The cake is a beer cake full of dark brown sugar, sharp cheddar cheese and vanilla. The frosting is a cream cheese frosting with sharp cheddar cheese and bacon. I garnished with additional crumbled bacon.
All of the flavors worked great together. The cake portion tasted mostly like beer and dark brown sugar. The beer was not overpowering at all - not too "beery" as my friend, Erika, would say. I have to admit that my cake fell flat again when I took it out of the oven. I may have taken them out too soon; although while they were still in the oven they only rose just above the top of the cupcake liner. Maybe some cakes just lie more flat. They didn't look like I had hoped, but the cake was moist, fluffy and flavorful.
The frosting was a little too loose for my taste. I prefer a firm frosting. I ignored my intuition and didn't add any more powdered sugar than the recipe called for. I was afraid of the frosting turning out too sweet. At this point, I didn't know how sweet of a cupcake I was dealing with. Next time I will definitely add more powdered sugar to get the consistency I like.
The frosting recipe called for an optional cup of bacon. I went ahead and added it, but the bacon only added a crunchy dimension to the frosting, but no real bacon flavor. When I added the garnish of bacon crumbled on top of the cupcake I could taste it much better. Next time I will leave the bacon out of the frosting and pile it on top of the finished cake instead.
Wow, Nanette! I'm curious about how this combination of ingredients could turn intoa sweet cupcake, because I imagined it becoming a better version of my unsuccessful beery bread. Dark brown sugar and sharp cheddar sounds like a great combo, though. If I were to make these, I think I'd use applewood bacon to add that sweetness. What do you think? Or would a saltier bacon add a good contrast?
ReplyDeleteI'm cracking up about the "optional cup" of bacon, too. For a true bacon-lover, is ANY bacon optional? Hee hee!
I like reading about your adventures!
Ok, i'm going to be honest. I didn't try the frosting. I don't eat pork but I couldn't bear telling you! However, I did try the cake portion and was pleasantly surprised. The beer notion scared me a bit but the notes of brown sugar really evened the playing field. I commend you for trying recipes that combine savory and sweet desserts! You are adventurous and definitely have fun with your creations. =)
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