After my last experience making whoopie pies, I wasn’t exactly looking to make them again anytime soon. While the gingerbread latte whoopie pies were delicious, they were time intensive. Additionally, they were a lot of work for not a lot of cookies. However, I was commissioned by a friend to make some desserts for his dad’s birthday, and mentioned that whoopie pies were some of his favorite desserts. The other desserts I either hadn’t made them before or didn’t have time to make and deliver in time. I decided to give whoopie pies another go with a new recipe for a chocolate strawberry whoopie pie that I found much easier to make. Maybe I’m getting better as a baker? Maybe this is a simpler and easier recipe? Who’s to say? Me actually, this recipe is a bit simpler but I’m also a bit better at baking. Let’s get to it.
Chocolate Strawberry Whoopie Pie Instructions
This recipe is a slight variation on the King Arthur flour recipe. I didn’t have Dutch-processed cocoa so I used the Trader Joe’s brand. I also added freeze-dried strawberries to make mine a chocolate strawberry version. Another difference is I also had some pink powdered sugar to really make the filling pop against the chocolate cakes, but that’s more aesthetics than anything.
Make the cake batter by adding the butter, sugar, espresso powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and vanilla to the bowl of your stand mixer. Beat until the mixture is nice and fluffy. Add the egg and mix until well combined. Next, add the cocoa and mix on low speed to incorporate. Add a third of the flour and mix followed by a third of the milk and mix. Repeat twice more with the remaining thirds of the flour and milk.
Use a medium cookie scoop to measure out a ball of dough roughly the size of a ping-pong ball. Place on the baking sheet, leaving roughly 2 inches in between each to allow for spreading. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 12 minutes. The tops of the cakes should be firm to the touch. Remove and let cool in the tray for 5-10 minutes and then using a spatula, remove the cakes and let cool completely on a wire rack.
Filling Instructions
While the cakes are baking, prepare the filling. Combine the shortening, sugar, and marshmallow until well combined using the paddle attachment. Using a spice grinder, or a mortar & pestle, grind the freeze-dried strawberry to a fine powder. Add to the filling and mix well to combine.
If you want to get fancy with your assembly, transfer the filling to a pastry bag with a star tip attachment. On the flat side of half of the cakes, pipe the filling onto the cake, leaving a bit of a gap at the edge to allow for spreading when you press the other half down.
Close the whoopie pies with the unpiped cakes to create a sandwich. Wrap each chocolate strawberry whoopie pie in cling film and store at room temperature until ready to eat. Whoopie pies will last up to three days wrapped at room temperature but I don’t think they’ll be around that long.
Chocolate Strawberry Whoopie Pie Recipe
Equipment
- Stand Mixer
- spice grinder (optional but recommended)
Ingredients
Cakes
- 113 grams Unsalted Butter, softened (8 tbsp)
- 213 grams light brown sugar (1 cup)
- 1 tsp Espresso Powder
- 1 tsp Baking powder
- ½ tsp Baking soda
- ¾ tsp Kosher Salt
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 Large Egg, room temperature
- 43 grams cocoa powder (½ cup)
- 280 grams all-purpose (AP) flour (2-⅓ cups)
- 227 grams milk, room temperature (1 cup)
Filling
- 177 grams Vegetable shortening (1 cup)
- 113 grams Powdered Sugar (1 cup)
- 164 grams Marshmallow fluff (1-⅓ cup)
- 1-½ tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp Kosher Salt
- 1 tbsp Water
- 10 grams freeze-dried strawberries (~1 tbsp)
Instructions
Cake Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ and set a rack in the middle of the oven. Line two baking trays with parchment.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the butter, sugar, espresso powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and vanilla. Beat until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg to the butter mixture and beat until smooth. Add the cocoa powder and mix until combined.
- Add a third of the flour to the mixture and a third of the milk to the mixture and mix until combined. Repeat twice more with another third of the flour and milk.
- Scrape the sides of the bowl to ensure all ingredients have been fully incorporated and mixed.
- Using a medium cookie scooper, drop a scoop of batter the size of a ping pong ball onto the lined baking tray. Leave at least 2" to allow for spreading of the batter.
- Bake for 12 minutes. The tops of the cookies should be set and firm to the touch.
- Remove the trays from the oven and let the cakes cool for 5-10 minutes in the tray. Using a spatula, remove the cakes from the tray and let fully cool on a wire rack.
Filling Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the shortening, sugar, and marshmallow fluff. Using the paddle attachment, mix until combined.
- In a spice grinder, add the freeze-dried strawberries and grind until a fine powder. A mortar & pestle can also be used.
- Add the strawberry powder to the filling and mix until well combined.
Assembly
- Place a generous spoonful of filling on the flat side of one of the cakes and sandwich closed with another cookie. Repeat with the remainder of the cookies and filling. The filling can be transferred to a pastry bag with a star tip if you'd like to get fancy with your presentation.
- Wrap each whoopie pie in plastic wrap until ready to serve. Store at room temperature for up to 3 days.
