The goodness of a chocolate chip cookie all together in a fabulous cupcake. (With a cookie dough surprise inside!)
Cookie dough is such a weakness of mine. I find myself constantly taste testing the dough when I’m baking cookies, even though I totally know what it tastes like. Ok, I just love eating it. It’s so yummy! For National Chocolate Chip Day, I decided it would be fun to come up with a cupcake recipe that also highlighted the goodness of the chocolate chip cookie. These cupcakes are fabulous!
The frosting on these cupcakes is a chocolate chip cookie dough frosting. It is tasty! I love the look of the mini chocolate chips sprinkled on the top. Not to mention the delicious tiny cookie perched at the very top! This cupcake is GOOD.
And did I mention the cookie dough goodness on the inside of these cupcakes. Oh. My. Yum!! Don’t worry, it’s egg-free dough so it’s totally safe. Happy day!
I can’t wait for you to try these cupcakes then come back here and tell me what you think! These are one of my new favorites.
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 1 vanilla cake mix plus ingredients to make it
- 1 c. buttermilk
- 24 cupcake liners
For the Cookie Dough Frosting
- 1 c. unsalted butter at room temperature
- 2 1/2 c. powdered sugar
- 1/2 c. brown sugar
- 1/2 c. flour
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 2-3 Tbsp milk
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
For the Cookie Dough Center
- 1/2 c. butter softened
- 1/4 c. sugar
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 Tbsp milk
- 1/8 tsp. salt
- 1 1/2 c. flour
- 1/2 c. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 24 mini chocolate chip cookies
Instructions
- Prepare cake mix according to package directions, adding buttermilk instead of the water called for.
- Place cupcake liners in muffin tins and fill with batter 2/3 full. Bake according to directions on the box; remove from pans and cool on a wire rack.
- Prepare the cookie dough by creaming butter and sugar together; add vanilla, milk, and salt. Then add flour. Stir in mini chocolate chips.
- Using the large side of a frosting tip or something similar, make a hole in each cupcake by pressing it right into the center.
- Use a spoon to get enough cookie dough that it can be rolled into a little cylinder to fit into the hole in the cupcake. Press the dough right into the cupcake.
- Use a toothpick to push the cake out of the frosting tip. Tear the top off and press it right on top of the cookie dough to cover it.
- Prepare the frosting by creaming together butter, brown sugar, vanilla, and 2 Tbsp milk. Slowly add powdered sugar 1/2 c. at a time to avoid making a huge mess. Then add salt and flour.
- Pipe frosting on to each cupcake using a 1M star tip. Sprinkle with mini chocolate chips and top with a mini cookie.
Kitchen tools and gadgets needed for this recipe:
I hope you like this recipe as much as I do! And because it’s National Chocolate Chip Day, here are more fabulous chocolate chip recipes to help you celebrate!
Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake from Creations by Kara
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes from Cupcake Diaries
Butter Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies from Butter with a Side of Bread
Gluten Free Cookie Dough Blizzard from Tried and Tasty
Light Berry Dark Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars from Happy Food Healthy Life
Chocolate Chip Bagels from Ashlee Marie
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream from Like Mother, Like Daughter
Vanishing Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies from Real Mom Kitchen
Chewy Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars from Jamie Cooks It Up!
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins from Cupcake Diaries
Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins from Cupcake Diaries
Chocolate Chip Pecan Caramels from Creations by Kara
Cornflake Marshmallow Chocolate Chip Cookies from Butter with a Side of Bread
Coconut Macadamia Nut Chocolate Chip Cookies from Butter with a Side of Bread
Easy Chocolate Chip Scones from Ashlee Marie
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies from Ashlee Marie
Homemade Chocolate Chip Graham Crackers from Happy Food Healthy Life
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Kara says
I was wondering how you got the cookie dough inside. So clever! They look delish!
Jessica Williams says
These look INCREDIBLE! Love the cookie dough inside the cupcake- yum!
Alli says
Thanks, Jessica! They’re super yummy.
Ashlee says
that cookie dough frosting sounds AMAZING! and the pictures are beautiful
Laura says
Been wanted to make a cupcake like these for a while now! Yours sound perfect!
Lottie A. says
Hey girl….just saying doe bc like u b putting in raw cookie dough…I just wondering about the affects of consuming it. Like does it cook in the cupcake??? if so, thats trippy. also do i HAVE to put little tiny cookies on top bc i was thinking of adding sum more cookie dough,,, just thinking out loud here….anyways i lik dis recipe and i think all of u ppl on the internet should make it bc its bomb and it smells rly good haha. oh yeah it is lik bad dat i fed dis to my doggy? haha peace out.!
Alli says
The cookie dough doesn’t have eggs in it so it’s totally safe to eat. And it goes in after the cupcakes are cooked. You don’t have to put the cookies on top. They’re just a garnish.
Casey says
But raw flour is not safe to eat either.
https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/a-new-reason-not-to-eat-cookie-dough-uncooked-flour-can-make-you-sick/
I’m a doctor, and I know this… but I still feel the need to taste all the batter and dough in it’s uncooked form (even with eggs) to make sure it’s going to taste okay. But eating raw flour should not be touted as “totally safe to eat”.
Alli says
Hi Casey,
Thank you for your comment. I had no idea that raw flour wasn’t safe to eat. Thank you for the information. I learned how to cook flour to kill off bacteria today so I will be adjusting this recipe accordingly. Thank you again for the information.
Rhiannon says
These look delicious! Just wondering if it would be ok that I made my vanilla cupcake from scratch? I saw that you have buttermilk in the ingredients to the box cupcakes, is this just for more of a moist cake?
Alli says
Yes, the buttermilk is to make the cupcake more moist and also more solid. Box cake mixes tend to be a little crumbly when made into cupcakes so the buttermilk really helps that. You could definitely be able to use a scratch recipe for these cupcakes!
Alexandra robertson says
I was scrolling through Foodgawker and knew I recognized these adorable cupcakes 🙂
Alli says
You’re my favorite. 🙂 I love that you love Foodgawker!!!
June @ How to Philosophize with Cake says
National chocolate chip day? I need to get on that!! These are so fun–love the cookie dough center too 🙂
Karen Parks says
Sorry, I did not get to finish my previous comment. Just wondering if the cookie would get soggy if sat in the frosting say over night. How might you go about preventing that?
Thanks
Alli says
Hi Karen! I’ve never tried keeping the cookies in the frosting overnight, but I don’t think they would get soggy. The frosting will harden a tad and most likely keep the cookie from getting soggy. You could also put the cookies in right before you serve them.
Lorena Soulange says
Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe. Absolutely have to try this!! *.*
joehoney says
I want to try this one very soon! thanks for sharing.
Alli says
You’re welcome! I hope you enjoy them when you do make them! They’re one of my favorites.
Taylor says
About how many cupcakes does this recipe make?
Alli says
Hi Taylor! This recipe makes 24 cupcakes.
Carol says
Hi,
Can you tell me would it be okay to substitute the 1 cup unsalted butter with 1/2 unsalted butter and 1/2 shortening for the frosting?
Thank You
Alli says
I think that would totally work, Carol. Great question!
Tawny says
Hi there! I just made these but I have two questions – 1) My cookie dough batter was super crumbly and I ended up having to add another tablespoon of milk to have it come together. And it didn’t have much flavor to it. 2) I’ve never put flour in frosting before, but the consistency of it is beautiful! So velvety and luscious. Is this something I have been missing out on all these years???
Alli says
Hi Tawny! I do apologize for how long it has taken me to reply to your questions. That’s what I get for letting them all build up! It sounds like maybe your cookie dough was missing an ingredient if it didn’t have a ton of flavor. Good idea to add milk for better consistency though. This was actually the first time I added flour to frosting! It worked out so well!
Baking Betty says
I tried this recipe tonight, and I had the same problem with the cookie dough center. It was extremely thick and hard to even stir the mini-chips into it, and it was not very flavorful. I made a second batch, and it had the same result. I did not miss any of the ingredients 🙁 Hopefully the tasty frosting makes up for it!
Alli says
Hi Baking Betty! I’m sorry you weren’t a fan of the cookie dough center. I purposely created the cookie dough center to be slightly less sweet so to not make an overwhelmingly sweet cupcake. It looks like everything turned out the way it was supposed to but with less flavor than you would desire. I apologize that it didn’t taste like you would have liked.
Nancy says
Hi there! These look amazing! I’m going to make them for my girlfriends birthday next weekend, but I was wondering, can you put the cookie dough center in the middle before you cook it? Like put a blob on a bottom layer of cupcake mix and then add another layer on top and cook it? Or will it cause the dough to melt/expand/ruin the cupcake?
Also, will the icing melt if I transport the cupcakes? Do they need to be refrigerated?
Thank you!
Alli says
Hi Nancy! You’ve asked some great questions. If you bake the cupcakes with the cookie dough in the middle the dough will turn into a chocolate chip cookie. So if you’re ok with that, then you can put the dough in beforehand. It won’t ruin the cupcake though. The cupcakes don’t need to be refrigerated as long as they’re kept at room temperature. If they get too warm the frosting could get yucky. You should be just fine if you are taking them in the car with you as long as they’re not sitting in direct sunlight. Thanks for the questions!
Kelly says
I have made these cupcakes twice now, and both times, the dough center was really dry following the recipe. I added more milk the first time then milk and brown sugar the 2nd time for more flavor. The final result was delicious both times though so it is well worth it. This frosting recipe is amazing.
Alli says
Hi Kelly! Thank you for the comment. The dough will be less sticky than a typical cookie dough so you can easily shape it with your hands. Good tips to add moisture!
Lisa says
I just made these and the frosting is yummy! I did notice that the cookie dough center doesn’t have much flavor, however, and I followed your recipe exactly.
Alli says
You can always add more sugar if you feel like the cookie dough in the center isn’t sweet enough. I purposely didn’t include a ton of sugar because the cupcake and the frosting are already pretty sweet.
Amanda says
The cookie dough did not turn out. The cupcakes will not cook all the way with the buttermilk. The icing just tastes like SHIT
Alli says
Hi Amanda, I’m sorry this recipe didn’t work out for you. It sounds like there might have been some other issues going on if nothing ended up turning out. Feel free to let me know if you have any questions about the recipe.
linda says
What it be best to use the hand mixer for the icing and the cookie dough cent or should I use the stand mixer for both ?
Alli says
Hi Linda,
I usually use the stand mixer for the cupcakes and the cookie dough center, then the hand mixer for the frosting. I prefer to use the hand mixer for the frosting so I can control where the beater moves. Just a personal choice. But you could use any mixer for any of the elements. Thanks! Great question.
Kristy Mitchell says
Hi! Do the cupcakes themselves need to be refrigerated as the cookie dough contains butter that isn’t baked?
Alli says
Hi Kristy! That is totally a personal preference. I don’t refrigerate them, but others have.