitz again and then add the maple syrup down the funnel with the motor running, till you have a smooth buttercream. If you sieve the icing sugar, obviously all this can be done by hand, too.

1. Step 8: Once the cupcakes are completely cool, top with the buttercream and adorn with your bacon sprinkles.

1. Step 9: Eat on the day they are made (ideally Thursday 27^th November!)
  
  We felt rather left out last year when our friends across the pond were tucking into their turkey and pumpkin pie. So this year we're donning pilgrim party hats and raising our glasses to Thanksgiving! Don't forget to check out our new Thanksgiving biscuit collections online now and available to ship worldwide!
  
  Happy Thanksgiving y'all!