Cookies and Cream Cupcakes

Happy Earth Day!

I love "holidays" because they are an excuse to bake themed goodies. My friend, Michelle, and I decided to get together to bake some earthy cupcakes and drink fruity beverages. We decided on cookies and cream cupcakes and peach bellinis. YUM!

made with $5 Andre champagne and peach Bacardi with frozen blueberries for ice :)

The cupcakes are great for several reasons. The bottom is half of an Oreo cookie, cream side up. The cake portion is a dense vanilla cake with HUGE chunks of Oreo. I'm glad that I decided to go with chunks instead of crushing the Oreos because it gave the cupcake a nice texture. Oh, and the cream cheese frosting. No explanation necessary.

We decorated them with crushed Oreos to look like dirt and stuck some gummy worms on top. We also tried to make flowers on some with Skittles. Not quite as cute as we had envisioned but juuuuust as tasty. 

The only issue with this cupcakes is that we overcooked them a bit. We took them out and noticed that they were a little gooey on top so we decided to throw them back in the oven for a couple minutes. When we took them out and let them cool, the tops and sides were a little hard. That's when we realized that the gooey-ness was probably due to the cream in the Oreos melting. So don't be fooled by the sneaky goo! They still tasted delicious, just not as moist as they could have been.

Cookies and cream is always a crowd pleaser with kids and adults. And the surprise Oreo bottom takes the cupcakes to a whole new level. Making these for someone with a serious cookies and cream addiction? Serve it with a scoop of cookies and cream ice cream for a decadent overdose :)

Cookies and Cream Cupcakes (24 cupcakes) from Beantown Baker

For the cupcakes

• 1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup milk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups flour, plus 2 Tbsp for the Oreo chunks
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 2/3 cup sugar
• 3 large egg whites, at room temperature
• 1 pkg Oreo cookies

For the frosting

• 4 oz cream cheese at room temp
• 1/2 stick (4 Tbsp) butter at room temp
• 1/2 Tbsp vanilla
• 2 cups powdered sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Insert liners into a medium cupcake pan.
2. Twist apart 24 Oreos. Place the wafer with filling on it, filling side up, in the bottom of each paper liner.
3. Cut the remaining Oreo cookies into quarters with a sharp knife. Toss with 2 Tbsp flour and set aside.
4. In a large bowl cream the butter until fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Add the milk and vanilla and mix to combine.
5. In a separate bowl mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
6. Add the dry ingredients to butter mixture. Mix until integrated. Stir in sugar. With an electric mixer on low speed, beat for 30 seconds. Turn the mixer up to medium speed and beat for 2 minutes. Add the egg whites. Beat for 2 more minutes. Stir in the quartered cookies.
7. Fill the cupcake lines three-quarters full. Bake for about 20 minutes (maybe even 18) or until a toothpick inserted in the center of cupcakes comes out clean. Cool cupcakes in the pan.
8. While the cupcakes are cooling, make the frosting. Place the cream cheese in the bowl of your mixer. Beat on medium-high until completely smooth, 3-4 minutes. Add the butter and continue to cream until fluffy. Add vanilla extract. Add powdered sugar 1/4 cup at a time until desired consistency is reached.
9. Frost the cupcakes. For dirt cupcakes, garnish with crushed Oreos and gummy worms. For regular cupcakes, garnish with crushed Oreos and half of an Oreo.

Oreo bottoms

flour coated Oreos

unbaked

baked

Happy Earth Day!