Cupcakes

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare two muffin tins with baking cups. Spritz the baking cups with nonstick cooking spray.
• Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
• In a mixer, beat the butter and sugar until fluffy, about 6 minutes, scraping down the sides as needed.
• Mix in the eggs and vanilla, blending well.
• Add the flour mixture a little at a time, alternating with the milk, until completely blended. Stir in the cookie crumbs.
• Using a large scoop, fill the cupcake liners two-thirds full.
• Bake the cupcakes for 20 to 22 minutes or until a toothpick in the center returns clean.
• Place the muffin tins on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes prior to removing the cupcakes to cool completely.

Frosting

• Sift together the confectioner's sugar and cocoa powder.
• Stir in the salt and set aside.
• Beat the butter on high for 3 to 5 minutes or until creamy and light in color.
• Mix in the vanilla.
• Beat in the sugar/cocoa mixture and whipping cream, beating on low until the sugar is incorporated and then switching to high speed and scraping down the sides as needed.

Decorating

• Transfer the icing into a decorating bag with a round tip and frost with a back and forth pattern across each cupcake.

To create the decorations:

For the ears

• Cut each Tootsie Roll midgee in half.
• Roll and squeeze the candy to soften and shape into an owl ear.

For the eyes

• Twist the mini Oreos releasing one cookie so that the cream sticks on one side.
• To the cream, press a chocolate chip against the white cream.

Chest

• Arrange the coconut on the cupcakes in an inverted V-shape.

Assemble

• At the top of the V, add an M&M and press one eye on each side of the M&M.
• Then, press an ear under each eye.
• To finish, allow the icing to set and lightly dot the icing with a fork.