I was deprived of Oreos as a child. I know that sounds ridiculous, but I feel it manifesting itself on my blog in the form of cupcakes like these and these. And now I’ve added Birthday Cake Oreo Cupcakes to the mix. You see, my mom was convinced that certain foods were the devil when I was growing up, and one of those foods was Oreos. She took one look at the list of ingredients, and decided that they would not be allowed in her house. Oreos, along with soda, Kool-Aid, Twinkies, and other sugar-laden and highly processed foods had no place in the Merchant household.
Even though I wasn’t a fan these rules growing up, for the most part, they’ve stuck with me. I rarely drink soda, and I can’t remember the last time I ate a Twinkie. It’s not that I don’t eat sugar now, but I just cancel it out with things like greek yogurt and coconut oil (that’s how it works, right?). Anyway, I really really like Oreos, so I know I just can’t buy them. When I do, they must immediately be turned into cupcakes and shared with friends, or they don’t stand a chance around me.
So what are Birthday Cake Oreos, you ask? They’re Oreos, but better, if that’s even possible. After one bite, I knew that cupcakes had to happen sooner rather than later, since my willpower would be no match for them.
I wanted to use a vanilla cupcake base for these cupcakes, and since I tend to get stressed out about vanilla cake (I know, my life is hard), I decided not to over think it this time. I wanted to try a new recipe, so I googled vanilla cupcakes and picked the easiest recipe I could find. I fully expected them to be a fail and thought I would have to spend the evening searching yet again for the perfect vanilla cupcake, but these were really good. Despite the mixed reviews, I thought they were the perfect base for a funfetti cupcake- light and fluffy, but still sturdy enough not to fall apart, and they are really easy to make! Just keep a close eye on them at the end so as not to overbake. I plan to use this recipe a lot in the future, and I hope you like it as much as I do.
, makes 12 standard cupcakes, and I usually get between 36-40 of the mini version. I find that this 
makes it easy to divide the right amount of batter for mini cupcakes into the pans. Also, the baking time for mini cupcakes is usually around 9-11 minutes, but it’s a good idea to keep a close eye on them near the end of the baking time, since it can be a minute between being done and overbaked.
