Live on the edge make these Chocolate Whoopie Pies

Are you sitting down?  I hope so cause I’m going to tell you the secret ingredient in these whoopie pies……….shortening!  There, I said it.  Now some of you will leave right now and I don’t blame you.  Risk takers keep on reading………………

I know shortening is bla bla bla bla.  Yes, I get it.  But sometimes it just tastes better when you bake with it.  Like in pie crust.  I don’t eat these everyday and I don’t use shortening everyday.   If you want a mouth-watering whoopie pie try this recipe.  One of my customers from the Walnut Creek shop gave me her recipe.  She grew up near Amish country but moved west when she got married.

I like to pipe the batter in snail circles.  They look like Princess Leia hair buns from the Star Wars movie!  (George Lucas’ daughter Amanda, danced with my daughter so he would come to all the recitals.   He is a surprisingly friendly yet soft-spoken kinda guy.)  Remember if you don’t have a pastry bag handy you can use a sturdy ziplock baggie and just cut the corner off.

Chocolate Whoopie Pies

Makes 18 dozen sandwich pies (36 patties) depending on the size.  We like to make them about 3” is diameter.

2 cups granulated sugar

1 cup vegetable shortening

2 large eggs

4 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup cocoa powder(the best you can find)

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons vanilla extract (the best you can find)

1 cup buttermilk 2% fat

2 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup hot water

Vanilla Buttercream recipe

1.  Cream sugar and shortening in a mixer on medium for about 3 minutes.  Add eggs to mixture at low-speed until thoroughly blended.

2.  Mix together buttermilk and vanilla  then set aside.

3.  Sift together flour, cocoa, and salt.  Add to creamed sugar mixture already in the mixing bowl alternating with milk mixture.  Mix well.

4.  Dissolve baking soda in the hot water then add to batter last.  Mix well.

Now at this point I put the sticky batter in a pastry bag with a big tip and pipe in circles on a non stick baking mat like the Silpat.   They grow a little during baking but not as much as you would think.

Bake at 400 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes.  This will vary depending on the size.  They will just start to crack when finished baking.  Remove from the oven and let cool to touch, then move patties to a cooling rack to finish cooling completely.  Fill with Vanilla Buttercream.  I like to roll the completed Whoopie pies in sprinkles to finish them off.  But don’t wait the filling sets and the sprinkles have a hard time sticking.

 

VANILLA BUTTERCREAM FILLING

Do yourself a favor and use the best vanilla you can find, it makes a huge difference.    I make my own or rather I doctor up the cheap stuff.   Soon to be in my tips section.  I don’t use milk with this recipe. In my mind the milk adds nothing to the recipe.    If it is too thick, which it shouldn’t be just add a touch more of the vanilla.  This frosting is right in the middle.   Not too sweet, not too buttery.

1 lb. soft butter unsalted (4 sticks)

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 lb powdered sugar sifted

sprinkles for garnish (optional)

Blend with a mixer the butter and vanilla until soft and blended well, about 3 minutes.  Slowly add powdered sugar a little at a time on low-speed.   Once it is all in and mixed beat at high-speed until light and fluffy for about 4 minutes.  You can store the unused frosting in an airtight container in the frig about a week.

Secret:  Frosting is my biggest weakness.  I always make sure I leave behind a generous amount in the bowl to eat!  Ouch……..

Have fun:)

REMEMBER EAT SOMETHING SWEET EVERY DAY!

 

Tagged as: chocolate whoopie pie, recipe for chocolate whoopie, whoopie pies