Yes, that’s right – today we’re putting bacon in our cookies! These maple bacon cookies are for the days when you need a little extra indulgence in your life. Soft, buttery cookies studded with salty bits of bacon, sandwiching a just-sweet-enough maple cream cheese filling. Let’s do this!
Why you need these cookies in your life
Look, you deserve these cookies. You’ve worked hard all week. I don’t even care how close you got to completing your never-ending to-do list, it’s totally acceptable to drop everything and make cookies.
These cookies are perfect for fans of sweet and salty treats (*raises hand*). The cookie is based on an old-school vanilla wafer recipe. It’s lightly sweet with crunchy edges and soft centers. Little chunks of salty bacon give them a flavor and texture contrast that makes them irresistible.
The maple cream cheese frosting in the middle is silky and sweetened just enough, flavored with pure maple syrup and a touch of sea salt to keep things balanced.
Maple bacon cookie tips
Follow these top tips to ensure your bacon cookies turn out absolutely perfect!
Getting the bacon just right. I highly recommend you cook the bacon whole, then chop it up after you cook it. This allows you to chop it into smaller pieces, which will incorporate better into the cookie dough.
A few more bacon considerations:
- Use thin cut bacon. Bacon that’s cut thick won’t be as pleasant in these cookies.
- Cook the bacon until it’s very crispy. You don’t want any limp bacon here.
- Once cooked, move the bacon slices to a paper-towel lined plate to drain excess fat.
- Let the bacon cool completely before adding it to the cookie dough.
Making the cookies:
- Be sure to chill the dough for 20-30 minutes before scooping and baking.
- Use a small spring-loaded scoop to form the cookies. Because we’re going to be sandwiching them, it’s important that they’re all the same size.
- After scooping the cookie dough, flatten them lightly (these cookies don’t spread much).
- Let them cool completely before adding the cream cheese filling. You don’t want to melt the frosting!
Making the maple cream cheese frosting:
- Pull your butter and cream cheese out of the refrigerator beforehand so that they’re both quite soft when you’re ready to use them.
- Sifting the powdered sugar ensures you won’t get any sugar lumps in your frosting.
- Use REAL maple syrup to flavor the frosting. Mrs. Butterworth’s will not do here!
If you make these maple bacon sandwich cookies, I’d love to hear your thoughts! Leave a rating and comment below.
Maple Bacon Sandwich Cookies
Equipment
- Piping bag
- Small spring-loaded cookie scoop
Ingredients
Maple Bacon Cookies
- 4 slices bacon, thin cut
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 1/2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
Maple Cream Cheese Filling
- 4 ounces cream cheese, soft
- 3 ounces unsalted butter, soft
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar, sifted
- 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 1 pinch sea salt
Instructions
For the maple bacon cookies:
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Fry bacon on stovetop until crispy. Drain on a paper-towel lined plate and allow to cool completely, then mince. You should have about 1/3 cup of minced bacon.
- Combine dry ingredients and minced bacon together in a small bowl.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter with sugars. Add egg, vanilla, cream, and maple syrup. Blend until creamy, 1-2 minutes.
- With mixer on low, add in the dry ingredients just until combined.
- Chill dough in refrigerator for 20-30 minutes.
- Use a small spring-loaded scoop to form balls of dough. Place on cookie sheet with 2" spacing and flatten slightly with the palm of your hand.
- Bake until edges are golden brown, about 14-17 minutes. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack.
For the maple filling:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese until smooth and creamy.
- Add the butter and beat again until smooth and no lumps remain.
- Pour in powdered sugar, a little at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl with a spatula as needed. Add maple syrup and salt; beat until creamy.
- Once cookies are cool, pipe or spread filling on the bottom of half of the cookies. Top with the other cookies to sandwich them.
Notes
Did you try this recipe?
Be sure to leave a comment below!
