My pancakes 'n' bacon cookies are the perfect treat for you if you love the classic sweet-savory breakfast combo of pancakes and bacon! Soft and irresistibly delicious, this cookie recipe is brimming with brown and maple sugar, plus pure maple syrup, then baked off and drizzled with maple icing and topped with crispy, crumbled bacon for a truly unique and mouthwatering cookie eating experience!
Cookies that taste like our favorite breakfast
Whenever we crave a bit of a stick-to-our-ribs breakfast or some comfort food in the morning, pancakes and bacon is a classic combo that is totally irresistible to us.
Honestly, pancakes drenched in syrup with strips of crispy, salty bacon on the side is a perfect, sweet and savory partnership, and in my mind, those flavors can totally go beyond just breakfast...
Take these pancakes 'n' bacon cookies, for example—a sweet treat that transforms our favorite breakfast staples into a convenient "grab-and-go" cookie, perfect with a cup of coffee. You can enjoy all the flavors of pancakes, maple syrup, and savory bacon in every bite!
My pancakes 'n' bacon cookies are totally whimsical, scrumptious and just plain fun, and make for a perfectly unique cookie experience for those of you, who like us, love that sweet and salty flavor combination of pancakes and bacon together…anytime the craving hits!
My recipe for pancakes 'n' bacon cookies
To make these pancakes 'n' bacon cookies, I prepare a neutral cookie dough base flavored with primarily with those warm, golden notes of maple.
For that, I use a combo of brown sugar and maple sugar, some maple flavoring in place of vanilla, as well as a splash of pure maple syrup in the cookie dough. This offers sweet, rich flavor that totally tastes like pancakes drizzled with maple pancake syrup!
I also like to decorate these cookies with a simple maple icing, which not only adds a bit more sweetness and maple flavor, but acts as the perfect edible “glue” to crumble the crispy bacon over so that it sticks.
These pancakes 'n' bacon cookies are neither too sweet nor too salty, but just the right balance that hits the tastebuds in a scrumptious way that leaves you craving bite after yummy bite.
And the recipe yields quite a few cookies, so you can easily store any unused portion of cookie dough in the freezer and bake off whenever the craving hits, morning or evening!
Here's a sneak peek at my pancakes 'n' bacon cookies recipe: (or just jump to the full recipe...)
- To get started, I whisk together my dry ingredients to have ready.
- Then, using my stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, I cream together my butter and sugars, my egg, maple flavor and maple syrup, as well as touch of buttermilk, until smooth.
- Next, I slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet, and mix together just until combined.
- I then divide the cookie dough in half, and make a log shape out of each half, wrapping it tightly in plastic wrap.
- Then, I freeze the cookie dough for about 45 minutes (or leave a portion of it in the freezer if only making a dozen or so cookies at at time), then cut the dough into slices, or cookies, and bake.
- After baking, I allow the cookies to cool, prepping my maple icing during that time.
- When the cookies have cooled, I then drizzle the icing over the cookies.
- I then finish with a sprinkle of crispy, chopped bacon, and allow everything to set before enjoying the pancakes 'n' bacon cookies.
Recipe
Pancakes 'n' Bacon Cookies
by Ingrid Beer
These whimsical pancakes 'n' bacon cookies have all the flavors of our favorite breakfast food combo in soft, delicious cookie form!
Category: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Yield: About 36 cookies
Nutrition Info: 125 calories (per cookie)
Prep Time: 20 minutes (does not include dough chill time)
Cook time: 10 minutes
Total time: 30 minutes
Cookies Ingredients:
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
- ½ cup maple sugar
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 large egg, whisked
- 1 tablespoon real maple syrup
- 1 ¼ teaspoon maple flavor
- ¼ cup buttermilk
- 6 strips bacon, cooked crispy and chopped finely, for garnish (about a generous ¼ cup)
Maple Icing Ingredients:
- 1 ½ cup powdered sugar
- ¾ teaspoon maple flavor
- 2 to 3 tablespoons water
- Begin by gathering and prepping all of your cookie ingredients according to the ingredient list above to have ready and organized for use.
- In a medium-size bowl, add the flour, the baking soda and the baking powder, and gently whisk to combine these dry ingredients, and set aside for a moment.
- Then, to the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, add the softened butter and the two sugars, and cream/mix together for on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add in the whisked egg, the maple flavor and the real maple syrup, and continue to cream/mix for another moment until combined.
- Turn the mixer down to a lower speed, and begin adding the dry ingredients in increments, until they get incorporated with the creamed butter/sugar/egg mixture. Once all dry ingredients are added and combined, add in the buttermilk until combined, and turn off the mixer.
- Next, divide the cookie dough in half (roughly) in the bowl with a spatula. Place a large piece of plastic wrap on your work surface, and turn half of the cookie dough out onto the plastic wrap, and gently shape it with your hands into a log shape, roughly 12 inches long, not too thick or too thin.
- Wrap the plastic around it, twist the ends to secure, and place the cookie dough log into the freezer to firm for at least 45 minutes (or more, if you want to freeze the dough to save some for later). Repeat the process with the other half of the cookie dough.
- To bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350°, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Slice the chilled/firmed cookie dough log into ½ to ¾ inch thick slices (cookies), and place the cookie dough slices onto the lined baking sheet. Bake the cookies for roughly 10 to 11 minutes, until soft and chewy, but slightly golden. Take care not to over-bake.
- Allow the cookies to cool on a wire rack. While they cool, gather and prep your maple icing ingredients according to the ingredient list to have ready and organized for use.
- To make the maple icing, add all ingredients to a bowl and whisk together until smooth (the icing should be thin enough to drizzle, but thick enough to adhere well to the cookies and not get absorbed by them).
- Once the cookies are cooled, drizzle the icing over them and sprinkle over the chopped, crispy bacon, and allow it to set for about 20 to 30 minutes before enjoying.
Tips & Tidbits for my pancakes 'n' bacon cookies recipe:
- Bake off a smaller batch of cookies, and freeze the rest of the dough: This recipe yields about 36 medium cookies when sliced to medium thickness, so this is a perfect recipe to bake off when wanting to prep and share lots of yummy cookies! But if you prefer to bake off a smaller amount, (such as 12 to 24 cookies), then you can slice the desired amount of cookies from the dough log, then save and freeze the remainder. You would also use less of the maple icing in that case. If making 12 to 24 cookies, prepare only a third or half of the icing ingredients (use less bacon as well), which will be enough for that smaller amount of cookies.
- Bake off all the cookies, and freeze afterwards: If you'd like to just prep and bake off all the cookies, but store some of them for later enjoyment, you absolutely can do that. Simply bake, cool, and ice the cookies, sprinkle on the bacon, allow them to completely cool, then store in freezer ziplock bags in the freezer. Thaw the cookies at room temp before enjoying.
- Freshly crisped bacon, or good quality packaged precooked bacon: Typically, because it takes just a few moments, I'll crisp up a couple of pieces of bacon myself. But if you'd like less work, you can find precooked bacon crumbles or crispy bacon in small packets at the market—use whichever you prefer.
- How to store pancakes 'n' bacon cookies: I just place the cookies onto a cake/dessert plate and cover with the glass dome for freshness. You could also use a large plate or wide but shallow bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. No need to refrigerate (unless you want to), because the bacon is cured/salted and crisped. These will keep well for a few days at room temp.
Craving more sweet and cozy treats? Check out my recipe for Maple Pecan Blondies, Maple Scones, Caramel Apple Pie Bars, Snickerdoodle Cake with Apples, or my recipe for Pumpkin Oatmeal Cream Pies!
Cook's Note: This recipe was originally published in 2012, and has been updated with even more love!
Blog is the New Black
I am floored with this recipe! 😉
The Cozy Apron
Very sweet of you—thank you.
Julia | JuliasAlbum.com
What an interesting concept - bacon on cookies! That would be a great comfort food breakfast!
Laura Dembowski
Just found your blog. It's so cute! I love breakfast for dinner, and I constantly live in my own dream world. I know people think I'm crazy, but I've learned not to care. These cookies are so adorable and a really cleaver idea 🙂
Peggy
I would definitely love to make these soon! You had me at bacon =)
Nicole
This is genuinely unique. Good job!
The Cozy Apron
Thanks, Nicole!
Mary McGovern
When you call for maple sugar, is that item something you’ve purchased or made yourself? We will definitely be trying this recipe once I know the answer! Thank you!
The Cozy Apron
Hi Mary, the maple sugar is something which I purchase at the market (and it's made by boiling down maple syrup until it becomes crystals). I purchase it Whole Foods Market, but I'm certain you can even order it online at Amazon, for instance. It typically comes in a fairly small/medium bag, in the sugar/sweetener section of the market next to slightly more "exotic" sweeteners. 😉
Sue B
I would love to try this recipe, but exactly what is maple sugar?
thank you in advanced
Sue
The Cozy Apron
Hi Sue, thanks for your question! Maple sugar is made from the sap of the sugar maple tree, so it's essentially sugar made from a maple tree. I purchased mine at my local Trader Joe's, but if you don't have one near you, you can probably find maple sugar at Whole Foods Market, or a health food/specialty-type store. If you can't find it, try substituting an additional 1/4 cup brown sugar and 1/4 cup regular sugar instead, and 1 1/2 teaspoon maple flavor. Hope that helps!
Kim @ Soliloquy Of Foods & Such
Such a great idea & combination of flavors. Well done!
The Cozy Apron
Thanks much, Kim!
Denise
Love the idea of these cookies and can not wait to make them! If there are any left over do I need to refrigerate them because of the bacon?
The Cozy Apron
Hi Denise, no you don't; the sugar in the cookies, plus the fact that you're dealing with cooked, cured bacon (a small amount, really) makes them just fine at room temp for as long as they stay soft & fresh! Hope you enjoy.
Tammie
Hi! I was wondering when to incorporate the buttermilk.
Thanks!
The Cozy Apron
Hi Tammie! Sorry that it's a little tough to see, but if you have a look in that second, bigger section under "preparation", you'll see that it gets added after the dry ingredients go in, at the end. Hope that helps! Enjoy...
Ashley
I'm making these for my daughter's book report project (long story, but it's a book about a horse and somehow pancakes and bacon ties into the story) and I'm using a horse head shaped cookie cutter. Would these do well if rolled out and cut with a cookie cutter? Also, I don't have a paddle standing mixer- could I mix by hand and get the same result?
The Cozy Apron
Hi Ashley, how fun that you're making these as part of your daughters book report project! (The kids'll thank you for the cookies! 🙂 ) So, I'd say this: you should be fine rolling out the dough and then using the cookie-cutters to cut out the shapes, just don't roll it too thin; maybe leave it the 1/2" thickness, as suggested above. The only concern I have is that you don't have the electric standing mixer—of course you can make this by hand, but as far as getting the exact same result, I can't say for sure. A hand never has quite the "creaming" power as a machine, but just get things incorporated and creamed as best as you possibly can, and then I think you should do pretty well. (I think that they'll still taste amazing! They're cookies, after all!) 🙂 Hope you have fun!!
judy sage
These are just the cookies everyone wants..breakfast energy all day long!
I just found you today....so glad that I did, Ingrid. You have a wonderful way with words....i enjoyed your "company" as well as several recipes. Thank you.
The Cozy Apron
Judy, thank you so much for sharing your comments with me; it touched me very much that you enjoyed not only the recipes, but the "company", as well! That's always my hope. 😉 I appreciate you stopping by our little "home on the web", and hope you visit (and enjoy the recipes!) often!
Marie
Hi Ingrid..Please help! I've got all my ingredients coming to room to temp to make these cookies, and I've read through the steps, but I see where there's only enough bacon and glaze for 12 cookies! The recipe yield is 40+ cookies! Why is this..am I missing something? How much bacon and glaze should be made for the entire recipe? Is there some way to make a larger-sized (diameter) cookie? Also, I'd like to know if these spread out much?
Thanks!!
The Cozy Apron
Hi Marie, you're not missing anything—the glaze recipe is for 12, not for the whole batch. I often find that folks like to make around a dozen or so cookies, in order to enjoy them fresh; and they freeze the rest of the dough for later use. And so I tailored the glaze recipe towards that. That way, if one would like to make more (the whole batch), one would just multiply the glaze ingredients according to how many they wanted to bake off. In your case, since you're wanting to bake the entire batch, you'd do about 3 or 4 times the ingredients. (2 cups powdered sugar; 1 teaspoon maple flavor; 2-4 tablespoons water...and about 6-8 strips of bacon.) Hope that helps!
Tricia
I made these today for a cookie exchange at work tomorrow. They are amazing and my family loves them. I can’t wait to hear what my co-workers have to say about them.
The Cozy Apron
Tricia, I'm so happy to read that! So glad you enjoyed them, and I hope your co-workers did, too!