Chocolate Whoopie Pies with Peppermint Filling from One Girl Cookies

Our Taster couldn't get enough of
Andrew's take on these Whoopie Pies 

         Some of the nicest people on earth are food people.  I realize this every time I do a personal appearance for Monte's Ham at The Artisan’s Market at Williams-Sonoma. When I do one of these, Andrew scopes out all the other Artisans and has a terrific time sampling what's on offer--particularly the bakery items.   My fellow vendors are a giving and caring lot who share their recipes and their samples with great pleasure.  Even then, David Crofton of the Brooklyn bakery/cafes called “One Girl Cookies” stands out. That is not only because he is extraordinarily tall, he has a great sense of humor.  When I kidded him about standing under a banner reading 'One Girl', his retort was "Some Girl, huh?". (Some success "One Girl" is too.  After starting out in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn (68 Dean Street, Brooklyn 11201 Tel (212) 675-4996), there's a new One Girl at 33 Main St. (Corner of Water)(Tel: 347-338-1268) in Dumbo, which in case you don't live in New York, is a fantastic newly gentrified neighborhood "Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass".)

Dawn Casale and David Crofton,
a Kismet moment if there every was one.

         At the last Artisan's Market, Andrew pretty well tried every sample David had on hand.  He was particularly taken with the Whoopie Pies and knowing that our favorite taster, our grandson Mason, aged almost four, was making his own personal appearance at our house this summer, Andrew realized he'd found the perfect treat.  So he bought  “One Girl Cookies”, the cookbook published by Clarkson Potter this year (2012). Full of great recipes, the book also delights with its story of how David met his wife and partner in the bakeries, Dawn Casale.  And if ever there was a Kismet story, theirs is it. 

The Original
One Girl Cookies
in Cobble Hill
Brooklyn 

         Dawn was a refugee from the high-end retail store, Barney’s.   While still working there, she started her business baking cookies out of her Greenwich Village apartment.  She was looking for a flat mate and David needed a place to stay.  But that was only the first touch point.  Dawn was also looking for a baker and David was looking for a job while he went to Pastry School at night.  David quickly prioritized and determined he needed the job more than the roommate so he interviewed for the baker spot.  Apparently the chemistry in the kitchen extended well beyond its walls and the pair married, and share both the bakery and a home with their son, Nate.  

         The Chocolate Whoopie Pies with Peppermint filling is a great example of how the flavors of mint and chocolate are naturals together.  But Dawn and David give a caveat here.  If you don’t want the filling to taste “like a swig of Scope”, you’ve got to spring for natural Peppermint Extract—no imitation anything.  So spring we did and these pies were a huge hit.  So much so that there were virtually none left because Mason wasn't the only one enamored of these treats. These light-as-air mouthfuls of chocolate-y minty goodness were a big hit with everyone. Here’s the recipe which makes 24 of these devilishly good pies.

Recipe for Chocolate Whoopie Pies with Peppermint Filling from One Girl Cookies:

For the Chocolate Cakes:

     2 cups All-Purpose Flour

     1/2 cup Dutch-Processed Cocoa Powder

     3/4 teaspoon Baking Soda

     1/2 teaspoon Salt

     1/2 cup Granulated Sugar

     1/2 cup Light-Brown Sugar

     1/2 cup Plain Whole-Milk Yogurt

     1/3 cup Canola Oil

     3 large Eggs

     1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

For the Peppermint Filling:

4 ounces Cream Cheese, at room temperature

5 tablespoons Unsalted Butter, softened

1/2 teaspoon Peppermint Extract

1/8 teaspoon Salt

3 cups Confectioners’ Sugar, plus more if needed

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda,          and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat   together sugars, yogurt, oil, eggs, and vanilla on medium speed until mixed, about 3 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl as needed. Reduce mixer speed to low; gradually add flour mixture and mix for 30 seconds. Cover and refrigerate batter until chilled, about 30 minutes.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Transfer batter to a pastry bag fitted        with a large plain tip (about 1/2 inch wide). Pipe 2-inch circles onto     parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing whoopies 1 1/2 inches apart.(Keep batter refrigerated between batches.

Peppermint Filling 

Bake until whoopies spring back when touched, about 9 minutes. Cool      completely on pans.

To make filling: 

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with paddle    attachment, beat together cream cheese and butter on medium speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl as needed. Reduce mixer speed to low; add peppermint extract and salt, and mix for 30 seconds. Gradually add confectioners' sugar and mix for 1 minute. If filling is too soft to hold its shape, add more confectioners' sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, until desired consistency. (Store in refrigerator, in an airtight container with plastic wrap pressed onto   surface of filling, for up to 5 days.)

To fill pies: 

Turn half the whoopies over so they're bottom-side up. Using a pastry bag or butter knife, add a dollop (1 1/2 tablespoons) of Peppermint Filling onto each whoopie bottom. Top with remaining whoopies.