Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Dulce De Leche Filling

Welcome to Autumn! This morning I had my first hot apple cider, which is what makes the season a reality for me. Apples, pumpkin, cinnamon, cranberries. They all scream Fall to me! I'm sure you've noticed that your Pinterest board is full of pumpkin-flavored recipes. I'm about to add another one to the pile.

Today I'm happy to partner with Dorie Greenspan and OXO to bring you my first Fall-related recipe of the year! Dorie Greenspan is set to release her first ever cookie cookbook this October and several bloggers across the internet are working together to Bake a Difference for Cookies for Kids' Cancer. For each blog post, OXO is donating $100 to the Cookies for Kids' Cancer Foundation, with a possible donation of $100,000!

Today I'm featuring Dorie's Pumpkin whoopie pies with dulce de leche filling. The recipe came together super fast with a few new OXO additions to my kitchen. I used the new On Illuminating Digital Hand Mixer from OXO to make the cookie dough. I haven't owned a hand mixer in probably six years, but this one is so cool! The controls are digital and the mixer has its own light, you can make cookies in the dark! Additionally, the mixer comes with its own on-board storage system for the beaters and the cord wraps neatly around the base. A quick turn of the dough with a spatula and the dough was ready to go.

I quickly scooped out the perfect amount of cookie dough with the 2-tablespoon (medium) cookie scoop. Using a cookie scoop ensures that all of your cookies are the same size and that they bake evenly. I have all three sizes! Side note - the large size is perfect for making cupcakes. The cookie dough for these whoopie pies is a little loose, so using a muffin pan to bake the cookies is the perfect solution. OXO sent along their non-stick Pro 12 Cup Muffin Pan to bake the cookies. This is the most heavy duty muffin pan that I have even owned! It's ceramic-reinforced, two-layer construction with a commercial-grade coating. The cookies popped right out!

With the cookies baked, the dulce de leche filling was incredibly easy to whip up. Just five ingredients and you've got tasty filling in under five minutes. After filling the cookies with the frosting, I may have eaten a good portion of the leftover frosting...

If you too want to get into the Autumnal spirit, head to the store and pickup some pumpkin puree and frozen cranberries. Your house will be smelling of cinnamon in no time! Get yourself a pumpkin spice latte, throw on your fuzzy pants and get ready for the cooler temperatures!

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Dulce De Leche Filling

Recipe from Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan

Dorie says "I liked these big pumpkin-spice cookies when I first made them and thought of them as cookies. But when I sandwiched them with a marshmallow crème and dulce de leche filling, officially turning them into whoopie pies, “like” became too mild a word for how I felt about them. They passed over into love ’em territory, and they’ve stayed there ever since.

The cookies themselves have the soft, light texture and flavor of spice cake. In fact, they’d be exactly like spice cake if they didn’t have the surprise of fresh cranberries, which, in addition to adding color and pop, have just the right the amount of pucker to make the sweet a grown-up dessert.

As for the filling, sticky, sweet fluff is a must. It’s just about part of the definition of whoopie pies. For these, it’s paired with store-bought or homemade dulce de leche. It’s the perfect combo, but when you’re ready for a swap, sandwich the cookies with a spiced cream cheese filling.

A word on size and pans: I’m Goldilocks when it comes to whoopie pies — I like them not too big and not too small. For me, baking them in muffin tins is just right. You can scoop the dough out onto lined baking sheets and bake the cookies free-form if you’d like — they’ll be fine, though not perfectly round. If for you a whoopie pie isn’t a whoopie pie unless it’s the size of a Whopper, see Playing Around and go for it."

Makes 16 cookies

For the whoopie pies

13⁄4 cups (238 grams) all-purpose flour

3⁄4 teaspoon ground cinnamon


1⁄2 teaspoon ground cardamom


1⁄2 teaspoon baking powder

1⁄2 teaspoon baking soda

1 stick (8 tablespoons; 4 ounces; 113 grams) unsalted butter, cut into chunks, at room temperature

3⁄4 cup (150 grams) sugar

1⁄2 teaspoon fine sea salt

1 large egg, at room temperature

11⁄2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1⁄2 cup (113 grams) pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)

1⁄2 cup (120 ml) buttermilk, preferably at room temperature

3⁄4 cup (about 75 grams) fresh cranberries, coarsely chopped (if frozen, don’t thaw)

For the filling

1 stick (8 tablespoons; 4 ounces; 113 grams) unsalted butter, cut into chunks, at room temperature

1 cup (96 grams) marshmallow crème (or Marshmallow Fluff)

1⁄4 cup (30 grams) confectioners’ sugar

Pinch of fine sea salt

1⁄4 cup (75 grams) dulce de leche, homemade or store-bought

Position the racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat it to 375 degrees F. Butter or spray two standard muffin tins (do this even if the tins are nonstick).

To make the cookies: Whisk the flour, cinnamon, cardamom, baking powder and baking soda together.

Working with a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, beat the butter, sugar and salt together on medium speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the egg and beat for another 2 minutes or so, until creamy. Beat in the vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low, add the pumpkin puree and beat until it’s fully incorporated; don’t be discouraged when the mixture curdles — it will soon smooth out.

Turn off the mixer, scrape down the bowl and add half of the dry ingredients. Pulse to begin the mixing and then mix on low, scraping the bowl as needed, until the flour mixture is blended in. Beat in the buttermilk. Turn off the mixer, add the remaining dry ingredients, pulse and then mix on low until you have a lovely smooth batter. Switch to a flexible spatula and fold in the cranberries. Don’t be too thorough — it’s better to have an uneven mix than to break the berries and turn the batter red.

Using a medium cookie scoop, scoop out level portions of dough, or use a tablespoon to get rounded spoonfuls, and fill the muffin tins. The scoops of dough will sit upright in the center of the tins, but when baked they’ll melt evenly into the cups.

Bake the whoopie pies for 11 to 12 minutes, rotating the pans top to bottom and front to back after 6 minutes, or until they are puffed, golden brown and springy to the touch.

Transfer the pan to a rack and let the cookies rest for 5 minutes, then turn them out on the racks and allow them to cool completely.

To make the filling: Working with a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a medium bowl with a hand mixer, beat the butter, marshmallow crème, sugar and salt together on medium-high speed, scraping the bowl and beater(s) as needed, for about 3 minutes, until very smooth. Lower the mixer speed, add the dulce de leche and beat until thoroughly blended.

Using a spoon or a small cookie scoop, place the filling on the flat sides of half of the cookies; sandwich with the other cookies, flat sides down. The cookies can be eaten now, but the filling benefits from a 30-minute stay in the refrigerator. Just don’t eat them from the fridge — you’ll deprive yourself of the cookies’ wonderful texture.

Playing Around

Whopper-Size Whoopie Pies. If you use a large cookie scoop (one with a capacity of 3 tablespoons) to portion out the dough, you can make 6 really big pies (12 cookies; 6 pies). These bake best when you use an insulated baking sheet or stack two sheets one on top of the other. Line the (top) sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat and bake the cookies for 15 to 17 minutes.

Storing

The unfilled cookies can be kept covered at room temperature for up to 1 day. Once filled, they can be kept covered in the refrigerator for a day or two, but they’re really best the day they’re made.

Disclaimer - To be a part of this partnering campaign with OXO and Dorie Greenspan, I received several OXO products and the Dorie Greenspan cookie book. I'm happy to partner with this campaign to help promote Cookies for Kids' Cancer and help grow the donation to the cause!