This week, a playful little recipe that I read about on a food blog and simply had to have a go at.

The Cupcake Project site is always a great read, especially for the fancier side of sweet baking, but this particular page just leapt at me, begging to be  tried.

Sometimes all it takes is a picture on the computer screen and I know I’ll be noting down the ingredients and getting to work in the test kitchen, and this was the case here – I knew I wanted to make and eat these at the very earliest opportunity!

It is one of those dishes that teeter between the sweet and savoury, which is something I like very much. It excites the taste buds.

The Americans use this flavour profile a lot more than we do, especially at breakfast time, combining the savouriness of grilled and fried meats with eggs, waffles or pancakes, and then adding a sweet kick from maple syrup or even jam.

 Grape jelly is often used with waffles and bacon, and is amazing, though most definitely an acquired taste.

 And here, in this recipe, the potato and bacon is set against a sweet, rich egg icing, albeit one with a kick of smoky paprika and Cayenne pepper.

 If you like the idea of these flavours combined, this really is the recipe for you.

Essentially we’re starting off by making potato rösti, one of my very favourite things to do with potatoes, and a dish which, sadly, I don’t make half as often as I should, mainly because it’s a bit fiddly and time-consuming.

A shame really, as a proper Swiss rösti is a thing of beauty; that golden crunchy exterior cracking open to reveal the silky, slippery potato shreds within, perfect for soaking up a sweet onion gravy or cosying up next to some grilled bratwursts.

Quite often I’d make a rösti and add a little shredded sautéed bacon to the mixture, and top it with no more than a fried egg for a perfect supper or lunch dish, and it’s this almost magical team of potato, egg and bacon that can be the core of dozens of terrific recipes.

The rösti mixture, here enlivened with some grated Reggiano Parmesan for a flavour boost and parsley for colour, is pressed into muffin tins and baked to crunchy golden perfection, before being topped with a sweet-savoury devilled egg icing, which melts slowly into the cupcakes as you serve them.

The whole thing is topped with a rasher of crisp, crunchy bacon, candied with muscovado sugar for extra flavour intensity.

It’s a cracking little dish, and makes an interesting breakfast if you have the time and inclination to get up early and grate all that potato. Perhaps one for treating a loved one; it’d be perfect with a glass of bucks fizz as a start to a lazy, romantic day.

The bacon should be streaky, and ideally the American-style rashers which can be found in most supermarkets these days.

Look for the ones in the bright yellow packets with red writing. The cut and cure of these strips helps the bacon become super-crispy when grilled, which adds a lovely savoury crunch to the dish.

If you can’t find this bacon, try shredding some streaky bacon and baking it in the oven, turning frequently, until it becomes crisp and light. Whichever method you use, I hope you enjoy these  entertaining little ‘cupcakes’.

Aprons on!

For the potato cupcakes:

1 kg peeled potatoes

60g grated Reggiano Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive or truffle oil

1 tablespoon chopped parsley

Maldon salt

Freshly-ground black pepper

For the devilled egg icing:

24 fresh, free-range eggs

225g butter, diced, at room temperature, plus extra for greasing

130ml double cream

500g icing sugar

1 teaspoon Maldon salt

A good grind of black pepper

½ teaspoon Cayenne pepper

2 teaspoons smoked paprika

Chives for garnish

For the bacon:

Streaky bacon

Light muscovado sugar

Extras:

Muffin tins

Iced water

Piping bag

Method

First, let’s make the icing. Bring a large pan of salted water to a gently rolling boil, and pop in the eggs.

Cook for 12 minutes, then remove the eggs and plunge into iced  water and allow to cool completely.

 Peel the eggs carefully, and remove the yolks.

Discard the whites (or use them chopped in vinaigrettes) and chop the yolks roughly.

Beat the butter until light and fluffy, then add the yolks and keep beating until smooth.

Sift in the icing sugar in small amounts, beating to incorporate, then finally add the salt, pepper, Cayenne and smoked paprika.

Check the seasoning, and place in a piping bag.

 Preheat the oven to 190ºC / Gas 5. Butter the muffin tins. Heat the grill.

Grate the potato into a bowl, and squeeze out as much of the moisture as you can. Mix the potato with the cheese, oil and parsley, and season well. Press the mixture into the greased muffin tins and bake for about 40 - 45 minutes until they are golden and  crispy all round.

 As they’re finishing, lay the bacon rashers on a foil-covered tray, and sprinkle with a little muscovado sugar.

 Grill until crisp, and lay on some kitchen paper to drain of any extra grease.

To serve the cupcakes, pipe the devilled egg icing on to each potato cake in an extravagant whirl, and top with a piece of crispy bacon and a few snipped chives.