Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Something New and Different

I think I may have actually come up with an idea that does not already exist on the internet!  That is, I did a quick search for examples on which to base this idea of mine, and didn't really find anything, so it is at least somewhat original!  So, let this, then, serve as inspiration for the huddled baking masses!

This idea of mine is:  Mickey (and Minnie!) Mouse Whoopie Pies.


Seriously, Disneyland take note-- you could totally sell these for $2.50 apiece, I think.  I, of course, could not get away with nearly that much.  But enough with the details...

For those of you that are unaware, Whoopie Pies (or "Gobs" in some places) are sandwiches of cakey cookies with fluffy filling.  Typically, they are about the size of an adult palm, but I make them smaller so they are less messy and make me feel less guilty for eating them!

Tradition dictates they ought to be chocolate cake and marshmallow creme filling, but many variations are popping up nowadays.  Below is an example of regular Whoopie Pies. (I got my recipe from here, for those of you that are interested.)


It does not take much ingenuity or skill to add ears onto them, which gives you this:


After making the cookies, make the filling.  Opinions on what the filling should be run the gamut from a simple American Buttercream to a strange Marshmallow Fluff concoction.  I opted for the Vanilla Creme that came with the recipe I found.


It was a little thinner than I would ultimately have liked.  The filling, while delicious, was a little oozy at times.  This could have been my fault for not whipping the eggs whites enough.  Anyway, the filling needs to go into some kind of dispensing device.  Piping bags are fantastic for this.


Pair up your cookies so that you don't have mismatched sandwiches (I also took the liberty of adding red bows to these ones...that is completely optional.)


 Deposit your filling onto the cookies.



Awww, how cute:


For Mickey, dip the bottom half of each cookie into red chocolate and pipe yellow buttons.  (Like so:)  I had some trouble getting the cookies to stand on-end while the chocolate was hardening, and a couple fell over which is why they are not as smooth as I would have liked.  I may need to devise a support system if I ever do these again in the future.


And that, dear readers, is how to make Mickey (and Minnie!) Mouse Whoopie Pies!  With more practice I think they could really be something sweet.