Cookies and Cream Filled Cupcakes

A couple of weeks ago, that mischief-inciting Yank, aka Ruthy, introduced us to a wonderful little gadget called the cupcake corer (you can see that post here). Since I love cupcakes, I immediately had to have one. And, once it arrived, my youngest son immediately wanted to make cupcakes. Lucky for me, school work kept him busy for the week, but by the weekend, all bets were off.

It took me a while to get across to him that you just don't make cupcakes and then decide to fill them. If we're going to do this, we at least need to have a plan. I knew the cupcakes would be chocolate, but it became his mission to decide what we were going to fill them with. And when the dust cleared, he'd come up with something I think you're going to love.

Cookies and Cream Filled Cupcakes

I started with my favorite chocolate cupcake recipe. You can find that recipe here. Then we took turns playing with the cupcake corer, giving all the cupcakes big belly buttons. You can see our fun little tool hiding there in the back.

For the filling, you will need:

• 8 oz. cream cheese at room temperature
• 4 oz. butter, salted or unsalted (I only had unsalted, so that's what we went with)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 cups sifted powdered sugar
• 12 Double Stuff Oreos, pulverized

First, to take care of those Oreos. And no, that does not mean eating them. The recipe only calls for 12, so there are plenty left in the package for eating. Preferably with a nice cold glass of milk. :)

 

I put the 12 in my food processor and pulsed them until they were where I wanted them. Nice and crumbly, but not powdered. If you don't have a food processor, a zip-top plastic bag and a rolling pin can achieve the same results. Not to mention remove any pent up frustrations you might have.



 

Next, cream the butter and cream cheese. Add the vanilla. Then the powdered sugar and beat until smooth.

 

Fold in the crushed cookies.

 

Sample the fruits of your labor.

 

Mmmmm....

 

Now the recipe says to use the filling immediately or refrigerate until ready to use. Of course, if you do this, it will thicken. Since our cupcakes were waiting to have their tummies filled, I spooned the filling to a disposable decorator bag with the tip cut off to give me an opening that was just the right size for the holes I was filling. This didn't take long and got the job done with no mess at all.

 

However, once they were filled, I had to figure out what to frost them with. I mean what kind of frosting goes well with cookies and cream filling. My son suggested cookies and cream frosting, but I asserted my veto power. Instead, I opted for the chocolate frosting Ruthy touted in her post. (recipe here)

 

 

Yet for as wonderful as the frosting was, it was a little overpowering for the filling. Next time, I think I will just dip the tops in a simple layer of ganache. Because, after all, the filling really is the star of the show.

 

I'm curious, how many of us were lured by Ruthy's post and bought a cupcake corer? If so, have you played with it yet? Or are you still mulling over the endless possibilities? I'd love to hear what combinations you've come up with.