Caroline's Apple-Cinnamon Whoopie Pies!

What do we want? Apples!
When do we want them? Now! 
 

          When I was in middle school there was this girl named Katie who all the boys were obsessed with. She had blonde hair, and blue eyes, and these two front teeth that were huge and made her look like a bunny…anyway, everyone loved this girl, and because, in middle school anyway, I felt like a total loser and spent my time reading books on Wicca and watching The Craft on VHS (don’t judge me, I was 10) I am always immediately envious of people who embody the perfect girl-next-door types.

            How does this connect to Caroline or whoopie pies? Well, Caroline is that perfect girl-next-door type. She is laid back, she is brave, she is optimistic, she is fearless, she speaks her mind, she can laugh at herself, she is never malicious, and she is really easy to talk to.

            Therefore (oh my God, I just used therefore) I wanted a dessert that was fun and easy-going, but definitely had some spice, because no one can beat Caroline’s humor (seriously, some if it is hilariously dark) And while it may not remind me of a girl with bunny-like front teeth who always used cucumber-melon lotion that I could never seem to find, it does remind me of someone I am really blessed to now call my friend.

INGREDIENTS:

For the Whoopie Pies:

-       1 box white cake mix

-       1/3 cup of apple cider

-       2 eggs

-       3 tbsp vegetable or canola oil

-       1 cup shredded apples (first, peel the apples, then, using the largest openings on a cheese grater, run the apples up and down creating shreds. Make sure to squeeze as much juice as possible from the shreds so that you don’t end up with soggy whoopie)

-       2 tsp cinnamon

-       ½ tsp nutmeg

For the Cinnamon Filling

-       ¼ cup butter, softened

-       ¼ cup of non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening

-       Pinch of salt

-       2 tbsp red hot or hot tamales candies

-       1 tbsp water

-       4 cups of confectioners’ sugar

-       ¼ cup of heavy cream, if needed

DIRECTIONS:

For the Whoopie Pies:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F
2. In a large bowl, using a hand mixer, beat together the cake mix, apple cider, eggs, oil, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
3. Use a rubber spatula to gently fold in the apple shreds (once you’ve squeezed out all of the apple juice from the shreds!)
4. Drop the dough by the tablespoon, about 2 inches apart, onto a baking sheet lined with wax or parchment paper.
   
5. Bake for about 10 – 12 minutes.
6. All the whoopies to cool on the baking sheet for around 5 minutes, before gently moving them to a cooling rack or plate to cool completely.
   
   
7. Once they are completely cooled, gently spread a tbsp of cinnamon frosting on the bottom of one side of a whoopie pie, before sandwiching it together with another whoopie pie side.
   
   

For the Cinnamon Filling:

1. In a large bowl, using a hand mixer, beat together the butter, shortening, and salt until it is all light and fluffy.
2. Beat in one cup of the confectioners’ sugar and put the bowl aside.
3. In a small saucepan, combine the water and red hots or hot tamale candies over medium heat and stir until melted. (This can take a while, resist the urge to turn up the heat, or stop in the middle, otherwise you could have whole pieces of candy in your frosting)
4. Once the candies are melted, immediately pour the liquid into the bowl with the butter and confectioners’ sugar mixture.
5. Beat the ingredients together and slowly add the rest of the confectioner’s sugar until you’ve reached your desired consistency.
6. If you feel like your filling isn’t quite creamy enough, add the heavy cream by the tablespoon, and beat the ingredients together until you’ve reached your desired consistency.

   

   Delaney trying to eat the whoopie pies

   

   A final Whoopie

Eat these with a big smile! They are awesome!

Til next time,

D