Whoopie pies

I finally got round to making some Whoopie Pies as pud for Buzz! night and as a treat for my sister (she'd requested one having see my earlier post).

The recipe (see below) said that I'd get nine pies (i.e. 18 halves). I ended up with only six and a half. (I blame the ridiculous cup system they use in America). Anyway, that meant I had to eat one of the shells fresh from the oven. The sacrifices I make...

The firm exterior encased a silky interior that was nearly molten. A-mazing!

I don't think I'd really taken in just how big these things are. A 4" diameter is pretty big, for a cake. Just look at it compared to a mug.


I was pretty pleased with my efforts as they compare favourably with other specimens that you can find on t'internet.

The main difference was the amount of filling. I used so much less (not even half as much?) as the recipe called for. I think if I had used as much as I was supposed to nobody would have finished a pie. Almost everyone who had one said they felt an almost instant clogging of their arteries.

No wonder these things come from America!

The recipe I used came from whoopiepies.org, which claimed to be a traditional recipe. I tried to stay as faithfully to the recipe as I could, which meant hunting down vegetable shortening. I eventually found some Cookeen. I don't think I'll ever be using the stuff again. I'm pretty sure it's stuffed full of trans-fats.

Anyway on to the recipe, which I've translated to English measurements.

Whoopie Pies (makes 9 apparently!)

Ingredients:
4oz solid vegetable shortening
7oz soft brown sugar
1 egg
1¼oz cocoa
100z plain flour
1tsp baking powder
1tsp baking soda
1tsp salt
1tsp vanilla extract
1 cup milk
Whoopie Pie Filling (see recipe below)

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Lightly grease baking sheets.
2. In a large bowl, cream together shortening, sugar, and egg. In another bowl, combine cocoa, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. In a small bowl, stir the vanilla extract into the milk. Add the dry ingredients to the shortening mixture, alternating with the milk mixture; beating until smooth.
4. Drop batter by the 1/4 cup (to make 18 cakes) onto prepared baking sheets. With the back of a spoon spread batter into 4" circles, leaving approximately 2" between each cake.
5. Bake 15 minutes or until they are firm to the touch. Remove from oven and let cool completely on a wire rack.
6. Make Whoopie Pie Filling (see below).
7. When the cakes are completely cool, spread the flat side (bottom) of one chocolate cake with a generous amount of filling. Top with another cake, pressing down gently to distribute the filling evenly. Repeat with all cookies to make 9 pies.
NOTE: Store in a single layer. Do not stack them, as they tend to stick.

Whoopie Pie Filling:

Ingredients:
8oz solid vegetable shortening* - this will need to be melted
7oz icing sugar
2 cups Marshmallow Fluff** - I used a 200g pack of marshmallows, melted
1½tsp vanilla extract
*Butter may be substituted for all or part of the vegetable shortening, although traditional Whoopie Pies are made with vegetable shortening only
** Marshmallow Creme may be substituted.

Method:
1. In a medium bowl, beat together shortening, sugar, and Marshmallow fluff; stir in vanilla extract until well blended.