Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Whoopie pies....joining the bandwagon.


Those of you who follow food blogs will know that there are lots of trends in the food blogging community, not unlike clothing fashion. While yesterdays raging trend was cupcakes in all colors and flavors, the new trend is now whoopie pies. Wow. You have to try them to believe me.We called them devil dogs when I was little, but these whoopie pies are on a whole new level. It seems to me that the difference with whoopie pies is you can mix and match any flavors. There is a new book out called "Whoopie Pies" and in it there are fifty recipes for the cake part and fifty recipes for the filling. Double wow. I have a copy on hold at the library and I can't wait to get my hands on it to try out all the cool combinations that are inside. In the meantime, Bakerella posted peanut butter whoopie pies. They are delicious, and I dare you to stop after one. Without any further ado, I present to you..... 
Whoopie Pies!
Whoopie Pie Cakes
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup white sugar
1 egg
2  cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets. In a large bowl cream shortening , sugar and egg.
In a separate bowl sift together  flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Add to other mixture alternately with milk, beating well. Add vanilla at the end.
Drop by large spoonful on greased pan. For even sized cookies, use a melon scoop. Bake for 10-15 minutes. Remove to wire rack and cool completely.

Peanut Butter Filling
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter (or crunchy)
3/4 cup unsalted butter or margarine
1 1/2 cup confectioners sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Beat peanut butter and butter on low until creamy using a mixer.
Add sugar and salt and beat on low to incorporate. Increase speed to medium and beat for about four minutes until the filling is light and fluffy.
Spread filling on flat side on one cooled cake. Top it with a second cake and press gently. Store whoopie pies in an airtight container.

8 comments:

  1. I really need to find the time to try these. My kids would love them.

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  2. I know, they are actually great to make with the kids too! My six year old cant stop eating them :)

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  3. If I want to make them pareve, what do you recommend as the best substitute for the milk?

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  4. I substitute any recipe that calls for milk with soy/rice milk. Never had any issues ;)

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  5. I made them and they came out very good, thanks :)
    This is despite the fact that my filling does not look like the filling in the picture although I followed the recipe precisely.

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  6. Critiquer- I'm sorry that the filling didn't come out the same- maybe you can tell me how it looked different and we can figure it out?

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  7. It looks like peanut butter here in the picture. Mine looks lighter in color and fluffier. I used margarine.

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  8. Critiquer: That is actually the way it is supposed to come out! What happened was with mine, is I made the frosting, and then added more sugar, which made the frosting darker and grainier. (The recipe posted reflects the additional sugar) Your way is actually the correct way that it is supposed to come out. The reason why they look different, is because authentic peanut butter frosting is supposed to be made with butter only. Since I want to keep it non-dairy, I use margarine. The margarine makes the recipe more "delicate" since the fat balance is not the same as butter.

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