Classic Whoopie Pies Recipe
The classic whoopie pie is a pair of velvety rich chocolate cookie-shaped cakes sandwiched around marshmallow-y vanilla creme. This recipe really shines when you use a rich cocoa powder. Hershey’s classic is excellent as is Ghirardelli’s (the latter I used this go). I have been using A Family Feast whoopie pie recipe for the past few years with a few tweaks to the filling quantities and scoop size which I share below.
I am including this recipe in our family recipe blog not so much because it’s been around a long time; it has not. It’s include, well, because it’s delicious … but mostly to erase the horrid whoopie pie incident of the mid-nineties in which I attempted to replicate whoopie pies for Gladiola Spadiola Ooh Booh Badiolah aka Gladys after she received one from a traveling aunt and uncle and was smitten. That attempt, which included some sort of flour roux in the filling, was such a disgusting debacle, I never tried again. And Gladys never asked again.
A few years ago, after watching something on a travel show or having a whoopie pie in Maine -I really don’t remember – I went on a rabbit hole spelunk looking for a classic whoopie pie recipe [that did not include a roux natch] and the rest is history. All credit to A Family Feast for sharing their recipe.
I am happy to report just yesterday I served these whoopie pies to Gladys; I was feeling a little devil-may-care. To be extra sure, I set myself up for success by telling her the day before that I was making camel’s milk ice cream – I was not; I lied – so that she was already alerted to a sweet adventure. When dessert time came and the platter of whoopie pies was presented, after a few minutes’ suspicion and a colorful rehashing of The Horror as we’re now calling it (eye roll), a bite was taken and all was forgiven. It was even reported Gladys can now hear the name of this dessert without getting the gags. Joy and rapture. This recipe truly is a winner! I hope you give it a try. Feel free to check out A Family Feast’s version if you want to be soopah confident in your outcome. [Impish smile]
Happy Baking! Please let me know if you make any of my recipes. I’d love to hear what you think.
Classic Whoopie Pies
Ingredients
Chocolate Cakes
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 cup Crisco shortening
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 egg room temperature
- 1 cup whole milk room temperature
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
Creme Filling
- 12 oz Marshmallow fluff
- 2 cups confectioner sugar sifted
- 1/2 cup Crisco shortening
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1-2 tbsp whole milk as needed
Instructions
Chocolate Batter
- Preheat oven to 450F. Line two half-sheet pans with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, sift the cocoa powder, flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir to combine and set aside.
- In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, mix together the shortening and sugar until well combined on medium speed. Add the egg. Scrape down the sides. Add the milk and vanilla. Scrape down the sides.
- Reduce the mixer to low and add the dry ingredients. Scrape down the sides and bottom to ensure all the ingredients are combined.
- Scoop the batter onto the parchment lined sheet pans, one pan at a time. Prep the next pan when the first is out of the oven. Scoop Eight per sheet if using 1 1/2 oz scoop and twelve per sheet if using 1 oz scoop. The batter spreads quite a bit (see size note below) so if you need to make more batches to prevent them spreading together, please do.
- NOTE: Using a 1 1/2 oz scoop makes 8 sandwiches about the size of a fast food hamburger on the bun. A 1 oz scoop makes 12 sandwiches about the size of a burger on a King's Hawaiian roll … BD says it's the size of a slider, if that helps.
- Bake one pan at a time for 6-7 minutes for the small size and 7-8 minutes for the larger size.
- When they come out of the oven, remove immediately to a cooling rack. If you flip half over, they will flatten a bit on the bottom so the finished Whoopie Pies don't roll cattywampus.
Filling
- Once the cakes have cooled completely, make the filling by combining the filling ingredients EXCEPT THE MILK in a mixer using the whisk attachment. Blend on medium-high speed until combine, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary. A spoonful should have soft peaks. If it seems too stiff, add milk, 1 tbsp at a time to get to that texture.
- Using the same sized scoop you used to make the cakes, place one scoopful of the filling onto half of the chocolate cakes and top gently with the other. The filling should NOT squish out.
- BELT AND SUSPENDERS SUGGESTION: Put the filling onto one half, top with another, and make sure you're happy with the texture/hold. If it seems squishy, add more confectioners sugar, a tablespoon at a time. Please note further, I have never had to to this … just thinking things through.
- Place on a platter in a single layer to serve. If it will be more than an hour, lightly cover with plastic wrap. They also freeze beautifully when well-wrapped in plastic.