Spinach Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing

Okay, if I can get dudes to eat salad during the SuperBowl, then you know that either 1- bacon is involved; or 2- this is a really freakin' good salad.

I kind of think it's both. This recipe was originally from my Aunt G, who is a pretty amazing chef, and it is my pleasure to share my simplified version of it here!

French Toast Cupcakes with Bacon

Several months ago, Lito and I saw something on the Food Network about a freshly made doughnut dipped in bacon crumbles -- people were raving about the amazing combo of the two amazing breakfast foods. You can see where this is going. The title of the post already gave it away. I did a little internet research and found an incredible recipe from lifewithcake.com.

I stayed pretty true to the recipe listed, including the instructions to cream the butter for 10 minutes, despite the fact that I'm working with a pink hand mixer rather than a stand mixer.

Adding the dry ingredients looks cuter when you do it with heart-shaped measuring cups.

Secret tip: (well, maybe it's not a secret, but I thought it was a good idea anyway) Use an ice cream scooper to dole out the batter into even portions. The cake here is "French Toast" flavored -- a white cake warmed up with nutmeg and cinnamon.

Cooled. Frosted with maple frosting. (I added Mapleine flavoring to a regular butter cream recipe.)

And topped with delicious, crunchy bacon. They were a revelation. The sweetness of the maple frosting, plus the crunch of bacon was amazing. The cake had a fantastic flavor, but was a little on the dry side. Careful not to overcook.

Delish.