Vanilla Whoopie Pies with Buttercream Filling

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Whoopie pies are a classic American dessert enjoyed by many. Today we are making an all vanilla version of the traditional chocolate treat with a fluffy, creamy filling. If you are a cake lover and a cookie lover, well, this recipe includes the best of both worlds. Whoopie pies are known for their cake-like cookie texture sandwiching a luscious vanilla filling. These vanilla whoopie pies are easy to make with common ingredients already found in your kitchen. No special equipment or whoopie pie pan needed. Let’s get baking!

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Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Nothing tastes better than homemade treats! This easy scratch made recipe is simple to make with common ingredients found in the standard kitchen or readily available at the grocery store. No specialty equipment is needed. And I’m showing you step-by-step how to make the best whoopie pies.  

This recipe make about 10 delicious whoopie pies for you to enjoy. They are a bit on the larger side. You can easily make mini-whoopie pies by decreasing the amount of dough used for each cookie and cutting the baking time down to 10 minutes.

Vanilla Whoopie Pies Ingredients

Vanilla Cookie Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cubed, softened at room temperature 
• 1 large egg, room temperature
• 3/4 cup buttermilk: For a buttermilk substitute, combine milk with a few tablespoons of lime juice or vinegar and set aside for 10 minutes.  
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Vanilla Buttercream Filling Ingredients:

Note: If you don’t want to make homemade buttercream, you can use store bought icing or marshmallow fluff instead. 

• 1 cup sweet cream butter, softened 
• 1/4 cup whipping cream or heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
• 3 cups powdered sugar: Also known as confectioners sugar or icing sugar 
• Pinch of salt

Equipment Needed

• 2 Baking sheets
• Parchment Paper
• Large mixing bowl
• Medium mixing bowl
• Whisk
• Hand-held mixer: A stand mixer can also be used
• Measuring cup
• Measuring spoons
• Small cookie scoop
• Silicone Spatula
• Piping bag and piping tip

How To Make Vanilla Whoopie Pies

Make the Cookies:

• Preheat the oven to 375° F. Place the baking sheets into the oven to pre-heat. 
• Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl (all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt) and whisk until combined.
• Add the cubed, softened butter and mix on low speed with a hand-held mixer on low speed for a minute until combined. 
• In a medium mixing bowl, add the wet ingredients (buttermilk, eggs and vanilla) to the flour mixture. Whisk to blend, then pour into the dry ingredients. 
• Mix all ingredients with the hand-held mixer starting at low-speed, then increase to medium-speed until the texture is like frosting. 

• Remove the pre-heated baking sheets from the oven and line with parchment paper. Use a cookie scoop to scoop the dough onto the baking sheets, leaving two inches between each scoop to allow room for the cookies to spread out. 
• Bake for approximately 15 minutes, on the center wire rack, until lightly golden. Once the cookies are done baking, set them aside to cool completely. 

Make the Buttercream Frosting:

• In a medium bowl, add the softened butter. Use a hand mixer on medium-high speed to beat the butter for 30 seconds until fluffy.
• Add the whipping cream and vanilla extract, continue mixing until combined. 
• Lower the mixer speed to low. Add the salt and powdered sugar. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed with a spatula. Once the powdered sugar is no longer dusty, increase the mixer speed to medium and beat for 1 to 2 minutes until the frosting is fluffy. 

Assemble the Whoopie Pies

• Each cookie will slightly vary in size. Pair cookies that are equal in size and then set aside.
• Spoon the icing into a piping bag with piping tip and add the filling to half the cookies. You can also use a plastic sandwich baggie with the corner snipped, or just spoon the icing directly onto the cookie. Add the top cookies to complete the whoopie pies. The whoopie pies can be enjoyed right away or placed in the refrigerator for an hour or two to allow the filling to firm up a bit. 

Whoopie Pie Variations

• After these yummy cake-like cookies are assembled, they can be rolled in festive sprinkles, coconut flakes, or mini chocolate chips to add additional texture and flavors.
• If you don’t care for buttercream frosting, switch it out for marshmallow filling or a cream cheese frosting.
• When it comes to whoopie pies there are many flavors and variations to choose from such as chocolate whoopie pies (traditional whoopie pies), red velvet whoopie pies, pumpkin whoopie pies and many more. Add food coloring and additional flavors to make the whoopie pies pair nicely with any season or special occasion. 

How To Store

Store whoopie pies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. For longer storage, whoopie pies can also be stored in a freezer safe container wrapped in plastic wrap and kept in the freezer for up to 3 months. Simply remove a whoopie pie from the freezer and allow to thaw for an hour before enjoying. 

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