Whoopie Pies are made from two fluffy chocolate cake rounds put together with a creamy frosting in the middle. Similar to an inside out cupcake, these chocolate treats are one of my favorites, and are loved by both kids and adults.
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Have you ever had a whoopie pie? I grew up having these chocolatey treats with my mom. You often find whoopie pies in the New England area and as my mom lived in New Jersey for a while during her childhood, I’m sure whoopie pies reminded her a little bit of childhood too.
Who came up with the idea of whoopie pies?
The legend goes it was the Pennsylvania Dutch who originally made whoopie pies. They would make little cakes from extra cake batter that they would bake, add frosting and then sandwich together.
These little treat cakes were then tucked into lunchboxes (probably a lunch pail back then) as treats for kids, though I’m sure everyone enjoyed them
The little cakes were so popular that the kids would shout “whoopie!” when they would find one in their lunch. While this is hard to trace back to a particular person, one bite of a whoopie pie and I believe every word because they are that delicious!
Are Whoopie Pies Cakes Or Pies?
Despite the name, Whoopie Pies are more cakes than pie! I like to think of them like a fluffy inside out cupcake.
Other Names For These Treats
I’ve also heard Whoopie pies called by all kinds of other names including Gobs, BFO (short for Big Fat Oreo), Twins, Black Moon, and Black And White. So maybe you’ve heard them called something else too!
They do remind me of an Oreo cookie, but instead of a hard cookie, you have a soft and fluffy cake!
Want More Great Holiday Recipes? Check out my cookbook Kid Chef Bakes For The Holidays. Full of 50 recipes for every holiday all year long.
These Chocolatey Cakes Travel Well
This recipe for whoopie pies was originally created for my book Kid Chefs For The Holidays and I called them “Whoopie Thanks For Being My Teacher” Pies because they were the perfect little treats to take in a container to share. I also may have given some to a few of my child’s teacher.
Have you ever tried to move cupcakes for a party? While it’s totally possible, there is a lot of worry if you’re going to squish your treats you just made. Since Whoopie Pies have the frosting on the inside, they travel much easier to school or for a party.
Check out a sneak peak at a few other recipes inside Kid Chef Bakes For The Holidays. You’ll love the Fresh Raspberry Cream Cheese Cupcakes and my Mini Blueberry Galettes (Pies!)
If you love chocolate treats, you have to try making these hot cocoa bombs!
Chocolate Whoopie Pies With Vanilla Cream Cheese Filling
Equipment
- 1-2 baking sheets
- parchment paper
- electric mixer or stand mixer
- wire cooling rack or kitchen towel
- piping bag or strong plastic zip-top bag
- cookie scoop (optional)
Ingredients
For The Whoopie Pies
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 cup milk
- ½ cup unsalted butter 1 stick, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup sugar granulated, white sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 ¼ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
For The Cream Cheese Filling
- ½ cup unsalted butter 1 stick, at room temperature
- 4 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Sprinkles
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Making The Whoopie Pies
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
- Line cookie sheets with parchment paper
- In a one cup measuring cup, add the lemon juice. Fill the cup the rest of the way with milk and set aside for 10-15 minutes to make buttermilk.
- In a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer, or in the bowl of a standmixer, cream together 1/2 cup butter, the brown sugar, and granulated sugar.
- In a small bowl, beat the egg with a fork and add it to the large bowl. Add 1 teaspoon of vanilla and lemon-milk mixture and mix all the ingredients well until they are combined.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Mix all the dry ingredients well, then add the dry ingredients to your wet ingredients and mix well until combined. The batter will be a little on the fudgy side.
- On a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, place 2 tablespoons of batter for each cookie. Try to keep your whoopie pies in as much of a circle and even in size as you can. (A cookie scoop really helps to make the whoopie pies even, but most standard are 11/2 tablespoons. Expect to have a few more, slightly smaller whoopie pies!)
- Bake in the oven for 11 to 12 minutes. Remove quickly from the pan as soon as you can and let the whoopie pies cool on a wire rack or clean kitchen towel.
Make The Cream Cheese Frosting
- In a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer, or in the bowl of a stand mixer, whip 1/2 cup of butter for 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add the cream cheese and beat for 1 to 2 minutes more.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time, mixing well between each addition. Add 1 teaspoon of vanilla and mix for 1 minute more.
Assemble The Whoopie Pies
- Once cool, match up your whoopie pies in pairs so that they are as close in size and shape as possible. Fill an icing bag or zip-top bag with filling. Snip a medium hole in the end of your bag.
- On the flat side of one of your whoopie pies, pipe filling around the outside edge as close to the edge as possible, then swirl in, filling into the center. Place a second whoopie pie on top. Roll the edge in sprinkles to decorate.
Notes
butter, or even gingerbread. The fastest way to change the flavor is to roll the outside of the whoopie pies in candy cane bits, graham crackers, or other crushed-up candies. Or just change up your sprinkle color for whatever holiday you are celebrating.
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