Red Velvet Whoopie Pies - for Canada Day, or any summer celebration

I originally wrote this post suggesting making Red Velvet Whoopie Pies for Canada Day in July, but it recently occurred to me that these would also be a terrific treat to make during the Christmas holiday season, with its red and white colours. - Mandy Higgins, Dec. 1, 2011


With Canada Day coming up on Friday, July 1, my patriotic self thought it was necessary to make a dessert that reflected the colors of the Canadian flag – white and red.
   I turned to a recipe I had my eye on to try ever since I saw it, Red Velvet Whoopie Pies from Gourmet Live.*
   These whoopie pies are a variation on the classic version of marshmallow filling sandwiched by chocolate cookies. In this case, puffy red cookies sandwich a white cream cheese filling, so they fit the Canadian flag color requirements perfectly.
   I thanked my patriotic self for stepping forward when we first tried these whoopie pies, because they were absolutely amazing.
   The whole family will love them, guaranteed. They are an absolutely perfect finish to a family backyard barbecue.
   Anyone who has eaten Red Velvet Cake will also appreciate how close these whoopie pies come to the flavor of the cake that inspired them.
   *Unfortunately, I was unable to find online exactly the same recipe I used. The recipe I used is in a Gourmet magazine Grilling special edition, on newsstands now.
   However, I did find a recipe online that was reasonably close to the one I used. Click for the recipe on the blog Tracey's Culinary Adventures. The recipe is for heart-shaped Red Velvet Whoopie Pies. Skip the step of making the cookies heart-shaped to make regular round whoopie pies like I did.
   In the recipe I used, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt are whisked together.
   Butter, vegetable oil, sugar, an egg, vanilla, white vinegar and two tablespoons of red food coloring are mixed together.
   The flour mixture and buttermilk are added alternately and beaten into the red butter and sugar mixture.
   The batter is dropped onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper and the cookies baked for eight to 10 minutes.
   The cookies are cooled on wire racks. I let the cookies cool completely, making the application of the filling much easier.
   The filling is made by combining cream cheese, butter, fresh lemon juice, vanilla, salt and confectioners’ sugar (icing sugar) with an electric mixer.
   To assemble the whoopie pies, the filling is spread onto the flat side of one cookie, and the flat side of another cookie is placed on top. The two cookies are pressed toward each other gently.
   Because of the cream cheese filling, the whoopie pies need to be stored in the fridge, then brought to room temperature before serving.