Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Cupcakes

I really cannot rave enough about the book Martha Stewart's Cupcakes. There are many amazing recipes in it. This is the first one I have made, and I have a huge list of others I will try. I personally do not eat cheesecake, but these got rave reviews from the many people who I shared them with. I plan on making them again soon!

Here is the recipe, from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes:

42 Oreos (30 whole and 12 coarsely chopped) - I chopped about 20! :)

2 pounds of cream cheese, room temperature

1 cup of sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 large egges, room temperature, lightly beaten

1 cup of sour cream

1 pinch of salt

1. Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Line 30 standard muffin tins with paper liners. Place 1 whole cookie in the bottom of each lined cup.

2. With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat cream cheese until smooth. Gradually add sugar, and beat until combined. Beat in vanilla.

3. Drizzle in eggs, a bit at a time, beating to combine and scraping down sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in sour cream and salt.

4. Stir in chopped cookies by hand.

5. Divide batter evenly among cookie-filled cups, filling each almost to the top. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until filling is set, about 22 minutes. Cool completely in tins. Refrigerate (in tins so they don't lose shape) for at least 4 hours, or up to overnight. Remove from tins just before serving.

Lots of Cupcakes

I was in a colorful mood and made a bunch of different kinds of cupcakes. I used the 3M tip for the swirl. I used mini chocolate chips on some of them because they held better than the bigger chips.

Yummy!

Watermelon Cupcakes

First I made vanilla cupcakes...

Then I frosted them and then dipped them into red sugar sprinkles.

Then I used used Wilton kelly green to color the icing and I piped it around the edge. Then I used a smaller tip to pipe a white ring of icing. Last, I used mini chocolate chips and turned them around and pushed them into the cupcake. They are perfect for a summer BBQ!

Graduation Cap Cupcakes- Take 2!

I made graduation cap cupcakes last week, but I was in a rush. I made these today for someone. I am happier with the way they came out. I definitely recommend using a chocolate square of Ghirardelli, which I did this time, instead of a cookie like I did last week.

Graduation Cap Cupcakes

I made these graduation cap cupcakes for my students very last minute and late at night, so they did not turn out too well. I was planning on making them again the following night for another graduation event, and I bought all the things I needed, but I was unable to do so. My students, who are 10, LOVED them, so that was great! However, if you make them, I suggest using the Ghirardelli chocolates instead. I used Fudge Shoppe Deluxe Grahams cookies, but they were rectangular, so I had to cut them to make them squares. It got messy and didn't look as good. I used a Reeses's Peanut Butter Cup mini. I used colored icing to make the tassel. Another option for the tassel is to use something like Laffy Taffy and cut it or some kind of licorice held with icing or a mini M&M. Colored icing to match the tassel is another cute idea, but like I said, I was in a huge rush!

Father's Day Lawn Mower Cupcakes

I had a lot of fun making these lawn mower cupcakes for a Father's Day BBQ. They were pretty easy, but took a long time to make. I used Hershey's Nuggets for the mower and M & Ms for the wheels and the engine. I stuck them on with icing. I colored icing with green food coloring. Then I colored some coconut with green food coloring. It works best if you put it in a baggie and mix it up with the food coloring. I used Twizzlers Pull and Peel for the lawn mower handle. That was the tricky part. I dug a hole first with a toothpick and then I shoved in the Twizzler.

M and M Cupcakes

I made these colorful cupcakes for a friend's party. I colored icing with food coloring.

Purple Bridal Shower Cupcakes

Pampered Chef Floral Cupcake Pan

I recently got this silicone floral cupcake pan from Pampered Chef. I like it, but I have only used it once. I think it would be really cool to make flower-shaped butter with it, or Tartufo ice cream. I will definitely be playing with it more soon.

I made cupcakes with it for my sister-in-law's bridal shower. I tinted the homemade batter purple with food coloring, and the inside was a light lavender color.

I used the homemade purple frosting and added some water to drizzle on top for more color and flavor. Then I added some sprinkles.

Easter Basket Cupcakes

I made these Easter basket cupcakes, well, for Easter of course! The basket handle is a Twizzler. I was going to use red, but then I found these multi-colored ones. I had to cut the bottom of the Peeps a little bit so they would fit underneath the Twizzler handle. I made the icing green with food coloring. I used a piping attachment to make the icing look like grass.

Thanksgiving Turkey Cupcakes

These are great Thanksgiving cupcakes!

I just baked regular cupcakes, and used store bought chocolate frosting. The head of the turkey is a mini-Reeses peanut butter cup covered with frosting. I used yellow icing to dot the eyes, and candy corn for the beak and tail feathers. So cute!