Mint Chocolate Chip Cupcakes: #CookiesForKidsCancer

Mint Chocolate Chip Cupcakes are an uncanny and delicious cupcake evocation of mint chocolate chip ice cream, and because they are made with whipped cream buttercream, they are not at all too sweet. This post is in support of Cookies For Kids Cancer, and as such I did receive some baking equipment from OXO as discussed below. Affiliate links have been used to link to items I am discussing.

I’ve talked before about my family’s love of mint. Mint chocolate chip ice cream is easily both of my girls’ favorite flavor–and it was mine too when I was growing up. Heck it is still my favorite fallback flavor, when I am not partaking of more unusual combinations. So when we were batting around ideas for Sammy’s birthday cupcakes, mint was a natural place to go. And when I considered all of the previous versions of mint chocolate treats on this site, I wanted something a little different. So I started thinking about mint chocolate chip ice cream, and how to make a cupcake evocative of its distinct mint flavor (which I would argue is most similar to creme de menthe). This, by the way, is the drawback of having a food blogging parent–we always have our blogs in the backs of our minds. How can we keep everyone happy and create something blog-worthy. And, in this particular case, I knew it had to go on the blog because of Cookies for Kids Cancer and the OXO goodies I had been given, which I will get to in a minute.

But before I get there, you are probably wondering if I succeeded? Beyond my wildest expectations. These cupcakes are amazing, and if you love mint chocolate chip ice cream like we do, then you need these mint chocolate chip cupcakes!

And now how this fits into Cookies for Kids Cancer when these are not cookies! This year OXO, who every year raises money for Cookies for Kids Cancer, included cupcake supplies in their Good Cookie collection for 2015. But first let me back up for people who have not been reading for a while. Cookies for Kids Cancer is an organization I have been supporting, with OXO’s assistance, ever since I became aware of it (2011!).

If you see this^ sticker, know that your purchase goes to support Cookies For Kids Cancer!

In terms of my personal feelings about Cookies for Kids Cancer, I prefer to refer you back to my first Be a Good Cookie post, because writing and thinking about kids having cancer never gets any easier. This is my fifth year(!) supporting this organization, so of course some things have changed. Here is some fine print you need to know for 2015:

– Cookies for Kids’ Cancer is a recognized 501c(3) public charity duly incorporated under the laws of the state of New Jersey. Your donations are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowable by law. 100% of proceeds raised by Cookies for Kids’ Cancer fund pediatric cancer research.
– OXO will be donating $100 to Cookies for Kids’ Cancer for each blog post dedicated to this campaign in October (up to their $100,000 commitment.)
– In 2015, OXO will donate up to $100,000 to Cookies for Kids’ Cancer through product proceeds, bake sale matches and other fundraising efforts.

OXO had several different collections of Good Cookie supplies that you could ask for (as a member of their Blogger Outreach), and I chose the cupcake supplies, knowing that Sammy’s birthday is in October and that she would request cupcakes. The supplies included OXO Baker’s 8pc Silicone Decorating Bottle Kit – Black and OXO Good Grips Offset Icing Spatula.

They also sent me a Nonstick Pro 12-cup Muffin Pan, which is not available yet at Amazon, so I could not include a link with a picture for you to purchase it.

I was most excited for the decorating bottle because I thought the push mechanism it uses looked like something the kids could handle. And indeed, as you can see, Alex is frosting the cupcakes. She said it was much easier than my preferred plastic bag. My final review of the bottle, however, is that I am very glad to own it for detail work. One of the tips is a very narrow tip, and I foresee great things with melted chocolate, for example. But for frosting multiple cupcakes, I still prefer a plastic bag. We had to refill the bottle many times, and toward the end it just became quite slippery with frosting everywhere. The pan worked beautifully, and I have always loved their offset spatula. I think the small one in particular is super useful. So both of those get high marks here.

I hope I have inspired you to get involved in some way with Cookies For Kids Cancer. You can send people cookies, host your own bake sale, purchase their cookbooks or even just donate money. It’s a great cause! And now for the recipe. The cake was adapted from the always reliable Alice Medrich, in her Sinfully Easy Delicious Desserts.

5 from 8 votes

Print

Mint Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

Adapted from Alice Medrich. This recipe is made in a food processor--and is super easy and fast as a result. I highly recommend using muffin paper liners (or silicone) and lightly spraying them with oil. Otherwise this recipe can stick a little. You may have a little extra batter, in which case be prepared with a second muffin pan or some mini loaf pans.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Cupcakes

Author: TheSpicedLife

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup plus 2 T (174 g) sugar
• 1 cup (126 g) AP flour
• 1/4 t fine sea salt
• 1 1/4 t baking powder
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 3 T (43 g) unsalted butter, melted
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 t vanilla
• 2 t creme de menthe extract
• 1 cup miniature chocolate chips, plus extra for decorating
• whipped cream buttercream for frosting (see below)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper or silicone liners. Spray the insides of the cups and the top of the baking pan with nonstick baking spray. Set aside.
2. Add the sugar, flour, salt and baking powder to a food processor. Pulse until the dry ingredients are blended thoroughly.
3. Add the cream and butter and pulse to blend, 8-10 times, or a bit more, until the dry ingredients are evenly moistened.
4. Add the eggs, vanilla and creme de menthe extract. Pulse 5 or 6 times. Then pause to scrape the sides of processor. Pulse 5 or 6 times more. You want the batter to be blended and smooth, but do not over mix.
5. Add the chocolate chips by hand and use a silicone spatula to mix them -- side to side and top to bottom (it is a little tricky because you are doing it in a processor bowl, but do not over think it and do not over mix).
6. Divide the batter between the 12 muffin cups. I had a little extra and added it to 2 mini loaf pans (you might see in the pictures that I did not grease them well enough though and the loaves stuck but the cupcakes were fine).
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of a center cupcake comes out clean or with a little melted chocolate.
8. Let the cupcakes cool for 5 minutes in the pan, before lifting them and removing them to a cooling rack.
9. Let cool completely before frosting and sprinkling mini chocolate chips over the frosting.
10. These will keep for a day just fine in a cool kitchen (it was a chilly fall day and my kitchen was about 60 F). But if butter would get melty in your kitchen, you definitely need to chill the frosted cupcakes.

5 from 8 votes

Print

Whipped Cream Buttercream

This recipe can really vary depending on the weather, or more specifically, how dry it is. The idea is simple--create one of those overly sweet simple buttercreams, and then both lighten and de-sweeten it, by folding it into whipped cream. I highly recommend that in this case you use the best, most luxurious heavy cream you can find. I use a particularly decadent local one that has not been homogenized. I find it difficult to make less than a certain amount of frosting when using a stand mixer. Because of this, this recipe does make more than you will need for the recipe above. It will last in the fridge for as long as your heavy cream would have lasted. Some other ideas for it are listed below.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Frosting

Author: TheSpicedLife

Ingredients

• 1 cup (2 sticks, 226 g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature--do not use the microwave!
• 3-4 cups confectioners' sugar, SIFTED--you do not want lumps!
• pinch of fine sea salt
• 2-4 T heavy cream for the buttercream (more heavy cream will be needed)
• 2 cups heavy whipping cream, cold

Instructions

1. This recipe is easier if you have 2 bowls for your stand mixer, but if you do not, don't worry.
2. Begin by beating the butter until it is creamy with a flat paddle attachment. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl. Beat in the confectioners' sugar, a cup at a time, until you reach 3 cups, scraping the bowl as needed. Beat in the salt.
3. Beat in 2 tablespoons of the heavy cream. At this point, you need to assess the situation: does the frosting need more structure, in which case it needs more sugar. Or does it need to be more soft, is it not yet beating into a smooth, spreadable frosting? In that case, add some more heavy cream. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as you go.
4. When the frosting is smooth and spreadable, scrape it into a large bowl (or swap out bowls for a second, clean stand mixer bowl).
5. Add the whip attachment to the mixer and place 2 cups of cold heavy cream into the clean bowl.
6. Beat on medium speed until the cream starts to thicken. Then increase the speed gradually, until you are beating the cream on high.
7. Beat until you have stiff peaks. Do not let it turn into butter.
8. Scrape about 1/4 of the whipped cream into the prepared frosting. Fold the cream in--at this point most of the cream will deflate, but it will also loosen the frosting.
9. Fold in half of the remaining whipped cream. Try much harder this time to be gentle and not deflate the whipped cream, although do not get upset either if some deflates.
10. Then fold in the remaining whipped cream.
11. Use frosting as desired.

If you are looking for some ideas for any extra frosting, I recommend these Pumpkin Drop Cookies! (Click on the picture.)