Maine Whoopie Pies vs. Amish Whoopie Pies

The Coach House in Brewer, Maine is typical of the state's diners: whoopie pies are popular!

The state of Maine and the Amish of Pennsylvania have been in a long-running, generally good-natured, feud about the genesis of the whoopie pie.  Maine claims the confection as their own, while Pennsylvania Dutch cookery does the same.  Squishing some creme between two cookies doesn't seem like it takes a great deal of genius, so I think it's possible they both sort of evolved in the same place.  Having just returned from Maine I can attest to the state's embrace of the whoopie pie, they are everywhere! Individually wrapped whoopie pies are available in most gas stations and convenience stores and many restaurants have them on the menu.

A typical Maine whoopie pie filled with fluffy creme between two fluffy cookies.

another angle:)

This is a whoopie pie that I bought at The Coach House restaurant in Brewer, Maine (SIGH, all in the name of research, of course).  They had some for sale right by the register (by the way if you are ever in Bangor, Maine, the Coach House is really good...delicious diner food, typical American fare but really delicious, definitely worth a stop...the dive across the street that I spent the night in...not so much)   The Maine whoopie pie seems to be a bit larger, maybe, than some of the Amish-made ones and the creme seems fluffier on the inside.  The cookies themselves also seem fluffier.  The whole Maine whoopie pie experience seems lighter, fluffier, and less dense than the Amish experience.  Myself, I like the heavier, denser creme and heavier cookie.  Ah heck, I like them both. That's the problem.  But, personally, if I could only pick one: heavy dense vs. light fluffy, I'd go with heavy dense.

This is a typical example of an Amish whoopie pie, smaller (of course there are exceptions, I'm speaking in generalities) with a chewier, denser cookie.  These are delicious!

Amish oatmeal whopie pies

Here is a recipe for what you see above: Amish Oatmeal Whoopie Pies

Amish Whoopie Pies

 

Print

Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

15 mins

Total time

45 mins

 

Serves: 2 dozen

Ingredients

• ¾ cup butter, softened
• 2 cups packed soft light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 cups quick cooking oats
• 2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3 Tbs boiling water
• Filling:
• 1 large egg white
• 1 Tbs vanilla extract
• 2 Tbs milk
• 2 cups icing sugar, sifted
• ¼ cup vegetable shortening, softened

Instructions

1. Pre-heat the oven to 425F.
2. Lightly grease a couple of baking sheets and set aside.
3. Cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy.
4. Beat in the eggs.
5. In another bowl, sift together the flour, salt and baking powder.
6. Beat this into the creamed mixture.
7. Stir in the oats and cinnamon.
8. Mix all together well.
9. Stir together the baking soda and the boiled water.
10. Stir this mixture into the rest of the batter, mixing it in well.
11. Drop by the tablespoon onto the baking sheets, placing them at least 2 inches apart.
12. Bake until the cookies are firm and just starting to turn golden around the edges, some 10 to 15 minutes.
13. Remove from the baking sheets to wire racks to cool completely when done.
14. Combine the egg white, vanilla, milk and 1 cup of the icing sugar.
15. Cream well together.
16. Add the remaining icing sugar and the shortening, beating all together until smooth.
17. Spread 1 Tablespoon of the filling on the bottom of one cookie and top with a second cookie.

Wordpress Recipe Plugin by EasyRecipe

3.2.2925