Father's Day "Death by Oreo Cupcakes"

I wasn't planning on baking cupcakes this weekend considering I am due any day now with our second daughter, but I realized it was fathers day or as I like to call it "baby daddy day" and I just HAD to make something. I have an ever growing list of cupcakes to make and I have been wanting to make oreo cupcakes for a while now. I have seen oreo cakes and cupcakes recently in ads and blogs so maybe this is a popular recipe for fathers day. Either way I wanted to make them. I took my chocolate cupcake recipe, used dark cocoa powder instead of regular, put an oreo at the bottom of the cupcake and frosting with quite possibly the yummiest frosting ever, swiss meringue butter cream with oreo cookie crumbs mixed in. Topped off with a few mini oreos and Voila! "death by Oreos cupcakes" .  I was going to fill them with the frosting too but decided to just top each one with a GIANT swirl of the buttercream. I got a little carried away and had to scrape some off the ones that had a little too much and try to redo so they all got frosted equally. I still had 4 left over and not much frosting left so they got blobs instead of swirls. Still tasted JUST as good. I think next time I would put some batter down then the oreo because as we took the liners off the oreo wasn't stuck to the bottom of the cupcake it fell away. All in all though these were really really yummy and I will make again!!

I went with a two bowl method for these instead of using my stand mixer. I was being lazy and sometimes I really hate washing my mixer bowl and beater blades. 

Using the dark chocolate cocoa powder instead of regular gave these cupcakes a richer flavor and a darker chocolatey color. hmmm yummy

I couldn't get it in the picture very well but I LOVE the oreo package says how many POUNDS of cookies it contains not the actual number of cookies inside. Gotta love Nabisco 

 I carefully twisted the cookies so I placed one half down with the filling inside each liner and saved the other half for the frosting. Okay so maybe I wasn't that careful and a few broke and I ate them - but most made it in. ha ha

Mixing the eggs til they are slightly thickened and more pale in color

Adding in the dry ingredients

So yummy. LOVE this recipe!

Filling the tins. With the oreo at the bottom one scoop of batter seemed to be a little TOO much but I still filled them all the same any way. I ended up with 30 cupcakes this time instead of 27-28. I made 6 without oreos on the bottom to save for another time. Always great to have a few cupcakes stashed in the freezer for an impromptu dessert or practice a decorating style on.

You can see these are pretty full. The batter is super dark. Yes I spray my tins with cooking spray because I have had the cupcakes spill out during baking and stick to the pans and then when I tried to remove the  tops tore off. So better safe than sorry I guess

This time they just puffed up pretty high, didn't spill over.

Yummy chocolaty goodness

I pureed about 12 whole oreos and a few of the tops for the crumbs to be mixed into the frosting

I started with a basic vanilla swiss meringue buttercream and added in the oreo crumbs once it was all mixed together 

Love the little flecks of cookie crumbs

Giant swirls of frosting

I used my massive ateco tip that I call my wilton 1m on steroids piping tip

Yummy

Here is one with the blob of frosting since I didn't have enough left to swirl

And of COURSE one cut in half to see the oreo. These cupcakes are super moist so I was OK with not filling them. Normally I fill them to break up ALL that cake with just the blob of frosting on top and in case they are a little dry the filling helps. But these didn't really need the filling. 

Oreo Cupcake Recipe

MY chocolate cupcake recipe with a few changes

Best Chocolate Cupcakes Ever

Makes 28 -30

Dry Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (dark chocolate cocoa powder like Hersheys)

2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Wet Ingredients:

1 cup whole milk

4 ounces bittersweet chocolate melted and cooled (cooled for about 15 min make sure its still melted though don’t want it to harden back up)
½ cup plus 1 tbsp water, heated to boiling ( have a kettle of water on the stove boiling ready to go)
3/4 cup vegetable oil

2 large eggs room temp
2 tablespoons vinegar (not wine vinegar)
1 tablespoon vanilla

1 package of regular sized Oreo cookies and one package of mini Oreo cookies

 Instructions

This can be done with a stand mixer or by hand with a hand mixer or whisk but it is more of a 2 bowl method than one if going the hand mixing route

1. Preheat oven to 350F with rack in the center.
2. Place paper baking cups in regular sized muffin tins, spray edges around 

cups lightly with cooking spray. If you have a small 6 cup muffin tin and you only

get 27 or 28 cupcakes fill the rest of the wells halfway with water and no baking

cup

3. Carefully twist off one side of the oreo and place the half with the cream filling down, filling side up in the bottom of each liner
4. Whisk together the dry ingredients (sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt)

in a large bowl.
5. In a large bowl or bowl of stand mixer whisk eggs till slightly thickened and a pale

color

6. Add in the milk, vanilla, oil and vinegar and whisk/beat well

7. Add in the melted and cooled chocolate and whisk/beat until combined well
8. Either add the flour mixture into the wet ingredients OR the wet into the flour and mix

just to combine. Add in the boiling water and mix again just to combine. Scrape

down the sides of the bowl with a spatula to make sure all the dry ingredients are

incorporated
9. Fill each cupcake liner 3/4 of the way with batter. You will have more than 24 cupcakes this way so if you don't have another tin or even a 6 cup tin, keep the remaining batter set aside and bake  the rest after the first batch comes out of the oven

10. Bake 15-18 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean and free

 of crumbs or the cupcake tops bounce back when lightly pressed. Mine baked for

18 minutes.

11. Let cool for 5 min in pans and then remove carefully to a wire cooling rack. Cool completely before frosting

Oreo Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Adapted from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes

Ingredients

Makes 5 cups

• 5 large egg whites
• 1 cup plus 2 tbsp granulated sugar
• 2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into tablespoon sized pieces
• 1 1/2  tsp teaspoon vanilla extract
• pinch salt
• oreo cookie crumbs ( 12-14 whole oreos, pulse in food processor until you get very fine crumbs, no big pieces left)

Directions

1. Place sugar and egg whites in the heat-proof bowl of an electric mixer. Set bowl over a pan of gently simmering water, and whisk until sugar has dissolved and egg whites are hot to the touch, about 3 minutes. Test by rubbing the mixture between your fingers; it should feel completely smooth.
2. Transfer bowl to mixer stand. Using the whisk attachment, beat on high speed until mixture has cooled completely and formed stiff and glossy peaks, about 10 minutes.
3. Add the butter, one piece at a time, and beat until incorporated after each addition. Don't worry if the butter cream appears curdled after all the butter has been added; it will become smooth again with continued beating. Add vanilla, and beat just until combined.
4. Switch to the paddle attachment, and beat on the low speed to eliminate any air pockets, about 5 minutes. 
5. Add in the oreo cookie crumbs and beat to incorporate
6. If using buttercream within several hours, cover bowl with plastic wrap, and set aside at room temperature in a cool environment. Or transfer to an airtight container, and store in the refrigerator, up to 3 days. Before using, bring buttercream to room temperature, and beat on the lowest speed with the paddle attachment until smooth, about 5 minutes.
7. I personally DON'T switch to the paddle attachment, I keep it on the whisk. Never noticed any difference and then its less attachments to clean up. ha ha 
8.  This makes enough to GENEROUSLY pipe frosting on to 24 cupcakes or maybe a little more less on 30. It will probably spread onto 40 cupcakes if going the spatula route. 

Another Recipe Update - Caramel Apple Cupcakes

I have added the recipes to this post of my Caramel Apple Cupcakes from September, 2009. I know a little out of season BUT who doesn't love a caramel apple? The recipe is my green apple cupcake recipe and Martha Stewart's Caramel Swiss Meringue buttercream. 

I have added to my original post you can go to it HERE.

Enjoy!!

Recipe Update - Tiramisu Cupcakes

Another recipe has been added to a prior post. Tiramisu Cupcakes. This is one of the few recipes from Martha Stewart's cupcake book that I actually like and it worked. Most have not from what I have discovered through making them. There are many tiramisu cupcake recipes online and I think next time I make them I will try a different one. There are a lot of steps involved with this one and although they were really good, the mascarpone frosting had a lot to do with it, I think the same flavors can be achieved with less steps. I love tiramisu so I will have to try these again soon. Enjoy!

Mocha Cupcakes with Caramel Swiss Meringue Buttercream frosting

I have been going through some of my pictures on my file on my computer and have come across cupcakes that I have made a while ago and never blogged about! I don't have step by step pictures for most of these cupcakes like I do with my more recent ones but I do have the recipes! I had made caramel Swiss meringue buttercream for my Caramel Apple Cupcakes that I was originally not that thrilled with. I thought I cooked the caramel too long so it tasted like toffee, I thought it wouldn't come together like the attempts I had made with Swiss meringue buttercream in the past. I had saved the leftovers in the freezer to use at a later date. I thought a caramel mocha cupcake sounded good.

So I started with a mocha cupcake as a base. It is a good not overly rich cake but with a nice coffee flavor. I love anything coffee from cake to cupcakes to ice cream and well just plain ol coffee. So these definitely were an instant fave of mine. I thawed the buttercream and whipped back into shape ha ha. Frosted the cupcakes with a 1M swirl and sprinkled with some dark chocolate shavings. OH MY GOD. These were SO good. And I mean REALLY good. The combo is to die for. And looking at these and writing this up is making me want one but I don't have any. Guess they are going on my ever growing list of cupcakes to make. I have so many I want to try that are new recipes and so many I want to make again. So many cupcakes. Such little time. Sigh

Mocha Cupcake Recipe

(I have this recipe written down in my notebook of recipes so I don't remember where I got it from so I can't credit anyone for it. I know I found it online somewhere!!

Ingredients

1 1/3 cups all purpose flour

1/3 cup dark cocoa powder

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup whole milk

1/2 cup cooled strong coffee

1 tsp espresso powder

1/2 cup or 1 stick of butter at room temp
1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar packed

1 large egg room temp

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a 12 cup muffin tin with cupcake papers

Sift together the dry ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside.

Stir the espresso powder into the coffee until dissolved, combine with milk and set aside

Cream butter and sugars together in an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the egg and mix until fully combined. Add the vanilla and mix again. Set the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture and milk mixture alternating starting and ending with the flour mixture. Don't wait for each one to be fully incorporated before adding the next. Just add alternating until all is in. Should take about 60 seconds to do so. Mix on medium for about 20-30 seconds to get everything incorporated then stop. You don't want to over mix. Fill the cupcake tin about 2/3 - 3/4 of the way full in each cup. Bake for 15-20 min or until a toothpick stuck in the middle of one comes out clean or the top springs back lightly when touched. Just depends on your oven temp. Took 16 min in my oven. Cool in pan for 5 minutes then take out of pan and cool completely on wire rack before frosting. At least an hour.

Caramel Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Recipe from Martha Stewart

Caramel Swiss Meringue Buttercream


Ingredients
Makes 5 cups

• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 6 large egg whites
• Pinch of salt
• 1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened and cut into tablespoon-sized pieces
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

1. Make caramel: Pour 1/4 cup water into a medium heavy-bottom saucepan. Add 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved and syrup is clear. Continue to cook, without stirring, until syrup comes to a boil, washing down sides of pan with a wet pastry brush two or three times to prevent crystals from forming. Let syrup boil, gently swirling pan occasionally, until syrup is dark amber.
2. Immediately remove from heat; carefully pour in cream (caramel will bubble vigorously). Stir caramel until smooth. Transfer to a bowl; let cool.
3. Whisk together remaining 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, the egg whites, and salt in the heatproof bowl of a standing mixer. Set bowl over a pan of simmering water; whisk until sugar is dissolved and mixture registers 140 degrees on an instant-read thermometer.
4. Return bowl to mixer; fit mixer with whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until stiff. Reduce speed to medium low; add butter, a few tablespoons at a time. Continue whisking until smooth.
5. Switch to paddle attachment. Add caramel and vanilla; beat on lowest speed until combined, 3 to 5 minutes. The buttercream can be made 2 days ahead and stored in the refrigerator. Before using, bring frosting to room temperature; return to mixer and beat with the paddle attachment until smooth.

Tiramisu Cupcakes

Tiramisu is one of my favorite desserts. I love pretty much anything with coffee in it especially desserts. So when I saw this recipe for Tiramisu cupcakes I though oooh yummy and oooh easier than the real thing. Um not really. This recipe is from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes book.
First off the recipe is different in the book than it is on her video online. If I had followed her video I would have done fewer steps. It is a little labor intensive with the three steps of mixing the eggs and sugar, then heating, then beating again. I think I might tweak this recipe a little the next time I make it so its not as many steps.

Here they are ready for the oven. I am a dummy and made 24 when the recipe said in TINY print makes 18. Sooo mine were all a little smaller than I had wanted. I guess then its ok to eat two.

One of the steps was to scrape a vanilla bean into the milk mixture. So worth doing this step. You can see the little flecks of vanilla seed and the aroma is amazing. Tastes way better than adding liquid extract.

They were all nice and poofy in oven and flattened out and even sank in a little. I was worried considering I just got a NEW oven..

They get soaked with a coffee/marsala/sugar syrup. Marsala is an Italian dessert wine. I had a sip to taste it just to see what it was exactly. It's like port. But sweeter. I don't think I will be having a glass anytime soon. Maybe just making lots of Tiramisu with it


This perhaps was the best part of the cupcake. The mascarpone frosting. It was to DIE FOR yummy. Mascarpone, powdered sugar, whip cream and a little vanilla. It was so good we licked the bowl clean after I frosted the cupcakes. My husband even stopped to see if there was leftovers in the bowl. It was that good.

Dusted with a little cocoa powder just before serving and this is what it looks like in the inside after I took a bite!!

You can see that yummy coffee/marsala syrup soaked in.
These are on the top of my list to make again. But with a different recipe for the cake. Less steps so I can eat them faster!!

Tiramisu Cupcake Recipe

Copied exactly from Martha Stewart's Book, Cupcakes

Tiramisu Cupcakes

Ingredients

Makes 18

• 1 1/4 cups cake flour (not self-rising), sifted
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise, seeds scraped and reserved
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into pieces
• 3 large whole eggs plus 3 egg yolks, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Sift together cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Heat milk and vanilla-bean pod and seeds in a small saucepan over medium heat just until bubbles appear around the edge. Remove from heat. Whisk in butter until melted, and let stand 15 minutes. Strain milk mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl, and discard vanilla-bean pod.
2. With an electric mixer on medium speed, whisk together whole eggs, yolks, and sugar. Set mixing bowl over a pan of simmering water, and whisk by hand until sugar is dissolved and mixture is warm, about 6 minutes. Remove bowl from heat. With an electric mixer on high speed, whisk until mixture is fluffy, pale yellow, and thick enough to hold a ribbon on the surface for several seconds when whisk is lifted.
3. Gently but thoroughly fold flour mixture into the egg mixture in three batches; stir 1/2 cup batter into the strained milk mixture to thicken, then fold milk mixture into the remaining batter until just combined.
4. Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until centers are completely set and edges are light golden brown, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes.
5. To finish, brush tops of cupcakes evenly with coffee-marsala syrup; repeat until all syrup has been used. Allow cupcakes to absorb liquid 30 minutes. Dollop frosting onto cupcakes; refrigerate up to overnight in airtight containers. Dust generously with cocoa powder just before serving.

Coffee Marsala Syrup

Ingredients

Makes enough for 18 cupcakes

• 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon freshly brewed very strong coffee (or espresso)
• 1 ounce marsala
• 1/4 cup sugar

Directions

1. Stir together coffee, marsala, and sugar until sugar is dissolved. Let cool.

Mascarpone Frosting

Ingredients

Makes about 2 cups

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 8 ounces mascarpone cheese, room temperature
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted

Directions

1. With an electric mixer on medium speed, whisk heavy cream until stiff peaks form (be careful not to overbeat, or cream will be grainy). In another bowl, whisk together mascarpone and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Gently fold whipped cream into mascarpone mixture until completely incorporated. Use immediately.