Camouflage Cupcakes

Nov 24 2014

by Grace Mannon

Would you judge me harshly if you knew that at one point in my life, I wore camouflage in a non-hunting capacity? I hope not. I wasn’t the only one.

It was a short phase, and I’m not quite sure if I was trying to be cool and fit in with my classmates or just attempting to blend in with my surroundings. If it was the latter, I would’ve been failing miserably, as my surroundings were a school building with white walls and gray lockers and not a lush and bosky forest. Incidentally, I’ve learned that even without the help of certain materials, I have an innate and useful ability to go into invisible mode and move about unnoticed, which means I observe a lot of things people might not intend for me to see…

Maybe I just liked the color scheme of camo, which actually translates brilliantly into cupcakes. In addition to having a really cool appearance, these cupcakes taste quite delicious too. Plus, perhaps most importantly, the name is rife with alliteration–cookies and cream camo cupcakes!

Camouflage Cookies and Cream Cupcakes
Makes 12

Ingredients:

Cupcakes:

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup heavy cream or sour cream
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
5 Oreo cookies, finely crushed
Green food coloring

Frosting:

1-1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
5 cups sifted powdered sugar (plus more if needed)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons heavy cream or milk
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
5 Oreo cookies, finely crushed
Green food coloring

Directions:

To make the cupcakes, first preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners (preferably white ones).
In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt, set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until light & fluffy.
Add eggs, one at a time, mixing for about a minute per egg.
Next add vanilla extract and continue mixing until combined.
Add in about a third of the dry ingredients, then half of the cream, mixing after each addition. Continue this pattern until everything is just combined (finishing with the dry).
Divide batter evenly among 4 bowls, keeping one in the mixer bowl. The four bowls will consist of vanilla batter, as is; chocolate (add in cocoa powder & Oreo crumbs with the mixer); vanilla with green food coloring plus a dab of chocolate mix, mixed together; and half vanilla batter and half chocolate, mixed together.
Mix the batters until just combined (don’t over mix).
Fill the cupcake liners evenly with the batters (about 1 spoonful of each to form camouflage pattern).
Bake cupcakes for about 20 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.
Allow to cool for a few minutes in the pan, then transfer cupcakes to a wire rack to cool to room temperature.
For the frosting, beat the butter with an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment for several minutes on medium-high, until light & fluffy.
Add in the powdered sugar a half-cup at a time and continue to mix at medium-high speed until combined.
Add in vanilla, salt, and half of the cream. Add in remaining cream only if needed (depending on consistency).
Continue to beat frosting until smooth, adding more sugar if it needs to be thicker.
Divide frosting into 3 bowls, keeping one in the mixer bowl. The three bowls will consist of vanilla; chocolate (add in cocoa powder & Oreo crumbs); and vanilla with green food coloring plus a dab of chocolate mix, mixed together.
Take 3 pastry bags & fill each of them with a different color frosting. Place all 3 bags (with ends trimmed) into one large pastry bag, fitted with a large decorating tip. Pipe them all at once, creating a swirl of all 3 colors on each cupcake.