Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes with Cookie Dough Buttercream Frosting

Holy butter Paula Deen! These cupcakes are not for the weak at heart.  No, seriously.  If you are watching your cholesterol, do not read further.  I repeat, close this page now or you'll regret it later.

I came across this recipe some time ago and I knew that I had to make them.  But I had to be strategic about it too.  I would only make them when I knew there would be a crowd to eat them.  The last thing I needed was a plate full of cupcakes sitting on my counter.  So I we (Kaitlin mostly) made them a few weekend ago.  I definitely have some alterations I would make next time, but for the first time we followed the recipe.  Oh, and ah, the only pictures I took are from the first step - cookie dough.  So, here it is.

To see more pictures, as they're supposed to look, you need to visit KevinandAmanda.com's site, and really you just need to check out the recipe.  Ok, on with the recipe....

Ingredients:

For the Cookie Dough:

2 sticks softened butter

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

4 tbs milk

1 tbs vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup mini chocolate chips

For the Cupcakes:

3 sticks softened butter

1 1/2 cups light brown sugar, packed

4 large eggs

2 2/3 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup milk

2 tsp vanilla extract

For the Frosting:

3 sticks softened butter

3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed

3 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 tsp salt

2 tbs milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions:

To make the Cookie Dough:  

Combine the butter and sugars in a mixing bowl and cream on medium-high speed until light and fluffly (about 2 minutes).  Beat in milk and vanilla until incorporated and smooth.  Beat in the flour and salt until just combined.  Stir in the chocolate chips.  Using a 1.5 tbs scoop, shape the dough into balls or tubes.  Freeze on a parchment lined baking sheet overnight.

To make the Cupcakes:  

Preheat the oven to 350F.  Line two cupcake pans with paper liners (24 total).  In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and brown sugar.  Beat together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes).  Mix in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.  Stir together to blend.  Add the dry ingredients to the mixer bowl on low speed, alternating with the milk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients, mixing each addition just until incorporated.  Blend in the vanilla.

Using a 3 tbs scoop, fill the prepared cupcake liners 2/3 full with the cupcake batter.  Place a frozen cookie dough ball on the top center of each cupcake.

Bake at 350F for 16-18 minutes.

To make the Frosting:  

Combine the butter and brown sugar in a mixing bowl and cream on medium-high speed until light and fluffy.  Beat in the powder sugar until smooth.  Beat in the salt, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth and combined.

Frost the cupcakes and sprinkle with mini chocolate chips.

Makes 24 cupcakes.

Adjustments:

• My 1.5 tsp dough balls were too big.  We ended up having to take some dough off each ball.
• Honestly here, I wasn't a fan of the cupcake batter.  It kinda had a cornbread flavor.  Next time, I'm just gonna use a vanilla cake mix from a box.  Plus that'll shave 3 sticks of butter off the recipe...
• They took longer than 18 minutes to bake.  And it was hard to tell when they were done because of the raw cookie dough in the middle.
• The frosting was really good, but it was a little grainy from the brown sugar.  Not sure how to make that go away without dissolving it first.

So if you counted, there were 8 total sticks of butter in this recipe.  Coleman was so kind to do the math and calculate that that is 1/4 stick per cupcake.  Yea, I'm definitely going to have to find ways to shave that down some if I want to make them again. 

Oh man were these good!

recipe from KevinandAmanda.com