Dirt Cupcakes filled w/ Chocolate Mousse

You know that cliched saying, "old married couple." Well I understand it now :) See, even just being married a year and half, I feel that phrase describes me and the hubby perfectly. I love spending weekends at home with the hubby and Ninja. I can't even tell you how long it's been since I've been "out." But I have to say that I interpret the phrase differently -- old married couple implies boring -- but they way I see it is, most people go out to be single and mingle. Old married couples are people who are happy with each other and find so much content just being at home, spending time with each other. And that describes the hubby and I so much better :) Well this weekend, I broke my mold and went out to karaoke for a birthday.

My labmates (aka: my cupcake buddies)

Grad school would not be possible without her :)

Then yesterday our program hosted our annual Halloween party, though we skipped the last two years. My first year here, I made these Dirt-worm cupcakes (but no filling). It was like a full circle, now being in my fourth year and making them again :) When I saw this recipe on Pinterest but with a chocolate mousse filling, I knew I had to make it. I absolutely love filled cupcakes. I mean, it's like a surprise when you bite in. It was a hit at the party because two other people made cupcakes and mine were all gone...yay! You know that dreadful feeling where you made something that someone else also made for a potluck -- I always get nervous that my food will be compared in this informal competition. And I hate competitions!

The hubby loved the filling so much, that he is eating the left over mousse that I did not use for the cupcakes, as I type! It's so yummy, that you are going to find yourself "accidentally" having your finger fall into it and then having the heavy job of eating it...darn... ;) This is a great cupcake to make for a class party for your kid or just to make with your kid, because they are so fun to make. The whole point is to get "dirty" (aka: chocolatey...which is awesome).

Sorry that this post is a little late. Do not worry, I did not forget about Day 3 of my Spooktacular countdown to Halloween. That would just be tragic. With the Halloween party last night, I ran out of time to post. I made these cupcakes, packed them up and ran off to the party (which was a blast). Which just means that today will have two posts to make up for yesterday!

DIRT WORM CUPCAKES FILLED W/ CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

Adapted from Inside a BruCrew Life

INGREDIENTS

Preheat Oven 325F Degrees

FOR THE CUPCAKES
1 box of chocolate cake mix (I used Duncan Hines)
3 eggs, room temperature
1 c. milk (can substitute with water)
1 stick of butter melted (1/2 c.)

FOR THE FILLING
3.4-3.56 oz instant chocolate pudding mix
1 1/2 c. milk 
1 1/2 c. whipped topping

FOR THE FROSTING
1 stick of butter, softened
3 1/2 c. of powdered sugar, sifted
2/3 c. cocoa powder, sifted
7-8 tbsp. heavy cream (or milk)

FOR THE TOPPING
2 c. crushed cookie topping
Gummy worms

*If you are in a time crunch or wanting something less "homemade"-- make cake according to package directions. For the filling, use cool whip chocolate whipped frosting (sold in the freezer section). And for the frosting used canned frosting :) This will cut down on the prep time, significantly.

DIRECTIONS

For the Cupcakes:
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, sift in cake mix (to prevent lumps). Then add in eggs, milk and butter, mixing ingredients until creamy. Mix on low for 1 minutes and then on high for 1 minute. The batter should be thick and creamy. Line cupcake pan with liners. Using an ice cream scoop fill liners 2/3 of the way full. Bake for 18-20 minutes until inserted toothpick comes out clean. Allow to completely cool. Then hollow out the center portion of the cupcake (I use a cupcake corer). Keep the tops of the part you removed.

For the Filling:
In a medium bowl, whisk together pudding and milk for approximately 2 minutes, until well combined. Refrigerate until pudding is firm and set. Then fold in whipped topping. Pipe or fill cupcakes holes with mousse. Cover with a piece of the cupcake top.

For the Frosting:
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream together butter and powdered sugar. A dough like consistency will be reached at this point. Slowly mix in 4 tsbp. of heavy cream. Once a creamy consistency is reached, mix in cocoa powder. Again, a thicker consistency will be reached. For a smooth and creamy consistency (that will be easy for piping), mix in 3 tbsp. of heavy cream. If desired consistency is still not reached, add additional tbsp. of heavy cream. Pipe onto or cover cupcake (to help, you can use the ice cream scoop to form the mound).

For the Topping:
Using a food processor, crush the chocolate cookies (I bought those store brand double chocolate filled cookies -- it worked perfect). Place cookie crumbs in a small bowl. Roll the tops of the cupcakes into the cookie crumbs to coat.

Cut two slit into the cupcakes and insert worms. You want the worm to look like it is going in and coming out. So I made sure the part of the worm that was inserted into the cupcake was the same color. See pictures above.

Enjoy,
Chika