Cookies and Cream Cupcakes...

Who doesn't need a sugar fix every now and then?  (Or constantly..)

These cupcakes will cover all of your necessary needs.  Be prepared, though, for sugar withdrawl once the days nears its end. 

I discovered the original recipe while stalking doing my daily reading over at Kristan's blog, Confessions of a Cookbook Queen.  She's a riot.  If you think it, she says it.  It's a beautiful thing.  Like these cupcakes.   

She got her cupcake recipe from Tidy Mom, and I altered it ever so slightly to use what I had on hand.  (I basically just used a different cake mix..)

I made them for Oliver's first birthday party and there was nary a cupcake left when it was over.

So, splash a little cold water on your face, take a deep breath, and go big or go home. 

Cupcakes
1 box Betty Crocker Confetti Cake Mix
1/2 Cup Butter, melted
1 cup water
3 eggs
24 whole Oreos (I used 12 Original and 12 Golden)

Preheat oven to 350 and line your muffin tins with papers.  Place an Oreo in the bottom of each one. 

In your mixer, combine cake mix, eggs, melted butter, and water. Blend on low speed for about one minute. Increase speed to high and beat for another minute.  Top the Oreos with batter, filling your liners about 2/3 full. 

Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until cupcake tops spring back when touched lightly. 

While your cupcakes are cooling, you can make your filling.  Yes, filling!

Filling

3/4 of a 16 Oz. Jar of Fluff (Marshmallow Creme)
1/2 Cup Softened Butter (I used salted to cut some of the sweetness.)
1/4 Teaspoon Vanilla
4 Tablespoons Whipping Cream
1 1/2 Cups Icing Sugar

In your mixer bowl, beat Fluff, butter, cream, and vanilla on medium until smooth.

Slowly add the icing sugar and increase speed to medium-high.  Beat for about a minute.

Refrigerate filling until cupcakes are done cooling.

Once your cupcakes are cooled, you can fill them with the marshmallow filling.  I used a long skinny piping tip to inject the filling, but if I were to make these again, I'd use the cone method to get more in there. 

Icing

2 Cups Butter, Softened (Again, I use salted to cut some of the sweetness..)
1/4 Cup Whipping Cream
2 Teaspoons Vanilla
7-8 Cups Icing Sugar

Again, in your mixer, beat your butter, whipping cream, and vanilla until smooth and well blended. 

Slowly add in your icing sugar (so you don't have a mushroom cloud of sugar) and mix on low for a few seconds.  Once almost blended, turn up to medium and whip until smooth, about 2 minutes.

Once blended, fold in about 10-15 finely crushed oreos.  (Folding ensures the cookies don't just turn your icing grey, and finely crushing them ensures that everything will pipe smoothly with no clumping.)

Pipe (Or slather) the icing on your cupcakes.  I drizzled the tops of mine with more marshmallow filling before serving.

Keep any uneaten cupcakes in the refrigerator to keep them fresh.