Red Velvet Whoopie Pies

The December Daring Bakers’ Challenge had us all cheering – the lovely and talented Bourbonnatrix of Bourbonnatrix Bakes was our hostess and challenged us to make fun, delicious and creative whoopie pies! Delicious little cake-like cookies sandwiching luscious filling in any flavors we chose… What else is there to say but “Whoopie!”

This is my first post for The Daring Baker’s, which s part of the Daring Kitchen (remember the cabbage rolls? nom nom nom). The challenge this month was to make some sort of whoopie pie from scratch with a filling of your choice. I decided that I should try to include these on my holiday cookie trays so why not go with red velvet to add some beautiful color? Red velvet demands cream cheese frosting but whoopie pies demand marshmallow filling so why not make a hybrid? I couldn’t seem to find anything like that in the recipes I perused online, so I messed around with cream cheese, marshmallow filling, confectioner’s sugar, lemon juice and vanilla until I got a consistency and flavor I liked: sweet with some brightness from the lemon and thick enough to hold it’s shape when sandwiched between two red velvet “cookies”. The texture and consistency of these red velvet cookies is somewhere between cake and cookie. Firm enough to hold it’s shape well and be a nice hand-held treat but more tender than your traditional cookie. These are delicious. I made a double batch of the following recipe for my holiday cookie trays and they were a big hit! I would recommend refrigerating these if you plan on storing them for a longer period of time than a day or so. There is some cream cheese in the filling so I tend to err on the side of caution and store them chilled. Plus, I like chilled cake-like things… 🙂

***PRINTABLE RECIPE (RED VELVET WHOOPIE PIES PDF)***

Red Velvet Whoopie Pies with Marshmallow Cream Cheese Filling

(Cake adapted from

Ingredients for Cakes:

1 ½ ounce bittersweet chocolate, chopped
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup sour cream
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon red food coloring
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Ingredients for the Filling:

1/4 cup softened butter
4 ounce package softened cream cheese
3 ½ ounce marshmallow crème
1 ¼ cup confectioners’ sugar
Pinch of fine salt
1 tsp. vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract)
½ tbsp. fresh lemon juice

Directions:

Make the cookies: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine the bittersweet chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave at 50 percent power until melted, about 2 minutes. Whisk until smooth.
Whisk the melted butter, sour cream, eggs, vinegar, vanilla and food coloring in a bowl until combined.

A little clumpy, I assume from the vinegar reacting with the dairy but it all worked out just fine!

In another bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in four equal batches, whisking each batch completely before adding the next. Stir in the melted chocolate.

Scoop heaping tablespoonfuls of batter onto the prepared baking sheets and smooth the tops with a damp finger.

Bake until the cookies spring back when lightly pressed, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes on the baking sheets, and then transfer to racks to cool completely.