Pumpkin Whoopie Pies - Come on Fall!

Matt & Renato couldn't have said it better "try as we might, we were never huge fans of the traditional whoopie pie." Their version below was listed as one of the top 100 tastes of 2007 by Time Out New York. Their whoopie pie would satisfy any midnight craving, with its soft, cake like cookie and chilled cream cheese filling.

It was the first day of Fall today. This is my favorite time of year and seeing all of the pumpkins displayed at our local farms put me in the mood to make these babies! So here they are and maybe, just maybe, they will inspire nature to bring on the typical fall weather for us!

These were easy and fun to do with  my 6 year old daughter. A word of warning: don't assume you have enough of the spices on hand...I usually have small containers and they use take tablespoons rather than teaspoons here. Quick and painless to make so go ahead....try them! You won't be sorry...ok, maybe your hips will be, but your taste buds won't! Ha!

FOR THE PUMPKIN WHOOPIE COOKIES

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

2 Tbs cinnamon

1 Tbs ginger

1 Tbs cloves

2 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

3 cups chilled pumpkin puree

2 large eggs

1 tsp pure vanilla extract (I used vanilla paste since it was being baked)

FOR THE CREAM CHEESE FILLING

3 cups confectioner's sugar

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

8 oz cream cheese, softened

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

MAKE THE PUMPKIN WHOOPIE COOKIES

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, whisk the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves together and set aside.

In a separate bowl, whisk the brown sugar and oil together until combined. Add the pumpkin puree and whisk to combine thoroughly. Add the eggs and vanilla and whisk until combined.

Sprinkle the flour mixture over the pumpkin mixture and whisk until combined.

Use a small ice cream scoop (I used a cookie dough scoop) with a release mechanism to drop heaping tablespoons of the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, about 1 inch apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the cookies are just starting to crack on top and a toothpick inserted into the center of a cookie comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool completely on the  pan while you make the filling.

MAKE THE CREAM CHEESE FILLINGSift the confectioners sugar into a medium bowl and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until it is completely smooth, with no visible lumps. Add the cream cheese and beat until combined.

Add the confectioners' sugar and vanilla and beat until smooth. Be careful not to over beat the filling, or it will lose structure. (The filling can be made 1 day ahead. Cover the bowl tightly and put it in the refrigerator. Let the filling soften at room temperature before using).

ASSEMBLE THE WHOOPIE PIES

Turn half of the cooled cookies upside down (flat side facing up).

Use an ice cream scoop or a tablespoon to drop a large dollop of filling onto the flat side of the cookie. Place another cookie, flat side down, on top of the filling. Press down slightly so that the filling spreads to the edges of the cookie. Repeat until all the cookies are used. Put the whoopie pies in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to firm up before serving.

The whoopie pies will keep for up to 3 days, on a parchment-lined baking sheet covered with plastic wrap, in the refrigerator.

Key Lime Pie Cupcakes: ooops, cake balls!

My first batch of key lime cake balls were a huge hit, except, the only graham crackers were a dusting on the white chocolate coating. A big part of key lime pie is the graham cracker crust. So needless to say, I was bothered. So I found another recipe at The Cupcake Project and decided to give it a whirl.

Milk Chocolate Coating

Rather than making cupcakes, I wanted to try cake balls. Very mixed opinion on these. Personally, I liked my first recipe for the cake balls better...BUT my husband really liked these. My biggest complaint was with the candy coating. I do NOT like candy melts, but thought I would try a better quality melt. Not too bad. I have found and will test out a company that makes the tempered chocolate the Belgian way and their reviews have been outstanding. Will let you know if they live up to their praises!

White Chocolate / Vanilla Coating

For the frosting let me say, I LOVED it! I normally don't  like frosting, but I loved it. If you are one that is weird about textures, you may want to try a different frosting. This you can feel the little crumbs of graham cracker, but I think that added to the interest. I think these would ROCK as cupcakes and will do that next time. The texture is not an issue if blending into the cake for cake balls.

KEY LIME PIE CUPCAKES:
Yield: 18 cupcakes

• 1 1/2 C cake flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• pink of salt
• 1/2 C unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 C sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 C sweetened condensed milk (I used the low fat version)
• 3/4 C key lime juice

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake pans with liners if making cupcakes...or in my case I prepared a cake 13x9 inch cake pan with spray flour and butter. It's what I had and I know it will cook faster and cool faster if spread out. (NOTE: If using a dark pan or cupcake pan or non-stick pan, please remember to lower your temp to 325 degrees F.)
2. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. In a medium-sized bowl, cream butter and sugar.
4. Mix eggs into butter/sugar, one at a time.
5. Mix sweetened condensed milk and key lime juice into wet ingredients.
6. Mix dry ingredients into wet ingredients until just combined.
7. Divide evenly between the 12 cupcake liners (or pour into the cake pan). Note: The batter will be very liquid. This is normal.
8. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes for cupcakes or about 20-25 minutes if using the 13x9" cake pan for cake balls, or until it bounces back when touched lightly. The center will still be wet. It solidifies as it cools.
9. Once the cake is cooled, crumble it into a large mixing bowl. You should not see any large pieces of cake.
10. Read instructions at bottom of the frosting.

GRAHAM CRACKER FROSTING

• 1/4 C unsalted butter, room temperature
• 8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
• 2 C powdered sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/3 C finely crushed graham crackers

1. In a large mixing bowl, mix butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy.
2. Mix in the powdered sugar a little bit at a time.  Note: You can add more if you prefer a stiffer consistency.
3. Mix in vanilla extract.
4. Fold in graham crackers.
5. Mix into crumbled cake for cake balls until the desired consistency is achieved. Use the back of a large metal spoon, until thoroughly combined. You do not want the mixture too moist. The mixture should be moist enough to roll into 1 1/2 inch balls and still hold a round shape.
6. After rolling the cake balls by hand, place them on a wax paper-covered baking sheet.
7. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for several hours in the refrigerator or place in a freezer for about 5 minutes. You want the balls firm but NOT frozen.

COATING YOUR CAKE BALLS:

Melt the candy coating of your choice following instructions on the package. Microwave on medium power for 30 seconds at a time, stirring with a spoon in between. You can use a double boiler. Make sure you do NOT overheat the coating. Use a bowl deep enough to dip your cake pops and remove them in one motion. Do NOT get any water in your candy coating. If microwaving, plastic bowls are best, glass gets hot.

Now you are ready to dip. Take a few balls out of the refrigerator or freezer to work with. Transfer the rest to the refrigerator at this point, so they stay firm but do not freeze. Do not dip frozen cake balls. Let them thaw a bit in the refrigerator if this happens.

Cover the entire ball with coating. Cover the entire ball with coating using a spoon, without stirring or moving the cake ball around in the coating. Lift it out of the coating with your spoon. With the ball still on the spoon, stap the handle of the spoon on the side of the bowl several times, until the excess coating starts to fall off and back into the bowl. Then let the cake ball slide off the spoon onto a wax paper-covered baking sheet to dry.