Cookies & Cream Cupcakes

So now for my third attempt.  A remake of the cookies and cream.  Going with Martha Stewart this time and instead of butter I used Crisco Butter Flavored baking sticks.  The recipe called for 350 degrees for 15 to 17 minutes.  I checked them at 12 minutes, not quite done.  Fifteen minutes seemed to do it.   I got 24 cupcakes out of it.

Here’s the recipe

12 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1 ½ cups sugar

2 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

6 large egg whites (3/4 cup)

¾ cup of milk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 tablespoon sour cream

15 crushed chocolate sandwich cookies (I used Oreos)

24 Mini Oreos for garnish

Directions:  Beat butter and sugar until fluffy (about 5 minutes).  Stir together all the dry ingredients and set aside.  Mix egg whites; milk, sour cream and vanilla.  Add 1/3 of the flour mixture to butter mixture; add 1/3 milk mixture and beat with an electric mixer at medium. Continue to alternate until all ingredients are combined.  Fold in the crushed sandwich cookies.  I put mine in plastic bag and hit them with a meat tenderizer. 

Frosting:

1 8 ounce package of cream cheese

16 ounces of powdered sugar

1 teaspoon of vanilla

2 tablespoons of milk

3 crushed chocolate sandwich cookies (crushed fine)

Here’s what I learned:

      For the frosting I needed to crush the cookies a little more.  Chunks are okay for the cupcakes.  Several times I had to take my decorating gun apart because a cookie bit jammed up the piping tip.  I use Wilton’s Dessert Decorator Plus and I was using the star tip.  It looked like it had the biggest opening and less likely to jamb.  It was easy to unclog with a toothpick but could have been avoided if the cookies were crushed better. 

      It’s hard to get perfect looking Oreo cookies from the Mini Oreo bag.  I guess because they all bounce against each other during shipping.  Or maybe they have a life of their own and are having a grand ole time in the bag before they meet their final resting place.  A bucket list for mini Oreos? If I were making a batch to take somewhere I’d probably get 2 bags so I could sort through the chipped and broken ones to get the decorator quality mini.  

      I didn’t have enough icing.  If I doubled it, it might be too much.  I’m thinking 1 plus ½ of the recipe would have been just about right. 

The taste test:   They are GOOD!!!!   Not too dry.  However, playing devil’s advocate I didn’t think “Wow, these are really moist” either.  I think I’d add more sour cream next time as an experiment.