Old-Fashioned Whoopie Pies

Yield

About 15 pies

Total Time

1 hour minutes

Hands-on Time

30 minutes minutes

For the Cakes:

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350° and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, scraping the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla extract; then add the milk and the dry ingredients, alternating, and mix until just combined.

Spoon heaping tablespoons of batter, roughly 3 inches apart, onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake 10 to 12 minutes, rotating halfway through, until the cakes are set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

For the Filling:

Ingredients

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Instructions

Combine the flour and milk in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk continuously until the mixture thickens, like pudding, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and press through a fine-mesh strainer into a mixing bowl. Cool to room temperature.

Once the mixture has cooled, add the remaining ingredients and beat until fluffy and creamy, about 10 minutes.

Spread filling onto the flat bottom of one cake; then top with another. Repeat with the remaining filling and cakes. For a nicer presentation, put the filling into a large zip-top bag, snip off one corner, and pipe a thick spiral onto the flat bottom of one cake, then top with another. Repeat with the remaining filling and cakes.