Whoopie pies

From America's Test Kitchen's Best-Ever Recipes magazine

NOTES:

1. If we have no buttermilk, some websites say we can substitute low-fat milk and add 1 Tbl of vinegar to the milk. I added 1/2 Tbl to the milk, which was 1/2 cup butter milk and 1/2 cup low-fat milk: the cakey part came out just fine.

2. The whoopie pies according to this recipe are about 4" wide and 2" high! It may be worth making 24 smaller dollops of cake batter instead of 12 large dollops.

3. The filling can be made ahead of time; or it can be made while the cakes are cooling.

4. Take out the egg and the 2-1/2 sticks of butter ahead of time.

5. In 2010, the marshmallow fluff came in a 7 oz. jar--just about 2 cups of fluff, so plan on getting two jars.

6. Liz mixed some things by hand instead of with a handheld mixer, and it all worked out fine.



INGREDIENTS:

CAKES:

2 cups (10 oz) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (1-1/2 oz) Dutch processed cocoa
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup packed (7 oz) light brown sugar
8 Tbl (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened but still cool
1 large egg, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup buttermilk (or lowfat milk plus vinegar; see NOTES)



FILLING:

12 Tbl (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened but still cool
1-1/4 cups confectioners sugar
1-1/2 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp salt
2-1/2 cups marshmallow fluff (see NOTE above)


PREPARATION:

FOR THE CAKES:

Two oven racks, one at lower-middle; other at upper-middle.
Oven to 350.
Two baking sheets, lined with parchment paper.

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar with a hand-held mixer (or by hand). It will take about 4 minutes on medium for the mixture to become fluffy.

3. Beat in the egg until incorporated and scrape down the sides.

4. Beat in the vanilla.

5. Reduce the mixer's speed to low and beat in one-third of flour mixture, followed by half of the buttermilk.

6. Repeat with half of remaining flour mixture and remaining buttermilk, then add remaining flour mixture.

7. Using a large rubber spatula, give the batter a final stir.

8. With a large spoon, put 6 sizeable dollops on each baking sheet, 3 inches apart to allow for spreading. (For smaller cakes, use smaller dollops--but be sure you end up with an even number for the "sandwiches" and keep the cakes about the same size.)

9. Put both sheets into preheated oven and bake for 15-18 min (probably less for smaller cakes). Switch racks and rotate baking sheets halfway through the cooking time. The cakes are done when they spring back after being pressed lightly.

10. Cool completely on the baking sheets for an hour or more before adding filling (see next section).


FOR THE FILLING:

1. In a medium bowl, use a hand-mixer to cream together the sugar and butter on medium (or mix by hand), until fluffy, about 2 min.

2. Beat in the vanilla and salt.

3. Beat in the marshmallow fluff until incorporated, about 2 min. (Mixing by hand may be easier because the fluff is so sticky!)

4. Refrigerate the filling until slightly firm, about 30 min.

5. Using a large spoon, dollop a fairly large amount of the filling (for full-sized pies) onto the center of the flat side of half of the cakes. Top each with the remaining cakes and press gently so the filling spreads.

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