Cookies and Cream Oreo Cupcakes

You may be wondering what's Easter-y about these cupcakes? since they were made in preparation for my Easter cupcake stall. Well, I had intended to cover the frosting in Oreo crumbs to make 'dirt' and then to make little bunny feet out of marshmallow so it looked like there were bunnies digging in the dirt...unfortunately by this point in the evening I was up to my eyebrows in frosting and cupcakes and craziness and so I decided I was going to have to abandon that plan! 

Oreo cupcakes are probably the most frequent cupcake I make aside from my number one favourite brownie cupcake.  However my very favourite Oreo cupcake recipe is one that is made using a chocolate base.  I decided I had quite a few chocolate offerings going on already so I opted to make a vanilla based Oreo cupcake.  I knew exactly where I was going to turn to find that recipe...and that was to Annie's Eats blog - her recipes have never let me down and I knew I had seen a delicious cookies and cream recipe on there a while back.  

What I loved about these cupcakes is that the vanilla base really let the Oreo shine through.  I had never really thought about it before but the chocolate cupcake I usually make probably overpowers the chunks of Oreo dispersed through it whereas the vanilla cupcake let you really taste the Oreo chunks.

I switched it up this time as well by using chocolate creme filled Oreo's in the base of the cupcakes, instead of the regular vanilla filled ones and it was a fun twist! 

If you love Oreo as much as we all know I do, you should definitely give this recipe a try! 

Cookies and Cream Oreo Cupcakes:

Makes 12 regular and 24 mini

From Annie's Eats

24 chocolate creme filled Oreo cookies

280g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

113g unsalted butter

335g caster sugar

3 large egg whites, at room temperature

2 tsp vanilla extract

215ml semi skimmed milk

150g crushed Oreos

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C.

Place an Oreo half in the bottom of each cupcake case, cream side up.  I placed a quarter of one side of a cookie in the mini cases.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt and stir together until combined.  Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine butter and sugar and beat together on a medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.

Blend in the egg whites, one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Blend in the vanilla extract.

With the mixer on low speed, beat in half of the dry ingredients just until incorporated.  

Add the milk and beat until just combined, then mix in the remaining dry ingredients.

Gently fold in the chopped Oreos with a rubber spatula until evenly incorporated, being careful not to over-mix.  

Divide the batter between the cupcake cases, until about 2/3 full. 

Bake for 18-20 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking, until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Allow the cupcakes to cool in their pans for 10 minutes, and then transfer to a wire rack to let them cool completely.

Oreo Cream Cheese Frosting:

Makes enough to frost the above

From The Red Deer

8 oz package of cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
4 cups icing sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup crushed Oreos 

Whip cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy.

Mix in icing sugar, one cup at a time.

Add vanilla extract.

Gently stir in crushed Oreos.

To decorate:

12 Chocolate creme filled Oreo cookies

1 cup crushed Oreo Crumbs

Cut each Oreo cookie directly in half using a large sharp kitchen knife.  I find that they cut cleaner if you do it in a quick motion.  Add one Oreo half to each of your regular cupcakes, and sprinkle the mini cupcakes with the Oreo crumbs.

Eat and enjoy!