Chocolate Covered Oreo Cupcakes

OH. MY. STARS!!!! ..... as my Uncle David would say. (I think I should start a new trend of "OMS" instead of "OMG" in honor of him.) These cupcakes are absolutely amazing, and they are relatively easy to make since the recipe uses a box mix. If you have a favorite chocolate cupcake recipe, feel free to use that. The frosting is like an Oreo cookie turned inside-out since the cookie is mixed in between the cream filling. Try not to eat it all out of the bowl before frosting the cupcakes. You'll definitely need a big glass of milk when eating these. You know what they say.... "Milk is Oreo's best friend!" Or is it "Oreo is Milk's best friend."??? Who knows, but you get the point!

I got this recipe from a fellow food blogger (Lemons and Love) that's a member of a cooking forum that I frequent. Several bloggers participated in this dessert themed recipe swap, and I was thrilled when I got this recipe in my email inbox. The original recipe was for a chocolate covered cake, but I chose to make cupcakes and top them with chocolate covered Oreos. The picture above is the way I intended them to look, but we ate too many Oreos out of the box several of the Oreos magically disappeared and there weren't enough to coat with chocolate. The picture below is what I did with the remainder of the cupcakes. I just drizzled some of the chocolate over the cold frosting.

 

Chocolate Covered Oreo Cupcakes

Ingredients:
1 box Devil's Food Cake mix

4- ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
8- ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups thawed whipped topping
12 Oreo cookies, crushed
12 Oreo cookies, broken in half to make 24 halves

Directions:
Make cupcakes according to directions on the box. Let cool.

In a heatproof bowl above a pot of boiling water (double boiler), melt chocolate and butter. Stir occasionally until the consistency is uniform. (You can also melt in the microwave, but make sure to stop the time and stir every 20 seconds, or so.)  Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes.

Take the halved Oreos and dip them in the chocolate using a fork. Remove and place on a wire rack. Place in the fridge to harden.

Meanwhile, beat cream cheese and sugar in a large bowl with mixer until blended. Gently fold in whipped topping and crushed Oreos. Pipe or spread frosting on the cupcakes and top with a chocolate covered Oreo. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Source: recipe from Lemons and Love; originally from Kraft