Makin' Whoopie....Pies!

Easy Whoopie Pies

I love baking. I love the art, the science and the homeyness of it. Prior to baby number 3, I did alot of baking. And not just baking, but baking from scratch. I don't know what it is about third babies....maybe it's the fact that with 2, you are still evenly matched? Whatever it is, number 3 changed alot of things in our house. The first thing to go, was our routine. With our other children, they slept, played, napped, bathed and went to bed like clockwork! Not this baby. She sleeps.....when she wants to. She plays....but only if you are giving her exactly what she wants, when she wants it and giving her your FULL attention. She naps....um....sometimes? And her bathing and bedtime schedule are far from routine. I think it is in part due to her demanding nature, that alot of baking, cooking and meticulous cleaning have basically gone out the window. That being said, what we have gained is much greater. Our spunky, giggly, curious and cuddly baby number three adds more to our life than any of us could have ever imagined. And I will gladly give up cleaning, cooking and yes, even baking for this season of life.

"The cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
for children grow up, as I've learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.
I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep."~Ruth Hulburt Hamilton

So, because it has been....ahem...."awhile", since I baked with my children, I finally decided that it was something I needed to do. Kids love helping in the kitchen. From measuring and adding ingredients, to mixing and tasting the batter, they are delighted to help. So let them. :)

We decided to make whoopie pies....the easy way, using cake mix. It's pretty amazing all of the things you can do with a box of cake mix. If you have not experimented with this concept, I highly recommend this website: http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/ It might change your life.

To make our Whoopie Pies, I combined several recipes, to come up with my own. Here is the recipe we used.

Whoopie Pies

1 box Devils Food Cake Mix

1/2 C Water

1/2 C Vegetable Oil

3 Eggs

1 Box Instant Chocolate Pudding

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.

Beat all ingredients together until well mixed.



Scoop batter into a large zip lock bag. Snip off the corner, and pipe the batter onto a cookie sheet lined with wax paper.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely.

Now, it's time to make the yummy filling.

Whoopie Pie Filling

2 C Marshmallow Fluff

1 C Vegetable Shortening

1 1/2 C powdered sugar

1 t. Vanilla

Cream together the fluff, shortening and sugar. Add vanilla. Mix well.

Scoop filling into a zip lock bag. Snip off the end. And begin piping a dollop of filling onto the smooth side of a cooled pie half.

Place the other half on top, and there you have it! Easy Whoopie Pies!

Continue this method, until you have filled all of your pies.

THIS is the face of a baby, who does NOT appreciate whoopie pies...or anything that takes away mommy's attention.

THIS is the face of a little girl, who LOVES whoopie pies....and baking with mommy.

And THIS is happiness. :)

Enjoy!