What is a Whoopie Pie?

Until a reader who had just finished A Wee Christmas Homicide, third book in the Liss MacCrimmon Scottish-American Heritage Mystery Series, wrote to ask me what a whoopie pie was, I had no idea this sweet treat was so rare outside New England. The classic whoopie pie consists of a filling made with marshmallow fluff between two cake-like chocolate cookies, but you will also find whoopie pies made with molassas cookies, filled with peanut butter fluff, and so on. With a little sleuthing online, I discovered that the whoopie pies I'm most familiar with are made a bit differently than the usual recipies. So, with permission from my sister-in-law, Elaine Emerson Smith, here is the recipe for whoopie pies that our family enjoys at Christmas and on other special occasions. The photo below shows the latest batch, made to go with the 2010 Super Bowl.

WHOOPIE PIES

cream together:
3/4 cup Crisco
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

sift:
3 cups flour
2 1/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp cocoa

add dry ingredients to creamed mixture, alternating with 1 1/2 cups of milk
drop on ungreased cookie sheet using Tbsp for size

bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes and let cool

filling:
1 cup Crisco
1 cup plus 2 Tbsp confectioner's sugar
dash of salt
1 7oz. jar marshmallow fluff

whip until light; spread between two of the cookies above

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Last updated 2/7/10