Yep you heard me correctly Maple, BACON, Breakfast Cookies!

Think back to when you were a kid on Saturday morning…

Mom or Dad would bring out a big plate of pancakes covered with maple syrup and a couple of strips of bacon on the side. Then you would take that first bite, a little pancake, a little bacon and maple syrup… The perfect Saturday morning bite, salty, sweet and oh so good! These Maple, Bacon, Breakfast Cookies will recapture those wonderful flavors of a Saturday Morning.

This idea came to me last year and today I finally tested it out. These are “Breakfast Cookies” because they are packet full of Oatmeal, Bacon, Pecans, and Maple Syrup. The Cookie Dough base that I use is my Mom’s Oatmeal Cookie Recipe that I altered just slightly by adding a little butter, maple syrup and of course BACON. These Breakfast Cookies are not super sweet instead they are that perfect balance of salty and sweet with a great chewy texture from the oatmeal.

I hope Y’all Enjoy and let me know what you think!

 

Maple, Bacon, Breakfast Cookies

The Maple Bacon:

5 strips of Bacon

¼ Cup Pure Maple Syrup

Directions:

Pre-Heat the oven to 400 degrees.

Line a sheet pan with foil and place a wire baking rack on the sheet pan. Lay the 5 strips of bacon across the baking rack and bake for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, brush the tops of the bacon with maple syrup then place back in the oven for another 5-7 minutes, until crisp. When the bacon is crisp brush the top one more time with the maple syrup. Set aside to cool.

Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees.

 

Next make the Cookie Dough… 

In the bowl of an electric mixer cream together:

¼ Cup Vegetable Shortening

¼ Cup Butter (at room temperature)

½ Cup Brown Sugar (firmly packed)

½ Cup Sugar

Then add to the bowl and beat until smooth:

1 Egg

1 Tablespoon of Pure Maple Syrup

1 Vanilla Bean, (split in half with the seed scraped out)

1 Tablespoon of Milk

Next sift together and add to the above ingredients:

1 Cup All Purpose Flour

½ Teaspoon Baking Soda

½ Teaspoon Baking Powder

½ Teaspoon Salt

1 Teaspoon Cinnamon

Finally, when everything is a smooth mixture add:

¾ Cup Chopped Pecans

1 Cup Oatmeal (Old fashioned oats)

5 strips of Maple Bacon (chopped in to small bits)

Mix Well.

Drop Cookies on to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake the cookies at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes, or until they are golden brown.

Makes 2-Dozen Cookies.