Cookies and Cream Cupcakes

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Soft and fluffy vanilla cupcake stuffed with crushed Oreo pieces, topped with lusciously smooth meringue frosting, all sitting atop a whole Oreo cookie. These completely homemade cupcakes are irresistible and perfect for sharing, but you won’t want to. A must-bake for any Oreo fans out there.

When I first started baking, I would use my coworkers for taste testing. I made muffins, doughnuts, brownies, wildly popular peanut butter cookies, and every cupcake recipe I could think of. I would insist every coworker tell me about their favorite flavors and desserts, and I would attempt to replicate it in the perfect cupcake.

So when I got a request for Oreo cupcakes, I immediately went home and started my recipe testing. I came in a few days later with these cupcakes, and then… Every baking request I received was for these Cookies and Cream Cupcakes. I was making these for every birthday and office party. I made these so many times and no one ever grew sick of them.

What do I need to get started?

• A stand mixer or handheld electric mixer. The cake itself can be made by hand, but the frosting needs the power of an electric mixer so it can get nice and fluffy.
• Unsalted butter at room temperature. Butter used in baking should almost always be unsalted – you want to control how much salt is going in your cupcakes. If you are able, I always recommend splurging on some good butter. My local grocery store has Kerrygold, and it is brilliant for baking because it has a higher fat content and lower water content (I am not associated with Kerrygold in any way, I just think their butter is great.)
• Eggs.
• Sugar.
• All purpose flour AND cake flour – If you cannot get your hands on cake flour, take all purpose flour and mix in a small amount of cornstarch. Cake flour lends to a much lighter crumb.
• Sour Cream – this will make your cupcakes extra moist, light, and fluffy.
• Vanilla extract. I always say to use the pure vanilla extract. Imitation vanilla, or the bottles labeled “vanilla flavor” never have the same taste.
• Buttermilk. This is the moist-maker for cupcakes.
• Baking powder and baking soda.
• Salt. Never leave out salt in baking recipes.

How do I make Cookies and Cream Cupcakes from scratch?

I think you’ll find the cake recipe to be quite straightforward with the basic creaming method for making cakes and cupcakes.

Take your butter and sugar and cream them together in a large bowl until the butter is noticeably lighter in color and fluffy. This usually takes me about 2-3 minutes in a stand mixer. Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, mix the flours, salt, baking soda, and baking powder, then set aside.

Add eggs, vanilla, and sour cream, to the butter mixture, and stir together. At this point the mixture will look a bit separated and won’t be fully combined – that is okay at this stage. There is a lot of fat in the bowl with no dry ingredients.

I like to add the buttermilk and dry ingredients in stages. Add a bit of the flour, then a bit of the milk, and keep switching back and forth until it is all fully combined and you have a completed cake batter, starting and ending with flour (I go flour-milk-flour-milk-flour.) Then you can fold in your crushed Oreos.

Prepare your cupcake pan with paper liners, and put an entire Oreo in each liner, then spoon your batter right over the full Oreo. Bake for ~20 minutes, then let cool completely on a wire rack.

How do I make Cookies and Cream frosting from scratch?

I always make Swiss Meringue Buttercream for my cupcakes. I find it to be much smoother than other types of buttercream frostings, and less sweet. Don’t get me wrong – I have a huge sweet tooth, but the typical American style buttercream uses too much powdered sugar for my personal taste. If that is your favorite style of frosting, feel free to use it, and just fold in some crushed Oreos.

Swiss Meringue Buttercream is made by melting egg whites and sugar over a double boiler, then whisking it all up in a stand mixer, then adding in butter. The process with the double boiler will cook your eggs, so the frosting is safe to eat.

Tips and Tricks

• When measuring dry ingredients using measuring cups, fill the cup with a spoon, and then level it off with a knife. If you take the actual measuring cup and scoop out the flour, the amount will be off. This method takes longer, but it is more accurate. Another option, and my preferred method, is to measure ingredients.
• If you are using a piping tip for piping the frosting, you will want to use a circle shaped nozzle. A star shaped nozzle will get Oreo bits stuck in it.
• If you are piping, don’t hold your piping bag at an angle, hold it directly above the cupcake. Start in the middle of the cupcake and work your way to the edges.
• If you don’t want to use a piping bag, using a knife is great too. Your method for frosting the cupcakes doesn’t really matter, what matters is you get the frosting on the cupcake.
• Make sure your butter is at room temperature before using. The best way to do this is to leave it on the counter overnight. If you forget (or if it’s winter in a cold place) you can soften your butter by microwaving in 5-10 second intervals.
• Be careful not to overmix after flour is added. Overmixed flour will lead to a tough cupcake.
• If making Swiss Meringue Buttercream, make sure your stand mixing bowl and whisk are completely clean and grease free. You can do this by taking a tiny bit of vinegar on a paper towel, and rubbing it down.
• Please be patient with Swiss Meringue Buttercream. If it looks soupy, keep mixing it. It will all come together.

If you try this Oreo cupcake recipe, please let me know how it worked out for you! You will get requests for years to come :).