Maple French Toast and Bacon Cupcakes

Is it breakfast or dessert?  I think it could be both :)  My friend made this for a cookout last weekend, and I loved them so much, I had to share them on the blog.  I mean, what's better than bacon in a cupcake and mixed through the frosting?  Nothing.  Seriously, nothing.

Oh, and if you haven't noticed, I've stopped counting points for a while (see recipe below...haha).  We ate and drank whatever we wanted on our honeymoon, and I came back eight pounds heavier.  I know I need to get my embarrassed butt back to the Weight Watchers meeting and back to bootcamp, but I haven't done it yet :(  Maybe next week-- okay, seriously, I need more motivation.

But back to bacon!!!  Here's the amazing recipe from the Food Network.

Maple French Toast and Bacon Cupcakes

Ingredients

Cupcakes
1 cup flour
1 cup cake flour
1 box instant vanilla pudding mix
1 tsp baking powder
1 tbs potato starch (a little harder to find, check specially grocery stores)
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp  nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1 stick butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup  light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
4 large egg whites, at room temperature
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup half-and-half, at room temperature
1/2 cup chopped cooked bacon (about 5 strips)

Glaze
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, at room temperature
2 tbs unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 tsp cinnamon
3 strips bacon, cooked and chopped

Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line12-cup muffin tin.

In a separate bowl, combine the flours, pudding mix, baking powder, potato starch, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.

In another  bowl, cream the butter and sugars with a mixer on low speed until combined, 6 to 8 minutes. Gradually mix in the vanilla and egg whites. Scrape down the sides of the bowl; continue mixing until light and fluffy. Add the flour mixture in small batches, alternating with the maple syrup and half-and-half, mixing after each addition and ending with flour. Mix until the ingredients are just combined. Fold in the bacon. The batter will be thick.

Pour the batter into the prepared muffin tin, filling each cup about 3/4 of the way. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Cool completely.

While cupcakes are cooking, beat the cream cheese and butter with a mixer on medium speed until creamy. Add the confectioners' sugar, maple syrup and cinnamon; beat until combined. Spread on the cooled cupcakes; top with chopped bacon.