Our cupcake contributor, Lauren of Crave. Indulge. Satisfy., is here today to make you drool…

I don’t know about you but one of my favorite sweets as a runner up to cupcakes of course, is Oreos!  My all time favorites are the Double Stuf.  But now there are even more options for the chocolate sandwich cream-filled cookies than when I was a kid…like Berry Burst, Peanut Butter and Cool Mint flavors!  I even saw a new Birthday Flavor with sprinkles in the cream center at the grocery the other day.  Well come to find out Oreo is celebrating their 100th birthday this month!  WOW!  I had no clue Milk’s Favorite Cookie was turning the big 100, and much less the month I planned to do an Oreo themed cupcake.  I must say the timing turned out quite nicely!  So today I’m excited to share with you some delicious Chocolate Mint Oreo Cupcakes.

This recipe is super simple and doesn’t require a ton of ingredients.  The base of the cake starts with a chocolate box mix, which I’m sure most everyone has on hand in their pantry just in case you need to whip up a cake in a pinch.  Add a few extra ingredients to the mix and you’ve got yourself a cake that tastes like its from scratch!  I always keep a few box cakes on hand just in case I want to save the extra time and measuring of all those ingredients when making a cake.  And if you make the frosting from scratch I guarantee know one will even know the cake was from a box…it can be our little secret!

The fun thing about Oreos is that they are just the right size to sneak into the bottom of your cupcake liners before adding your cake batter.  The cake bakes up perfectly leaving the Oreo at the bottom of the wrapper so its completely hidden.  It is not until someone takes a bite into the cupcake do they discover the surprise of the cream-filled cookie inside and that extra burst of color from the green Cool Mint!  I must say these go over great with the kids…it’s like they found a hidden treasure inside their cake!

With all the Oreo flavors these days, this recipe can be easily adapted to suit your flavor cravings! So have fun experimenting with your favorite Oreo flavor.

CHOCOLATE MINT OREO CUPCAKES
recipe by Lauren Kapeluck
(makes 24 cupcakes)

For the cake:

1 box Devils Food Cake Mix
1 small box (3.9oz) Chocolate Instant Pudding
1 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup milk
4 eggs
24 Cool Mint Oreos

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line muffin pans with cupcake liners.
2. Place one Cool Mint Oreo in the bottom of each cupcake liner.
3. In medium bowl combine cake mix, chocolate pudding, vegetable oil, milk and eggs.
4. Beat with electric mixer until incorporated and then continue mixing 1-2 minutes.
5. Scoop batter over top of Oreos in cupcake liner.
6. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
7. Let cupcakes cool in pans for 5 minutes, then remove to wire racks to finish cooling.
8. Once cupcakes are completely cool frost with Crushed Oreo Mint Frosting.

For the icing:
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup vegetable shortening
6 cups confectioner’s sugar
3 Tbsp milk
1 tsp mint extract
green food coloring
12 Cool Mint Oreos, crushed

1. In bowl of stand mixer beat butter and vegetable shortening until creamy.
2. Gradually add in confectioner’s sugar one cup at a time, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary.
3. Add milk 1 Tbsp at a time as needed until reach desired consistency.
4. Add mint extract and a few drops of green food coloring to tint to desired color.
5. Mix in crushed Oreos.
6. Place icing in piping bag and snip off tip to create a large hole. Swirl icing on top of cupcakes.
7. Garnish cupcakes with 1 Cool Mint Oreo cookie on top if desired.

Go pour yourself a tall glass of milk and enjoy a Chocolate Mint Oreo Cupcake! Happy 100th Birthday Oreo!

	Lauren Kapeluck Lauren is a monthly contributor for The Cake Blog. She is a self-taught baker and lover of all things sugar. Read more about Lauren on her bio page.