Girl Scout Inspired Cupcakes Part Two: Thin Mint

Wow, this weekend has been a bear.  As I type this my back is killing me and I am more than ready for bed, but we managed to have an amazing surprise 60th birthday party for my dad and that's what counts.   So even though I baked my butt off and don't want to see another baked good for a few weeks, I thought I would share that other Girl scout cupcake I promised.  Tag a Longs are my favorite cookie but my husband likes the Thin Mints, so they were the logical next cupcake.  As with the Tag a Long cupcake, I didn't want to just stick a cookie in there, I wanted to make a cupcake with the characteristics of the cookie.  This one has a little bit of a grown up spin, since I added some of our beloved Sunergos coffee to the cupcake.  The Thin Mint cupcake consists of a rich mocha brownie cupcake, semi sweet chocolate topping and a generous swirl of mint buttercream.  As with the previous cupcake this one started with a mix.  Check out the tutorial below for a how to and recipe.

Cupcakes
1 box brownie mix prepared according to directions minus the water
strong brewed coffee, preferably Sunergos :)

Step one:  prepare the brownie mix following the directions on the back of the box, minus the water.  Add enough strong brewed coffee plus 1/4c to substitute for the water.  (if the box says add 1 c water, you will add 1 1/4 c. coffee). Pour the batter into cupcake liners and bake at 350 for 15 minutes. You can tell they are done when they start to crackle on top and don't jiggle when you lightly shake the pan.

After the cupcakes have cooled, melt some semi sweet chocolate.  You can do this in a double boiler or my favorite method, the microwave.  Spoon a tbs onto each cupcake and spread with the back of a spoon.  Let dry.

Frosting:
1 stick softened butter
1/2 c. shortening
4-5 c. confectioners sugar
mint extract
milk

In the bowl of a mixer, beat the butter and shortening until fluffy.  Add the mint extract, I use about 2 tsp.  Add the confectioners sugar a cup at a time.  Add the milk to thin the icing to the right consistency, 1 tbs at a time.  It should be the consistency of toothpaste for piping.  Place the icing in a piping bag fitted with an open star tip and pipe a generous swirl of icing.  Then top with green sprinkles and a thin mint if desired.

-Kim