Maple Bacon Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

These Maple Bacon Pumpkin Cupcakes are a fun twist on a fall treat. Moist pumpkin cupcakes, made with bacon fat, get frosted with decadent maple cream cheese icing and topped with salty, crisp bacon.

It’s still November, so it’s still safe to make as many pumpkin-flavored things as I desire.

Brown Butter Dark Chocolate Pumpkin Cookies.

Pumpkin Cocao Nib Bread.

Pick-Me-Up Pumpkin Smoothies.

Dairy-free Coconut Oil Pumpkin Muffins.

Pumpkin Turmeric Tea.

So. Much. Pumpkin.

#Can’tStopWon’tStop.

Well… no, I will stop. After this, probably. (Maybe.)

Most bloggers are moving on to Christmas recipes by now, but I can’t quite yet. I’ll think about Christmas after Thanksgiving. Until then, it’s all pumpkin, stuffing, sweet potato, turkey, maple, pecan, cinnamon, gravy-goodness.

Even if my husband insists on playing Christmas music already in the car. (How do you guys feel about this? Christmas music before Thanksgiving: yay or nay?)

I actually made these cupcakes a few weeks ago for a neighborhood potluck party. I know absolutely zero of my neighbors since we just moved in 2 months ago, but let me tell you. These maple bacon pumpkin cupcakes are a sure way to make friends.

Maple and bacon are a perfect combination. But why only use bacon as the crispy topping when you can use it as the fat in the cake batter, too? Well, that’s exactly what we did! And topped with a not-too-sweet maple cream cheese frosting, bacon bits, and a bit of salted caramel? So potluck/Thanksgiving/special occasion/Tuesday afternoon worthy.

These would be a really fun addition to your Friendsgiving this year!

Pumpkin pie is delicious and all, but these sweet-and-salty maple bacon pumpkin cupcakes are a great Thanksgiving dessert table twist.

Make sure to use thick-cut bacon for this recipe. Twelve ounces of thick-cut bacon yields 1/2 cup of bacon fat, which is what you will need for this batter.

Here are some things you may need or want for this recipe:

Wilton Fall Baking Cups  //  Now Foods Organic Maple Syrup, Grade A  //  Simply Organic Cinnamon Ground Certified Organic  //  King Arthur 100% Organic All Purpose Flour

This post includes affiliate links but are always products I love + use myself!

Maple Bacon Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

★★★★★ 5 from 6 reviews

• Author: Tiffany La Forge
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 20 mins
• Total Time: 40 minutes
• Yield: 28 1x
• Category: dessert, cupcakes

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Description

These Maple Bacon Pumpkin Cupcakes are a fun twist on a fall treat. Moist pumpkin cupcakes, made with bacon fat, get frosted with decadent maple cream cheese icing and topped with salty, crisp bacon.

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

For the Cupcakes:

• 12 ounces thick-cut apple-smoked bacon, diced
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup melted bacon fat
• 1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin puree
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 4 eggs
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 1 teaspoon all-spice
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup milk

For the Maple Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 pound full-fat cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For Garnish:

• Bacon crumbles
• Salted caramel sauce (optional)
• Freshly grated nutmeg or cinnamon

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Instructions

Cook the bacon:

1. Cook the diced bacon in a hot skillet until cooked through and crispy. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon onto paper towels and let the bacon fat cool a little. Measure 1/2 cup of the bacon fat. Place the crispy bacon aside.

Make the cupcakes:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients (flour, spices, baking soda, baking powder, and salt) and whisk well.
2. In a separate, large bowl, combine the eggs with both of the sugars, the bacon fat, and the oil. Whisk well until combined. Whisk in the pumpkin puree and vanilla until thoroughly combined.
3. Add in the dry mixture, alternating with the milk, in 3 additions. Stir until just combined, being sure not to over-mix the batter.
4. Spoon the batter into baking cups about 3/4 of the way full. This recipe will make about 28 cupcakes. Bake the cupcakes for about 18-22 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the tops spring back when touched. Rotate the cupcake trays half-way through for even baking.

Make the frosting:

1. In a standing mixer, beat the room temperature butter with the paddle attachment until fluffy and soft. Add in the room temperature cream cheese and beat until combined. (It’s very important all ingredients are room temperature for cream cheese frosting to ensure there’s no lumps.) Add in sifted powdered sugar, vanilla, and maple syrup. Beat until smooth. Store in the refrigerator until needed.

Assemble the cupcakes:

1. Pipe the cream cheese frosting on the cupcakes and top with the bacon. Top with salted caramel sauce, if desired, and a sprinkle of cinnamon and/or nutmeg.

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