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Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Cream Cheese Chai Filling

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Cream Cheese Chai Filling
Home » Recipes by Ingredients » Squash or pumpkins » Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Cream Cheese Chai Filling

Pumpkin whoopie pies are an easy cake-like cookie treat, generally made with cream cheese filling. This recipe amps it up a notch by adding warming chai spices to the filling and making the pumpkin cookie with browned butter.

Pumpkin chai whoopie pies; stacked atop each other.
Pumpkin Chai Whoopie Pies

Jump to: RECIPE | What is a Whoopie Pie? | Chai Filling | Substitutions

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Where Does the Name “Whoopie Pie“ Come From?

Whoopie pies are a distinctly American treat. Oddly, even though the recipe appears to be originally Amish, this little treasure is a quintessentially Maine treat.

It appears they were first sold in Lewiston, Maine at Labadie’s Bakery; however, their popularity spread and soon they were produced at other bakeries throughout New England.

These delights are certainly beloved by children. The folklore is that when children are about to be served the pies they holler, “Whoopie!” Hence the name Whoopie Pies.

But it’s not just children who want to “wolf” these down – adults find them to be irresistible too. In fact, in Western Pennsylvania another name for this dessert is “Gobs,” possibly because everyone can’t wait to gobble them up.

What Exactly is a Whoopie Pie?

A whoopie pie is not really a pie at all, actually it’s the furthest thing from it. Whoopie pies are more like a sandwich cookie.

Typically, there are two sizable dome-shaped cookies that have a generous amount of stuffing sandwiched between them.

When true to the “original” version, these cookies are chocolate, domed, soft, and rather cakelike in texture.

Chocolate whoopie pie with marshmellow fluff filling.
Chocolate whoopie pie with marshmellow fluff filling.

When they were first produced, whoopie pies were unusually large, possibly accounting for the “pie” portion of their name.

It would not have been uncommon to have a whoopie pie be so large that it would require both hands to pick up or to be so colossal it could easily be cut in half and still have portions large enough for two.

Traditional Whoopie Pie Filling

The original whoopie pies had a marshmallow-like filling and that is what many traditional recipes still call for today. Making a fluffy marshmallow filling from scratch is always a choice of course, but it can tend to be fussy.

In the 1930s a retail version of marshmallow filling called Marshmallow Fluff became widely available. This allowed cooks to skip the step of making the stuffing for Whoopie Pies and just scoop it directly from a can.

Marshmallow Fluff is still widely available throughout New England to this day and is one of the first choices for those making the traditional chocolate version of Whoopie Pies.

Over time other types of fillings have become acceptable for this dessert, including different variations of buttercream, swiss meringue buttercream, and cream cheese frostings.

The most commonly used, next to the marshmallow filling, is a plain cream cheese frosting. I like the cream cheese filling the best, so I used that filling as the base and added the chai spices to enhance it even further.

A hot cup of coffee or herbal tea is a perfect accompaniment to these sweet treats.

Chai Flavors Enhance Pumpkin Flavors

It is becoming quite tiring to see pumpkin pie spice thrown into every product under the sun as soon as August is over.

Not only can you get edible items like macaroni and cheese, hamburgers, or potato chips with pumpkin pie spicing. No! It gets crazier with shampoo and non-edibles.

Now, please don’t misunderstand me. I LOVE pumpkin. And cooking with pumpkin really does signal crisp fall days and snuggling up by a firepit on a chilly autumn evening with friends or family.

So, let’s get into the autumnal spirit! Rather that forcing pumpkin ”flavoring” into bizarre product combinations, let me share a scrumptious recipe that uses real pumpkin combined with the whole spices typical to chai tea.

Pumpkin and chai spice flavors are a match made in heaven. The recipe below uses that flavor pairing to make the best whoopie pies you’ll ever lay lip to!

Substitutions for the Best Pumpkin Whoopie Pie

As noted above, traditional whoopie pies are chocolate flavored. While that’s lovely, in the fall you want your nose and palate to be in sync with the colorful visual cues of the season. Enter the Pumpkin Whoopie Pie.

This dessert’s color, its texture and the sweet spice aroma all scream AUTUMN. It is enhanced with traditional chai spices, including cardamom, vanilla, cinnamon, cloves and ginger.

Pumpkin chai whoopie pie topped with nuts on a baking rack.
Pumpkin chai whoopie pie topped with nuts

These spices add warmth, making it the perfect comfort food for a cool Fall morning.

The browned butter in this recipe is a simple step that elevates your at-home cooking to that of the most elegant restaurants. It enhances the flavor of the cookie by giving it a slightly nutty flavor.

I make the cookie part with a baking soda-vinegar-milk mixture. This makes the cookie lighter, as pumpkin can be fairly dense.

TIP: These are a wonderful treat for any holiday dinner. Make the cookies in advance, but do not stuff them. Let them cool sufficiently and then freeze them. When you are ready to use them, thaw them and add the stuffing.

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Pumpkin Whoopie Pie with Chai Spice Filling

Pumpkin chai whoopie pies; stacked atop each other.
A step-by-step on making Whoopie Pies with a cream cheese-chai spice filling and a cake-like pumpkin cookie made with browned butter.
5 from 4 votes
Prep Time 35 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings 12
Calories 634

Equipment

Ingredients

Ingredients for Cookie:

  • 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1-2 teaspoons chai spice mix spice mix = 1 tablespoon Ginger, 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon, 1 teaspoon cloves, 1 teaspoon white pepper, 1 tablespoon cardamom, 1 teaspoon nutmeg.
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ¾ cup unsalted butter
  • ¾ cup brown sugar
  • ¾ cup granulated sugar
  • 2 medium size eggs
  • 1 cup pureed pumpkin
  • cup buttermilk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 tablespoon milk I used 2%
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon white vinegar
  • 1 cup toasted pecans or walnuts Optional

Ingredients for Cream Cheese-Chai Spice Filling:

  • ½ cup 1 stick butter, softened
  • 8 ounces package cream cheese softened
  • 3 cups powdered sugar
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
  • ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ½ teaspoon ground cloves
  • ½ teaspoon ground ginger
  • ½ teaspoon ground white pepper
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions
 

Chai Spice Mix

  • For the chai spice mix – mix together the following: 1 tablespoon Ginger, 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon, 1 teaspoon. cloves, 1 teaspoon white pepper, 1 tablespoon cardamom, 1 teaspoon nutmeg. You will use 2 teaspoons of this mix for the cookie recipe.
    1-2 teaspoons chai spice mix

Directions for the cookies:

  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together flour, 1-2 tsp. chai spice, baking soda, baking powder and salt. (*note: chai spices will be used in filling also, so adapt amount in cookie to your preference of chai flavor)
    2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • In a small saucepan, add the unsalted butter and let simmer over med-low heat 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Use sensory clues to tell when it is done.  It should be  amber brown in color and give off a nutty scent. It will foam, but should not be boiling hard.  Take off the heat and let cool.
    3/4 cup unsalted butter
  • In mixer, beat sugars and eggs together to combine.  Slowly add brown butter and beat together briefly to combine.  Add pumpkin, buttermilk and vanilla and beat all together until light and creamy.
    3/4 cup brown sugar, 3/4 cup granulated sugar, 2 medium size eggs, 1 cup pureed pumpkin, 1/3 cup buttermilk, 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • In small bowl combine milk, baking soda and vinegar and stir thoroughly.
    2 tablespoon milk, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon white vinegar
  • Add  half of the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture still in the mixer, then add the milk-vinegar mixture, and then add  the rest of the flour mixture.  Beat all of it together slowly, only until combined.  Do not over mix.
  • Drop about 1-2 Tbsp of batter onto the baking sheets.  Use 2"-diameter ice cream scoop for large whoopies (flatten them with back of the scoop).  Cookies will spread, so give them ample room on the cookie sheet. If desired, add chopped nuts to 1/2 of the cookies (these will be the tops)
    1 cup toasted pecans or walnuts
  • Bake 8-10 minutes or until cookies just start to brown.  Slide parchment and cookies onto cooling rack, and let them cool completely before putting them together with filling.

Directions for Cream Cheese-Chai Spice Filling:

  • Beat butter on high for 1-2 minutes until smooth and fluffy.
    1/2 cup 1 stick butter, softened
  • Add cream cheese and beat until smooth.
    8 ounces package cream cheese
  • Add powdered sugar, chai spices and vanilla and beat until combined.
    3 cups powdered sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom, 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger, 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper, 1 teaspoon vanilla

To assemble Whoopie Pies:

  • To assemble whoopie pies, pair the cookies to be similar sizes (partner them up) and scoop or spread or pipe filling onto one of the cookie pair. Top each pie with the remaining cookie pair and press down slightly so that filling spreads to the edge.  Serve immediately or refrigerate in airtight container. 

Notes

Another option for the filling would be to use Peach Grand Marnier Jam from HeathGlen and add some chai spice mix or add some of chai spice mix to your own peach jam.

Nutrition

Calories: 634kcalCarbohydrates: 79gProtein: 6gFat: 34gSaturated Fat: 17gCholesterol: 102mgSodium: 455mgPotassium: 237mgFiber: 2gSugar: 57gVitamin A: 4103IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 93mgIron: 2mg
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  1. Cyndy Crist says:

    I hate to brag, but I was lucky enough to eat one of these and they are as delicious as they look. Thanks, Dorothy – what a splendid fall treat!

  2. Betty says:

    5 stars
    The chai spices added to the cream cheese make this so delicious! Easy to follow directions too.

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