Banana Whoopie Pies with Chocolate Chips

Today is a holiday in Canada - so happy birthday Queen Victoria you old doll and thanks for getting us the day off.  Unfortunately, the beautiful sunny weather that blessed us on Saturday has turned back to the blech that we've been experiencing most of this Spring.  We even had hail for about 3 minutes last night around midnight.

Justin and I have been itching to make Whoopie Pies for sometime now but the opportunity just didn't present itself until this morning.  I purchased a Whoopie Pie pan (kind of a muffin top pan if you know what I mean) and a book on making Whoopies a while back, as I like to read about food sometimes as much as I like making it.  So this morning we hung out in the kitchen for a bit using the Kitchen Aid before his friends come back from the cottage and he abandons Mom for them, Xbox and Annoying Orange on Youtube.

Looking around the kitchen to see what ingredients we had on hand, I noticed four rather sad looking bananas.  You know what I mean ...not unhappy bananas... just soft with lots of brown spots.  Basically the kind of banana I wouldn't eat, but with which I would bake; hence Banana Whoopie Pies.  And since we have some chocolate sprinkles and chocolate chips in the cupboards, they will make an appearance also.

The following recipe is adapted from Whoopie Pies by Sarah Billingsly and Amy Treadwell.  It is pretty simple and really more like a banana muffin mix than a cake.  I also used half multigrain flour to give the cake a bit of crunch and texture.  Taste was very nice but I think it would have benefited from another banana.

Next time, I guess...

Banana Whoopie Pies with Chocolate Chips

1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup multigrain baking flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons grapeseed or vegetable oil
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
3 very ripe bananas (try 4 next time)

Position rack in the centre of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees.  Spray pan with cooking spray or use a paper towel to grease each pie form.

Sift together both flours, baking soda and salt onto a sheet of parchment or waxed paper.

In the bowl of a mixer fitted with a paddle, beat together butter, oil, sugar and vanilla until light and creamy, about 3 minutes.  Add the eggs and beat to combine.  Then add the bananas, and continue to combine.

With the paddle running on low (speed 2) slowly add in the flour mixture from the parchment paper ( you would pick up both sides and use it like a feeder).  Beat until well combined, being sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl several times.  Do not overbeat - you just want to combine all the ingredients for a few minutes.

Spoon banana batter into Whoopie pie moulds, being sure not to over-fill or you will have muffin tops (like I got....sigh).  Fill to about 2/3 of the mould's capacity.

Bake in oven for about 17-20 minutes and cakes spring to the touch and are slightly brown on top. Remove cakes from the oven and allow to cool in the cake pan for at least 5 minutes before transferring them to a rack to cool completely.

Classic Cream Cheese Filling

4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature (we used reduced fat)
4 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
3 cups icing sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the cream cheese and butter on medium speed (speed 4ish).  Add the sugar and beat on low (speed 2) until combined.  Add the vanilla and increase the speed back to medium.  Beat until creamy, smooth and fluffy about 4 minutes.

To assemble:

Chocolate Chips (about 1/2 cup)
1 banana, peeled and chopped
Chocolate Sprinkles (optional)

Pipe or spread icing on the flat inside half of one Whoopie pie.  Add a few slices of banana and sprinkle with chocolate chips.  Top with other Whoopie pie half and press lightly together.  Roll in chocolate sprinkles if desired.

If the icing seems a bit soft, refrigerate for half an hour before enjoying.

Cook's Note:  The pies turned out delicious and they were quickly consumed by a band of roaming children who arrived starving at our door.  However, next time, I think I am going to try to make them without the pie pan and in a "mini" size so they are only a few bites.