Cookies and Cream Brownie Cookie Cups

I’ve never made so many cookies and cupcakes as I did this past weekend. I catered the desserts for my boyfriend’s sister’s graduation, and it took a lot of work for one little Smart Cookie to make enough sweets for all those people.Whether I made enough is debatable, considering they ate every last bit.

I made a plethora of mini cookie cups with a variety of fillings, and everyone I talked to had a different favorite flavor. Personally, my faves were the Cookies and Cream Brownie Cookie Cups. I’m a sucker for cookies and cream, and if you are too, then you’ll see why I love these so much.

The crust is a chewy, rich brownie-cookie hybrid that would be delicious enough on its own with that dark, rich flavor. By simple creating a crater in the middle of it when it’s warm and soft straight out of the oven, we make a little nook for our fluffy filling to rest in.

I made a no-bake mousse of sorts that’s studded with plenty of Oreo  bits. It’s quite airy and cloud-like, with a bit of added creaminess from mascarpone cheese. All you have to do is whip the filling ingredients together and fold in the cookies. It is that easy to make an amazing mousse.

Who knew?

I like to pile the filling sky-high so I can sink my teeth into the mountain of fluff when I go to take a bite. Of course, it is tempting to forgo small bites altogether and devour the entire cookie in one bite. There’s no right or wrong way to enjoy it. The only way you could go wrong is if you missed out.

These hand-held, bite-sized Cookies and Cream Brownie Cookie Cups are cool and creamy, making them perfect for a summertime cookout dessert. Bring a plateful of these, and I guarantee they’ll vanish quicker than you can blink. Make sure you steal a few for yourself before you set them out. It’s your right as the baker.

A Few Tips Before You Get Cooking:

1. I recommend using a piping bag to make filling these easy and quick.
2. Be careful not to over whip the filling so you don’t wind up turning the heavy cream into butter. Yes, that really happens.
3. Find mascarpone cheese in the specialty cheese section. It’s like an Italian cream cheese. That said, the two should not be interchanged because cream cheese is thicker and tangier.
4. If you don’t have a food processor, you can crush the Oreos the old-fashioned way. Put ‘em in a ziplock bag, and hit them with a hammer. I kid you not; it works, and it’s fun.

Cookies and Cream Brownie Cookie Cups

By The Smart Cookie Cook

Ingredients:

For the crust

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 oz. unsweetened chocolate squares, melted & cooled to room temperature
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt

For the filling

• 1 cup chilled heavy cream
• 1/4 cup mascarpone cheese
• 1/3 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 cup crushed Oreos

Directions:

1. Make the crusts: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a mini muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In the bowl of a standing mixer, blend together sugar, chocolate, vegetable oil, and two eggs.
3. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, salt and baking powder until evenly combined. Fold into chocolate mixture with vanilla until smooth and homogenous.
4. Drop dough in teaspoons into muffin tins and bake for 8-10 minutes or until puffed and set. Immediately make a deep indentation into the cookies while still warm by using something round with a 1-inch radius. I used the bottom of an ice cream scoop and pressed down into the warm dough. Let cool completely.
5. Make the filling: Place cream, powdered sugar, cornstarch, vanilla, and mascarpone in a large mixing bowl. Beat on high with a hand mixer until fluffy and stiff peaks form. Fold in Oreo pieces until evenly combined.
6. Transfer filling to a piping bag (you can make one just by cutting the corner off a ziplock bag) and fill crusts high with filling. Enjoy or store in fridge in an air-tight container.