Hey guys. Ok, second recipe this week…Dark Chocolate & Candy Cane Cheesecake Cupcakes. Yes, you read that right. Cheesecake and cupcakes in one glorious little package. I loooooove cheesecake cakes. My first ever was this Red Velvet Cheesecake Cake a few years ago that I made for Jeremy’s birthday when we were first married. And there have been many since then, including this Chocolate Stout and Peanut Butter Cheesecake Cupcakes and these Oreo Cheesecake Cupcakes. But this one is BY FAR my favorite.
I started this cupcake with a layer of crushed Oreo crust, followed by the delicious candy cane cheesecake layer, a dark chocolate cake layer and topped it off with dreamy peppermint frosting and candy cane bark. OMG, to die for. My only little issue with this cupcake was the Oreo crust wanted to stick to the wrappers a little but I think that could be avoided with high-quality wrappers. Mine were pretty cheap. Also, if you do candy cane bark, be sure to add it the day you plan on serving these. Otherwise, the moisture from the frosting will cause the little peppermint pieces to bleed onto your cupcake. Which doesn’t make it taste bad, but I’m not so sure you want your cupcakes to look like they’re bleeding. But hey, whatever!
I hope you love these as much as I do! They are definitely going into my regular holiday baking rotation.
Enjoy!
- 2 c. Oreo Crumbs
- 1 Stick Unsalted Butter
- 8 oz. Cream Cheese, softened
- ½ c. Sugar
- 1 Large Egg
- ¼ t. Pure Peppermint Oil
- ½ c. Crushed Candy Canes
- 1½ c. All-Purpose Flour
- 1⅓ c. Sugar
- ½ c. Dark Cocoa Powder
- 1¼ t. Baking Powder
- 1¼ t. Baking Soda
- 1 t. Salt
- ¼ c., plus 1 T. Vegetable Oil
- ⅔ c. Whole Milk
- ½ c., plus 1 T. Strong-Brewed Coffee
- 2 Large Eggs, at room temperature and lightly beaten
- 1 T. Pure Vanilla Extract
- 1 Stick Unsalted Butter, softened
- ½ c. Shortening
- 4 c. Powdered Sugar
- ½ c. Heavy Whipping Cream
- ½ t. Pure Vanilla Extract
- 2 t. Pure Peppermint Oil
- ½ lb. White Chocolate Candy Coating
- ½ c. Crushed Candy Canes
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 24 cupcake tins with cupcake wrappers.
- Mix melted butter and Oreos together in a medium bowl. Press 1 tablespoon of mixture into each cupcake tin.
- Beat cream cheese and sugar together in the bowl of an electric mixer until smooth. Beat in egg and peppermint oil. Stir in crushed candy canes. Fill each cupcake tin with 1 scant tablespoon of cheesecake.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, whisk together all of the dry ingredients. Add all the remaining ingredients to the bowl and beat for 2 minutes on medium speed. Spoon 2 tablespoon cake batter into each cupcake tin*.
- Bake cupcakes for 20 minutes. Cool completely in tins on wire racks. Frost with peppermint frosting and top with candy cane bark.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and shortening until fluffy. Gradually beat in 2 cups of the powdered sugar and then ¼ cup of the heavy whipping cream. Beat in the remaining 2 cups of powdered sugar and ¼ cup of heavy whipping cream. Beat in the vanilla and peppermint oil.
- Melt white chocolate in microwave at 20-second intervals, stirring between each. Spread onto a medium baking sheet lined with foil. Cover with crushed candy canes. Put in freezer for 1-2 minutes until bark has hardened completely.
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