You know how they say that you should never go to the grocery store when you’re hungry? I don’t know who they are, but apparently, they knew what they were talking about. Chocolate and mint are one of my favorite flavor combinations, so when Christmas time comes around, my will power at the grocery store is almost non-existant. Needless to say, I walked out of there with a package of Cool Mint Oreos. I’m not usually a big fan of pre-packaged cookies, but I’m not going to specify how many of these I ate in the car on the way home. Whatever was left got turned into these cupcakes.
In order to get the frosting to match the Oreo filling, I used a couple of drops of Americolor Leaf Green food coloring. I didn’t want to taint the pretty frosting with cookie pieces, so I mixed pieces of the cookies into the batter.
I used a no fuss one bowl chocolate cupcake recipe. It makes a lighter cupcake, which is a nice contrast to the crunchy cookie pieces. These cupcakes are egg and dairy free. I used organic unrefined sugar in the cupcakes. However, the Oreos contain refined sugar, so depending on your stance on sugar, these can be considered vegan.
After all of the comments I have received, I am no longer saying these are vegan. I will say that the cupcakes themselves are vegan (yes, there is such a thing as vegan powdered sugar). As for the oreos, that’s up to you to decide. You could always use Newman O’s instead, or if you wanted to be really sure, just make your own.
Ingredients
- 1 cup soy milk
- 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup cocoa
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- About 10 Mint Oreos, chopped
- 1/2 cup non-hydrogenated margerine (I used Earth Balance)
- 1/2 cup non-hydrogenated shortening (I used Spectrum Organics)
- 3 cups powdered sugar (I used Wholesome Sweeteners)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon mint extract
- A few drops of green gel food coloring
- 3 tablespoons soymilk
- 1/3 cup vegan chocolate chips (such as Ghirardelli Semi-Sweet or 365 brand)
- 6 Mint Oreos, cut in half
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350. Line a cupcakes tin with 12 paper liners.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the soymilk and vinegar. Set it aside for a couple of minutes to curdle.
- Add the sugar, oil, and vanilla to the “buttermilk.” Whisk until the mixture is foamy.
- In a separate bowl, sift the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- Add the flour mixture into the wet ingredients and mix until all the ingredients are combined. Stir in the cookie pieces.
- Divide the batter equally between the 12 cupcake liners and bake for 18-20 minutes.
- Cool completely before frosting.
- Beat the shortening and margerine together on medium speed until fluffy.
- Add the powdered sugar and beat for another 3 minutes. Start your mixer on low until the powdered sugar is just combined, otherwise you’ll be wearing it. Then increase the speed to medium.
- Add the vanilla extract, mint extract, and food coloring. I added the food coloring a drop at a time, until in matched the inside of the oreo. Beat on medium high until combined.
- Pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes cooled cupcakes
- In a small saucepan, heat the soymilk until it is just about to simmer. Remove the saucepan from the heat, add the chocolate chips, and stir to combine. Set aside to cool for about 5 minutes. Once the ganache has cooled, put it into a piping bag or plastic bag, snip off a small amount from corner of the bag, and drizzle over the top of the cupcakes. Top with half an Oreo.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Vegan Cupcakes Take over the World. You can substitute regular butter for the Earth Balance and regular milk for the soy milk.
Cupcake recipe adapted from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World
Are mint oreos vegan?
It depends on how you feel about refined sugar, but there are no animal products listed in the ingredients (just a lot of chemicals and other bad stuff). If you’re not ok with refined sugar, there’s a type of Newman O’s called Hint O Mint that uses organic sugar. It just doesn’t have the green filling.
Oreos also contain Palm Oil which is killing the Orangutans to the brink of extinction. Is there a vegan recipe for cookies like Oreos?
Wow, these look delicious! I may have to make them for Christmas. 🙂
However, for kind of small cupcakes, they are very calorie heavy (I calculated it out to ~6020 total and about 500 per cupcake).
Wow, that is a lot of calories! I guess vegan doesn’t always mean healthy, but sometimes the calories are worth it 🙂
Fair point, but they are frosted quite thickly as pictured. I made this recipe and only ended up using about 1/2 of the frosting, so the calorie load is quite a lot lighter and they’re not quite as overwhelmingly sweet. The cake portion is amazing – best chocolate vegan cake flavor I’ve found in over a dozen recipes.
I’m sorry, Oreos are not dairy free. I have yet to find a dairy free Oreo type cookie that doesn’t feel like I’m eating sand… This recipe sounds delicious, but it is not vegan.
Oreos very slightly from country to country. Oreos in the US are dairy free, but contain whey powder in Europe. So yes, the Oreos I used were dairy free. Newman Os are also dairy free, and I think they taste even better than regular Oreos.
Are you sure its 3 tablespoons of soymilk? Doesn’t that seem a bit to little of an amount?
These are so cute!! I love chocolate & mint. I’m pinning & sharing on Twitter. Awesome content!!
Hello,
I have been onto the OFFICIAL oreos website and it states that the Oreos are NOT vegetarian or vegan! It says they are looking into it! If you are going to create recipes for Vegetarians please read it off the actual website rather than a random website that could be a point of view of a particular person who is guessing.
Official Oreos website:
http://www.oreo.co.uk/FAQ
As you could seriously upset and make people angry giving them misleading information.
Thanks
Leanne, the link you posted is the official website of Oreos in the UK, not the whole world. If you READ the link that I posted, it clearly states that Oreos are not vegan in the UK and other European countries. It is not my intention to mislead anyone. My blog is based in the US, and Oreos do not contain whey powder here.
In consideration of the information within the OFFICIAL Oreos website that I have now provided to you please take down this recipe.
Many Thanks.
I am not going to take down this recipe. I have consulted multiple sources, and it is my firm belief that Oreos in the US are dairy free. If anyone disagrees, that’s fine. I’m not forcing anyone to use them.
Thank you for not taking it down… anyone who’s looked at the ingredients of oreos in the US can tell you THEY ARE VEGAN. That means your recipe is extremely appreciated as a vegan who loves oreos and wants to have a happy birthday! Thank you! And to Natasha – stop ruining it for the rest of us!
Whoops, i meant to Leanne – stop ruining it for the rest of us!
They look delicious! Without wanting to create further disagreement but wanting to share good news, Oreos in the UK are now vegan as they have removed the whey powder; I bought some the other week and the ingredients were definitely whey-free.
Though as I’ve not bought Oreos for ages because of their previous non-vegan-ness, I’m not sure that the mint ones are available over here anyway. 🙁
Thanks for the info, Kate. That is good news!
Unfortunately oreos are not vegan,the sugar is bleached through bone char,which is animal bones,making it not vegan. Just so everyone knows.Not trying to be a stick in the mud but ive been vegan for 11 years now. As you stated,Natasha, there are Newman-Os which are all vegan. Anyways I look forward to making this recipe, it sounds amazing!
Also just so everyone knows. Newman Os are just as good as Oreos and that is coming from my meat eating family as well as myself.
Yes, not all vegans eat refined sugar, hence he disclaimer above. I have asked many vegans about whether or not they eat refined sugar. Some do, some don’t. I suppose it’s personal preference. And I agree that Newman O’s are just as good if not better!
Geez, some people just thrive on having to be “right” and making others “wrong” don’t they. Thank you for this post. I am one who really appreciates people’s generosity of giving and sharing.
As a mostly-vegetarian I just wanted to give you some credit for making something that is at least mostly-vegan and looks yummy, even if a lot of people like to argue about it 🙂
People really need to give more credit to those of us that are trying rather than ripping apart one ingredient that may or may not be 100% vegan. A little is better than nothing, and based on all that you have written these sound plenty vegan to me.
Of course, anytime you buy a processed food, there is bound to be some questions about it. Hard to go truly vegan unless you grow all your own stuff and make it from scratch – but who is going to do that.
Just had to comment. Great recipe 🙂
Thanks for your comment, Suzanne. I agree, it really is hard to be truly vegan (or even vegetarian) unless you do it all from scratch. Ultimately, it’s a personal decision, but I can guarantee that these are yummy 🙂
Thank you Natasha for sharing the recipe, looks yummy and pretty. For sure this cupcakes make a lot of tummies smile 🙂
Hi Natasha,
Your recipe seems simple and achievable above all the things.
Being an Indian and Vegetarian, Eggs are not allowed in my house due to religious reasons.
We do however have processed sugar, mile, cream etc. We don’t get Mint Oreos in India yet, the ones we do get are imported and very expensive. The Indian Variety comes in Vanilla or Chocolate, for the decor its ok. But how do I balance the mint flavour in the cake itself ?
Anything egg free works for me.
I plan to make this as a treat for my colleagues.
The cake itself is not especially minty. I add oreos into the cake batter more for texture than flavor. It will be quite minty with the extract in the frosting. Hope this helps!
Thanks a ton!
I made these this weekend, but I used all brown sugar instead of white for a more moist/dense cake texture. Delicious!
http://31.media.tumblr.com/1c871ae0d1f0f90b716e9de5fb11eaa1/tumblr_n6uu1jTFmx1sjqk63o1_500.jpg
Could you use apple sauce on place of the oil for the cupcake part? And what else can you use in place of eggs?
I’ve replaced up to 1/2 the oil with unsweetened applesauce and had success.
What’s your trick for getting that beautiful shape with the frosting? These look great!
Hi Dayle,
I used the Ateco 809 tip to frost these cupcakes.
I just made these this weekend and they were a hit with the entire non-vegan family (and picky kids). Thanks for the recipe – they were easy and delicious!!!
I’m glad you liked them, Heather!
Dear Natasha:
Tried your recipe and I absolutely loved it, thank you for sharing.
I have a question, this has been the BEST frosting I have ever tried, is it possible to flavoir it without the extract and for example, use, strawberry puree?
Please, let me know.
Yes, you can definitely use fruit puree. I recommend cooking it over the stove until it reduces so you get a more potent flavor. You can also use fruit preserves, but my favorite way to flavor it is with pulverized freeze dried fruit. You can get a lot of flavor without adding too much moisture.
Do these need to be refrigerated because the icing has Earth Balance?
Can you identify which mint extract you used? I used Watkins peppermint extract and it tasted so weird, like toothpaste. Thx!
I think it was McCormicks.
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