Preheat the oven to 350 and line cupcake pans with 20 liners.

In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugars for 3 minutes. With a rubber spatula, scrape down the bowl and beat again for 2 more minutes.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition and scraping the bowl. Add the vanilla and mix again.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.

With the mixer on the lowest speed, alternate adding the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the mixer. Start with ⅓ of the dry ingredients then ½ of the buttermilk, repeat and finish the dry ingredients.

With a piping bag or a ziplock bag, fill the cup cake liners ⅔ full.

Bake at 350 for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean with a few moist crumbs attached.

Cool completely while you prepare the buttercream.

In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter on medium-high speed for about two minutes.

With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the sifted powdered sugar until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and continue to mix for another minute.

Add the mint, salt, and heavy cream. Mix on low. Once the cream is incorporated, increase the speed to medium-high and beat the frosting for five minutes. It should get lighter in texture and color. Add the food gel, if using. Beat until blended.

With a rubber spatula, stir in the cookie crumbs.

In a medium sized sauce pan, stir together the water, sugar, and the corn syrup.

On medium heat, bring the sugar to a boil. The bubbles will start off fast and small, but once it starts caramelizing, the bubbles will slow down and become a little bigger. Do not touch or stir the mixture. That will cause crystallization.

Let it boil until the mixture becomes caramelized and looks golden brown. This does take a few minutes, but once it starts turning brown, it’s easy for it to burn, so keep an eye on it.

Put the cream in the microwave for 1 minute.

Once the caramel is ready for the cream, turn off the heat on the sugar mixture and add the warm cream, being careful that it doesn’t burn you. Mix the caramel mixture until evenly combined.

Pour the mixture into a bowl. Add the vanilla, salt, and butter and let it sit until the butter melts. Stir once the butter is melted.

Once the cupcakes have cooled completely, use a Wilton 1M piping tip to pipe a spiral on top of the cupcake. Drizzle the caramel on top and add a whole mint Oreo right into the middle of the frosting. For a fun texture, sprinkle the Oreo crumbs on top.