Pumpkin Oreo Cheesecake Cupcakes

The other day, as I was grocery shopping, I saw these Oreo cookies all dressed up for halloween with the orange cream centers.  I hardly ever buy Oreo cookies but these little creatures were screaming at me to bake with them!  So...  this is what I baked, Pumpkin Oreo Cheesecake Cupcakes!  I have a delicious recipe for pumpkin cheesecake so I adapted it for some cupcakes.  It turned out to be delicious!  The recipe is pretty simple so I hope that you will try it and let me know how it turns out.

Ingredients

• 2 8 oz packages of cream cheese, softened (not low fat)
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 2 tbsp sour cream
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp ground allspice
• 48 Oreo cookies

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  
2. Place cupcake liners into two 12 count muffin pans. 
3. Beat the cream cheese until light and fluffy in a stand mixer or with a hand mixer. 
4. Add the sugar and beat until well incorporated. 
5. Add the eggs one at a time mixing well after each one. 
6. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix for one minute.
7. Place an Oreo cookie in the bottom of each of the cupcake liners.
8. Fill each of the liners about 3/4 full with the cheesecake batter. 
9. Place another Oreo cookie on top of each cupcake. 
10. Bake for 20-22 minutes. 
11. Remove from the oven and cool for about 10 to 15 minutes before transferring them to a baking rack. 
12. Top with cream cheese frosting, mascarpone frosting or a dollop of fresh whipped cream.

Yields about 24 cupcakes.

Enjoy!

Red Velvet Cupcakes

Hey there! Recently, I made an appearance on Good Morning Idaho and taught Spencer and Natalee how to make the batter for some delicious red velvet cupcakes. You can watch the segment on KIVI's site right here. We ran short on time so I didn't get to finish giving you all the recipe and instructions so I thought I'd post it here on my blog for you...

Ingredients

Red Velvet Cupcakes:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose or cake flour
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon cocoa powder (sifted)
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable or canola oil
• 1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 2 tablespoons red food coloring
• 1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 2 8oz bricks cream cheese, softened (not low fat)
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 to 6 cups sifted powdered sugar

Directions

Red Velvet Cupcakes:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line two standard sized muffin pans (12 each) with cupcake liners.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt. Sift the cocoa powder into the dry ingredients. In a large bowl beat together the oil, eggs, red food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla.  Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the wet ingredients and mix until smooth and combined but do not over mix.

Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake liners so that they are about 2/3 full. Bake for 18 to 22 minutes. My oven runs hot so I always test them at 17 minutes. Test the cupcakes with a toothpick for doneness. The toothpick should come out clean.  Remove from oven and cool on cooling racks.

Cream Cheese Frosting:

Beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla together until smooth. Add the sugar one cup at a time  on low speed. Increase the speed to high and mix until it is light and fluffy. Pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes when they are completely cool

Enjoy!