Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

I've always wanted to try making whoopie pies, and since I keep hoping fall will finally show it's lovely face, I decided to try the pumpkin variety first.








Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon ground cloves (I used allspice -- I had no cloves)
2 cups firmly packed dark-brown sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 cups pumpkin puree, chilled
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves; set aside. In another large bowl, whisk together brown sugar and oil until well combined. Add pumpkin puree and whisk until combined. Add eggs and vanilla and whisk until well combined. Sprinkle flour mixture over pumpkin mixture and whisk until fully incorporated.
3. Using a small ice cream scoop with a release mechanism, drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto prepared baking sheets, about 1 inch apart. Transfer to oven and bake until cookies are just starting to crack on top and a toothpick inserted into the center of each cookie comes out clean, about 15 minutes. Let cool completely on pan.

I found this recipe at Serious Eats -- it's by Matt Lewis from Baked bakery in Brooklyn, NY.

This is an easy recipe. Just make sure you chill your pumpkin before you start pulling everything together for the recipe. I used a basic cream cheese frosting recipe for the filling (very similar to the recipe listed). The allspice was fine instead of cloves but next time I'd use a bit less, maybe 1/2 tsp because it was a bit heavy on spice. Otherwise, they were wonderful. Good pumpkin flavor, cream cheese frosting was perfect with the spices, and they weren't too big to handle and eat. They were a big hit in pottery class.

We had five or six left over so I put them in the refrigerator. I would NOT recommend making them for anything other than a gathering of people or party to be eaten same day. Keeping them in the fridge (because of the cream cheese frosting) makes the cookie part of the pie rather moist and sticky; not pleasant. The flavor is still good but I'd rather not deal with that kind of ickiness.