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Carrot Patch Cookie Cups are deceptively simple to make with a brownie mix, Reese’s miniature peanut butter cups, store-bought chocolate frosting, Oreo cookie crumbs, and Mike & Ike’s candy made to look like cute little carrots in the dirt.Â
For more ‘carrot’ recipes be sure and check out this Easter Carrot Cheeseball and these Carrot Patch Chocolate Covered Strawberries.
Carrot Patch Cookie Cups Recipe
If you’re wanting a ridiculously cute & fun Easter recipe, then you’ve found it with these Carrot Patch Cookie Cups. Not only are they super fun to celebrate with & delicious, but they are surprisingly easy to make thanks to a brownie mix and store-bought chocolate frosting.Â
The hardest part is making those cute mini carrots out of orange & green Mike & Ike’s candy. But they’re so adorable that the time passes quickly and the finished product is totally worth it.Â
Ingredients Needed
- Brownie Mix – Use your favorite, just make sure it’s the same size called for in the recipe.Â
- All-Purpose Flour – A little extra flour is needed to provide the necessary structure to create the cookie cups.
- Eggs
- Oil – Canola oil or vegetable oil are the most common ones used.
- Water – Just a tad of extra moisture for our brownie cookie cups.
- Reese’s Miniature Cups – These are the peanut butter cups that come individually wrapped in the gold foil wrapper.Â
- Chocolate Frosting – Buying store bought chocolate frosting is the easiest way to go.Â
- Oreo Cookie Crumbs – This what creates the ‘dirt’ for our carrots. Make sure they’re very finely ground so they fit on the small area of chocolate frosting.Â
- Mike & Ike’s Candy – I used a family-size bag of Mike & Ike’s candy and just sorted through it for all the green and orange candies.Â
Step-by-Step Directions For How To Make This Fun, Kid-Friendly Easter Recipe
It’s not as hard as it may look to make this cute Easter treat. Follow the simple steps below and be sure to read to the bottom of the page where there is a detailed recipe card, a printable option, and a pin it button.Â
- Prep : Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare a mini muffin pan (mine has 24 mini spots) by spraying it really well with cooking spray. Making sure to get each mini muffin cups on the bottom and sides.Â
- Step 1 : Add the brownie mix, flour, eggs, oil, and water into a mixing bowl. Beat to combine together. The batter will be thick. Scoop 1 tablespoon of batter and place it inside each mini muffin cup. Gently press a Reese’s miniature peanut butter cup into the center of each cookie cup.Â
- Step 2 : Bake for 8-10 minutes. Allow the cups to cool for about 10 minutes before removing them to a cooling rack.Â
- Step 3 : While the cookie cups are cooling prepare the mini candy ‘carrots’. Cut a green Mike & Ike into 3 slices. Press the sticky side of a green candy onto the top of a whole orange Mike & Ike candy. Repeat until you have as many as you want. For 3 per cookie cup you will need to make 108 of them.Â
- Step 4 : Once cooled, pipe on the chocolate frosting and sprinkle some Oreo cookie crumbs on top of the frosting. Gently insert 3 mini carrots into the dirt patch of each mini cookie cup.Â
Recipe FAQ’s
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Variation & Substitution Ideas
- Carrots : Instead of candy carrots using the Mike & Ike’s candy, you can use melted chocolate (candy melts or almond bark, or melting wafers) to draw on the carrots. Or, you can use the decorative carrot cake toppings that look like carrots. They are not exactly edible (really hard and crunchy) so they would have to be removed before eating, but it will give that carrot patch look.Â
- Frosting : The recipe calls for store-bought frosting (you won’t use it all) but you can also use homemade chocolate buttercream frosting, melted chocolate chips spread on top, or use some Nutella.Â
- Oreo Cookies : Any variety can be used. Chocolate Oreos, dark chocolate, or even the carrot cake version would all work.Â
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How To Store Carrot Patch Cookie Cups
- Store these at room temperature, in an airtight container, for up to 5 days.Â
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Can I Make These Ahead of Time?
- Yes! In fact, each part of the cookie cups can be made separately, stored, and then put together when ready to serve.Â
- I like to start working on the cute mini candy carrots the day before or the morning of. It can take some time to make 108 of those candy carrots.Â
- The frosting is just a room temperature tub so that keeps well.Â
- Make the brownie cookie cups, allow them to cool, and then place them inside an airtight container and store them at room temperature until you’re ready to create the carrot patch dirt cups and serve them.Â
Recipe Tips
Here are a few helpful tips so that you can have success recreating this recipe in your own kitchen ♥
- Let Cookie Cups Cool Before Transferring Them : It’s important that you allow the cookie cups to cool inside the warm mini muffin pan for at least 5 minutes, before moving them to a cooling rack. If they are too warm/hot they will fall apart when moving them which is why you want to let them cool for a bit.Â
- Spray Mini Muffin Pan Well : Spray each mini muffin cup well with cooking spray so the cookie cups come out easily.Â
- Time Tip : These might look complicated (especially that candy carrot part) but I promise it’s so easy to make. While the cookie cups are baking get started on the carrots. You can also make the carrots ahead of time and store them at room temperature (covered) until you’re ready to use them. Making the carrots is simply just cutting some Mike & Ike’s candy and sticking two pieces together.Â
- Don’t Overbake : This might seem obvious but it is really important that you watch the cookie cups carefully to not let them over cook. Once a toothpick comes out clean they are good to come out. With the Reese’s in there it’s sometimes hard to tell if the brownie part is cooked, so try sticking the toothpick into the side of the cookie cup into the brownie part. It’s a short cook time because they don’t need long to cook through – once you press that Reese’s into the brown cup, the brownie batter becomes thinner which means it cooks faster.Â
More Themed Easter Recipes You’ll Love
- Easter Dirt Cake – Layers of no bake cheesecake and pudding. Topped with Oreo crumbs for the dirt, green coconut grass, peeps bunnies, and mini eggs.Â
- Rice Krispies Easter Egg Nests – Little Rice Krispie nests topped with green coconut grass and decorated with mini eggs for easter.Â
- Bunny Bait Trail Mix – A delicious and sweet easter mix with bunny graham crackers, m&m’s, sprinkles, and a white chocolate coated cereal mix.Â
- Peeps Cookie Pizza – Colorful and sweet sugar cookie pizza, marshmallow frosting, and decorated with Peeps bunnies, pink candy melt drizzle, and pastel candies.Â
- Easter Cookie Bars – A fun & sweet dessert for all ages!
- Easter Chick Dipped Wafer Cookies – You have to see how cute these are.
- Easter Bunny Rice Krispies Treats – Shaped like an Easter bunny and decorated with chocolate, sprinkles, and candy.Â
- Easter Peep Cake – A fun and festive layered cake that’s perfect for dessert after Easter dinner.
Carrot Patch Cookie Cups
Ingredients
Cookie Cups
- 1 box (18 oz) brownie mix
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 large eggs
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon water
- 36 Reese's Miniature Cups unwrapped
Carrot Patch Toppings
- 1 tub (16 oz) chocolate frosting
- 8 Oreo cookies crushed & crumbled
- orange and green Mike & Ike's candy
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉. Prepare a mini muffin pan (I use a 24-cup mini muffin pan) and spray it well with cooking spray, making sure to get each mini cup on the bottom and sides.
- In a large mixing bowl using a handheld electric mixer, add the brownie mix, flour, eggs, oil, and water. Blend together, starting at low speed and increase speed as needed, until a thick and combined batter forms. *Use a spatula to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure that everything is mixed in well.1 box (18 oz) brownie mix, 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, 2 large eggs, 1/3 cup vegetable oil, 1 tablespoon water
- Use a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop to measure out the batter and place it into the prepared mini muffin pan. Carefully press a Reese's miniature cup into the center of each brownie cup. Make sure the brownie batter is on each side of the peanut butter cup once you've pressed it in.36 Reese's Miniature Cups
- Bake for 8-10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow the baking pan to cool on a cooling rack for about 10 minutes. Gently remove the cookie cups from the pan onto a cooling rack to cool completely. * Don't try to move the cookie cups while they're still really warm, they will just fall apart. Let them first cool inside the pan for at least 10 minutes.
- While the cookie cups are cooling prepare the carrot candies. First, cut a green Mike & Ike into 3 slices. Stick a small green portion on top of a whole orange Mike & Ike to form a mini 'carrot'. Repeat this step to prepare as many carrots as you want. For each cup to have 3 carrots (as pictured) you will need to make 108 of these. *Adhere the small green candy on top of an orange candy using the sticky side of the candy from when you sliced it into 3 pieces.
- Once the cookie cups are cooled completely, gently pipe or spread the chocolate frosting on top of each one. Sprinkle the frosting with some Oreo cookie crumbs. Lastly, add your mini carrots by gently sinking them into the chooclate 'dirt'.1 tub (16 oz) chocolate frosting, 8 Oreo cookies
Notes
-
- Carrots : Instead of candy carrots using the Mike & Ike's candy, you can use melted chocolate (candy melts or almond bark, or melting wafers) to draw on the carrots. Or, you can use the decorative carrot cake toppings that look like carrots. They are not exactly edible (really hard and crunchy) so they would have to be removed before eating, but it will give that carrot patch look.Â
- Frosting : The recipe calls for store-bought frosting (you won't use it all) but you can also use homemade chocolate buttercream frosting, melted chocolate chips spread on top, or use some Nutella.Â
- Oreo Cookies : Any variety can be used. Chocolate Oreos, dark chocolate, or even the carrot cake version would all work.Â
- Let Cookie Cups Cool Before Transferring Them : It's important that you allow the cookie cups to cool inside the warm mini muffin pan for at least 5 minutes, before moving them to a cooling rack. If they are too warm/hot they will fall apart when moving them which is why you want to let them cool for a bit.Â
- Spray Mini Muffin Pan Well : Spray each mini muffin cup well with cooking spray so the cookie cups come out easily.Â
- Time Tip : These might look complicated (especially that candy carrot part) but I promise it's so easy to make. While the cookie cups are baking get started on the carrots. You can also make the carrots ahead of time and store them at room temperature (covered) until you're ready to use them. Making the carrots is simply just cutting some Mike & Ike's candy and sticking two pieces together.Â
- Don't Overbake : This might seem obvious but it is really important that you watch the cookie cups carefully to not let them over cook. Once a toothpick comes out clean they are good to come out. With the Reese's in there it's sometimes hard to tell if the brownie part is cooked, so try sticking the toothpick into the side of the cookie cup into the brownie part. It's a short cook time because they don't need long to cook through - once you press that Reese's into the brown cup, the brownie batter becomes thinner which means it cooks faster.Â
Nutrition
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