Sunday, November 20, 2011

Whoopie pies

Thank you to everyone who showed up at The Hutchinson News open house! We appreciate it.

As a thank you, here is the recipe for whoopie pies with mint buttercream filling from a whoopie pie book by Sarah Billingsley and Amy Treadwill. They are easy and delicious!

Classic Chocolate Whoopie
1 2/3 c. flour
2/3 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
4 Tbsp. butter at room temperature
1 c. brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/4 c. milk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, beat together butter, shortening and brown sugar until fluffy and smooth. Add egg and vanilla and beat again.
Add half of the flour mixture and half of the milk into the batter and beat until just incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the rest of the flour mixture and milk, then beat until completely combined.
Drop about 1 Tbsp. of batter onto baking sheets and repeat, spaced at least 2 inches apart. Bake one sheet at a time for about 10 minutes, or until pies spring back when pressed gently.
Remove from oven and let cakes cool for about 5 minutes.

Mint Buttercream
2 c. confectioners' sugar
4 Tbsp. butter
3 Tbsp. heavy cream
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. mint extract
1/2 tsp. salt

Beat together confectioners' sugar and the butter until mixture is crumbly. Add heavy cream, vanilla, mint extract and salt and beat until smooth.

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Whoopie for Open House

Happy (almost) Thanksgiving!

It seems we need to add that in there, since Thanksgiving seems to be forgotten in the hoopla of Halloween and Christmas. Yet I am guilty of indulging in the Christmas spirit a little too early.

My tree is up, and yes, I'm already making some Christmas goodies. This year the food might not be my fault, though. I am baking for our Third Thursday Open House at The Hutchinson News. Kids can sit on Santa's lap and their parents can get a behind-the-scenes look at The News.

My desk is clean and I have my Charlie Brown Christmas tree set up. Amy Bickel made sure we have enough hot cocoa and cider for everyone who attends.

A few of us were told to make three dozen cookies to make sure every kid and parent gets a sweet treat as they head through The News.

If you know me, you'd know that I have a hard time making anything normal. I like to experiment and let people try something new. Hopefully mint-chocolate whoopie pies will do the trick.

For my birthday, I got a book of Whoopie Pies. I have experimented with the cookies and cremes to see which ones work well together. Half of the chocolate cookies are already made for Thursday's open house. I now need to add the mint creme, complete with small bits of peppermint.

So come to The News open house if you want to try them. If you can't make it, I'll have the recipe up soon!