whoopie pies

I made some whoopie pies today in honor of Matt's birthday - he's not a big fan of cake and even if he was, we eat enough cake during birthday season to last us for a while. This was my first time making the pies and I have to pass along the recipe because they are really good. I got the recipe from my friend Theresa (who will be thrilled to be mentioned in a recipe post)...who got it from her friend, Rachel Ray. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) unsalted butter, 1 stick melted, 1/2 stick softened
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten
• 1 cup canned pure pumpkin puree
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon plus 2 pinches salt
• 1-2/3 cups flour
• 4 ounces cream cheese, chilled
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter and brown sugar until smooth. Whisk in the eggs, pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, 1 teaspoon vanilla, the baking powder, the baking soda and 3/4 teaspoon salt. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the flour.
3. Using an ice cream scoop or tablespoon, drop 12 generous mounds of batter, spaced evenly, onto each baking sheet. Bake until springy to the touch, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.
4. Meanwhile, using an electric mixer, cream the softened butter with the cream cheese. Add the confectioners' sugar and the remaining 2 pinches salt and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla; mix on low speed until blended, then beat on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes.
5. Spread the flat side of 12 cakes with the cream cheese frosting. Top each with another cake.
   

Other Tips:

• It's important that the eggs be at room temperature.
• Use an ice cream scoop with a clicker like they say - I filled mine about 3/4 full otherwise they turn out really big.
• Parchment paper is important. It's in the baking aisle.
• I had to bake mine a few minutes longer than the 10 minutes they say.
• I doubled the recipe. Makes 12-14 pies if you double, 6-7 if you don't (twice as many cookie halves before you put them together...kind of confusing).