Holy Oreo

I woke up today excited to try out some new things. With my membership card in hand I loaded the girls up and made our way to the local YMCA for open swim time. Since doing our tour the girls have been excited about the prospect of swimming in the biggest pool they had ever seen. The locker room was quite an experience, one that I am sure we will have again and again. The girls exhibited great independence in the "big pool" and took an instant liking to the friendly lifeguard. We pulled our waterlogged bodies out of the pool and quickly changed clothes, making our way to the closest playground equipment. When hunger took us over we decided to leave for the day, making plans to perhaps celebrate Mother's Day in the pool. The second thing I was excited about was the Death by Oreo Cupcakes I would be making. I quick trip to the grocery store made sure I had everything I would need for these sweet treats. This time both of my girls were ready to help. A few arguments broke out about who got to mix what and why one of them dropped the mixer in the bowl as soon as I mentioned it should not occur. In the end we overcame and turned out a pretty fantastic treat. I love Oreo cookies. I love dipping them in milk even more, but I think attempting to dunk this particular creation would not have a welcome result. There are a select few that will get to indulge in this with me. For those who are not lucky enough to do so you can make them at home. Here's how:
For the Cupcakes:
1 package of chocolate Oreo Cookies
1 Box Devil's Food Cake Mix (seems like cheating but sure does not taste like it)
3 eggs
1 1/3 cups water
1/2 cup vegetable oil

1. Line the cupcake tin with paper liners and place a whole Oreo in the bottom of each (yes you read that right!)
2. Set aside 10 Oreos (these will be for your icing). Take the rest and crush them into coarse crumbs, mix the crumbs with the DRY cake mix
3. Add wet ingredients and mix according to the box directions
4. Pour batter into liners until 3/4 full making sure the Oreo is completely covered with batter
5. Bake for 15-18 minutes (I baked for a little over 18 because I overfilled my liners)
6. Let cool completely before icing

For the Icing

1 cup (2 sticks) butter at room temperature            
1 tsp vanilla
4 cups powdered sugar
10 reserved Oreo Cookies
2-3 Tbs heavy cream

1. Finely grind Oreos (use a food processor if possible)
2. Mix in butter and vanilla
3. Add powdered sugar 1/4 cup at a time, mixing well with each addition
4. Add heavy cream as needed until reaching desired consistency
5. Ice cupcakes

You will see that I added a mini Oreo to the top for decoration. This is not necessary but when I saw it on http://karinscupcakeadventure.blogspot.com/ I thought Karin was on to something so I copied her, thanks Karin for the recipe and the decorating idea.

If you try these at home I am sure you will love them as much as I do. I promise I only ate one. If you would rather just stare at them longingly in an attempt to avoid the caloric intake that comes with them then feel free to check out my slide show of these and more sweet creations of mine. Happy Mother's Day to all you mamas out there. Until next time....