Remember our recent post that discussed cooking down and pureeing a pumpkin for future use? If you haven’t had a chance to read it, please take a peek, then get that nearly frost bitten pumpkin that is sitting on your porch and get busy making your own pumpkin puree. You will need it for another of our recently posted recipes: pumpkin tartlets as well as this next pumpkin recipe that we’d like to share with you.

This recipe will both surprise and delight you. It was given to us by a relative who declared that is would become a Thanksgiving tradition. And, as predicted, it has been ever present on our Thanksgiving table. We would never think of omitting this from our celebration, not that our families would let us, always asking on Thanksgiving morning, “Are you making that pumpkin soup?” Of course we are and so will you once you give it a try.

However, our initial reaction to this recipe was “Huh? Pumpkin peanut butter soup? …ummm….hmmm. It sounds…ewww…not sure…” We would have made a sound effects specialist quite happy. Let’s be honest, we could agree that peanut butter and pumpkin are delicious flavors, but were they meant to be served hot, in the form of a soup? Well, we figured they might taste good together so why not give it a try. We looked over the recipe and read the ingredients for the garnish: sour cream and chives?!

We took out our pureed pumpkin, gathered the rest of the ingredients and set out to make what has become a must have soup. We took a taste of the soup sans garnish. It was tasty. Then we added the garnish and our reaction was quite the opposite of when we first read the recipe. We made one sound only: “Mmmmm!” The soup was absolutely delicious, garnish included and if not low in calorie, definitely healthy and nutritious, which is a bonus when children are involved.

We highly recommend adding this to your Thanksgiving Day menu. Because this is a filling soup you can serve it quite some time before the main course, which gives you a little extra preparation time with the turkey and all those side dishes. You will find that this soup is going to be the simplest dish you prepare on Thanksgiving and that it will become a hearty mainstay for late fall and winter dinners.

Peanut Butter and Pumpkin Soup

Ingredients

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

4 cups canned pumpkin pie mix or 4 cups pumpkin puree flavored with pumpkin pie spices

2 cups cooked sweet potato puree

1 cup smooth peanut butter

6 cups vegetable stock

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons chopped chives for garnish

2 tablespoons sour cream for garnish

Directions

1. Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat.

2. Stir in pumpkin, sweet potatoes, and peanut butter.

3. Add vegetable stock, pepper, and salt. Stir till smooth.

4. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

5. Serve garnished with sour cream and chopped chives.

Remember our recent post that discussed cooking down and pureeing a pumpkin for future use? If you haven’t had a chance to read it, please take a peek, then get that nearly frost bitten pumpkin that is sitting on your porch and get busy making your own pumpkin puree. You will need it for another of our recently posted recipes: pumpkin tartlets as well as this next pumpkin recipe that we’d like to share with you.

This recipe will both surprise and delight you. It was given to us by a relative who declared that is would become a Thanksgiving tradition. And, as predicted, it has been ever present on our Thanksgiving table. We would never think of omitting this from our celebration, not that our families would let us, always asking on Thanksgiving morning, “Are you making that pumpkin soup?” Of course we are and so will you once you give it a try.

However, our initial reaction to this recipe was “Huh? Pumpkin peanut butter soup? …ummm….hmmm. It sounds…ewww…not sure…” We would have made a sound effects specialist quite happy. Let’s be honest, we could agree that peanut butter and pumpkin are delicious flavors, but were they meant to be served hot, in the form of a soup? Well, we figured they might taste good together so why not give it a try. We looked over the recipe and read the ingredients for the garnish: sour cream and chives?!

We took out our pureed pumpkin, gathered the rest of the ingredients and set out to make what has become a must have soup. We took a taste of the soup sans garnish. It was tasty. Then we added the garnish and our reaction was quite the opposite of when we first read the recipe. We made one sound only: “Mmmmm!” The soup was absolutely delicious, garnish included and if not low in calorie, definitely healthy and nutritious, which is a bonus when children are involved.

We highly recommend adding this to your Thanksgiving Day menu. Because this is a filling soup you can serve it quite some time before the main course, which gives you a little extra preparation time with the turkey and all those side dishes. You will find that this soup is going to be the simplest dish you prepare on Thanksgiving and that it will become a hearty mainstay for late fall and winter dinners.

Peanut Butter and Pumpkin Soup

Ingredients

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

4 cups canned pumpkin pie mix or 4 cups pumpkin puree flavored with pumpkin pie spices

2 cups cooked sweet potato puree

1 cup smooth peanut butter

6 cups vegetable stock

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons chopped chives for garnish

2 tablespoons sour cream for garnish

Directions

1. Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat.

2. Stir in pumpkin, sweet potatoes, and peanut butter.

3. Add vegetable stock, pepper, and salt. Stir till smooth.

4. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

5. Serve garnished with sour cream and chopped chives.

In an earlier post entitled “It’s all about the Pumpkin” I wrote about cooking down your own pumpkin. For me, the day my father would peel and cut the pumpkin for my mother to cook down was one of great pleasure for I knew what the end result would be. I mentioned that my mother rarely, if ever, baked. She didn’t care for baking so having a freshly baked pumpkin pie was a treasure and greatly anticipated each year.

I’m not really sure why my mother chose pumpkin pie as the one thing she would bake year after year. My mother passed on three years ago and so I won’t have the chance to ask her, but I do know it wasn’t a recipe handed down from mother to daughter as my grandmother was from Sicily and pumpkin pie was not in her baking repertoire.

I am going with the theory that my mother loved pumpkin pie as much as I do. She took great pride in her very simple recipe. She loved to mention that the pumpkin was not from a can and she would make as many pies as she had puree pumpkin, which was a lot because she often cooked down a rather large pumpkin. My mother didn’t know that there were particular pumpkins for cooking down. A pumpkin was a pumpkin.

And, that fact is a testament to this recipe. It doesn’t matter if you have a “pumpkin pie” pumpkin with its tiny brown specks or if you have a regular, run of the mill pumpkin. As long as you cook it down properly and puree it well any pumpkin will do for this recipe and for an upcoming pumpkin soup recipe.

I like to use the following recipe from Martha Stewart for the pate brisee:

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water

Directions

1. In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar. Add butter, and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, 8 to 10 seconds.

2. With machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream through feed tube. Pulse until dough holds together without being wet or sticky; be careful not to process more than 30 seconds. To test, squeeze a small amount together: If it is crumbly, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time.

3. Divide dough into two equal balls. Flatten each ball into a disc and wrap in plastic. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill at least 1 hour. Dough may be stored, frozen, up to 1 month.

Or, you could use this tart dough recipe from Martha Stewart:

Ingredients

1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup ice water
3 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
1 cup (2 sticks) plus 5 tablespoons very cold unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces

Directions

1. In a small bowl, mix together salt and water. Keep very cold until ready to use.

2. Place flour and butter in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse briefly until mixture forms large crumbs. Add the salt water mixture and continue pulsing until dough has just formed but is not smooth.

3. On a lightly floured work surface, evenly divide dough. Form each piece of dough into a disk about 1 inch thick. Wrap each disk with plastic wrap and chill at least 2 hours and up to overnight.

Pumpkin Pie Filling

Ingredients

2 cups pumpkin puree
1 cup whole milk
2 large eggs
¾ cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp ginger
¼ tsp ground clove
2 tbsp melted butter (unsalted)
1 tbsp corn starch

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Move the racks to the lower half of the oven.

2. Take a dough round and roll out to fit a deep dish 9” pie dish. Or, roll out the dough to fit 6-8 tartlet forms depending on size.

3. Chill the pie shell for about 10 minutes in the freezer. If making tartlets you will need to pre-bake the tartlet shells because they will not finish cooking when the filling has finished.

4. While the shell(s) is/are chilling; Place all ingredients into a blender. Pulse to blend, but do not over blend. The mixture is not thick.

5. When the pie shell has chilled place it on a cookie sheet. Pour the filling into the shell and carefully place the pie (on the cookie sheet) into the oven. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes.

6. If making the tartlets, once they have chilled, place them on a cookie sheet and bake at 375 degrees until golden brown. Take the shells out and cool. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees. Once they are cool, poor the filling into them and place them back in the oven. Bake until tartlets are set.

7. Reduce the heat to 325 degrees and bake until the pie is set, about 45 minutes.

8. Remove the pie or tartlets from the oven and cool. Once cool put the pie or tartlets into the refrigerator to chill for at least an hour before serving. Serve with homemade whip cream.

Note: If you have any filling left over and don’t want to waste it simply place it into a small baking dish or ramekins. This custard bakes nicely without a shell and is equally as delicious.

In an earlier post entitled “It’s all about the Pumpkin” I wrote about cooking down your own pumpkin. For me, the day my father would peel and cut the pumpkin for my mother to cook down was one of great pleasure for I knew what the end result would be. I mentioned that my mother rarely, if ever, baked. She didn’t care for baking so having a freshly baked pumpkin pie was a treasure and greatly anticipated each year.

I’m not really sure why my mother chose pumpkin pie as the one thing she would bake year after year. My mother passed on three years ago and so I won’t have the chance to ask her, but I do know it wasn’t a recipe handed down from mother to daughter as my grandmother was from Sicily and pumpkin pie was not in her baking repertoire.

I am going with the theory that my mother loved pumpkin pie as much as I do. She took great pride in her very simple recipe. She loved to mention that the pumpkin was not from a can and she would make as many pies as she had puree pumpkin, which was a lot because she often cooked down a rather large pumpkin. My mother didn’t know that there were particular pumpkins for cooking down. A pumpkin was a pumpkin.

And, that fact is a testament to this recipe. It doesn’t matter if you have a “pumpkin pie” pumpkin with its tiny brown specks or if you have a regular, run of the mill pumpkin. As long as you cook it down properly and puree it well any pumpkin will do for this recipe and for an upcoming pumpkin soup recipe.

I like to use the following recipe from Martha Stewart for the pate brisee:

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water

Directions

1. In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar. Add butter, and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, 8 to 10 seconds.

2. With machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream through feed tube. Pulse until dough holds together without being wet or sticky; be careful not to process more than 30 seconds. To test, squeeze a small amount together: If it is crumbly, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time.

3. Divide dough into two equal balls. Flatten each ball into a disc and wrap in plastic. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill at least 1 hour. Dough may be stored, frozen, up to 1 month.

Or, you could use this tart dough recipe from Martha Stewart:

Ingredients

1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup ice water
3 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
1 cup (2 sticks) plus 5 tablespoons very cold unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces

Directions

1. In a small bowl, mix together salt and water. Keep very cold until ready to use.

2. Place flour and butter in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse briefly until mixture forms large crumbs. Add the salt water mixture and continue pulsing until dough has just formed but is not smooth.

3. On a lightly floured work surface, evenly divide dough. Form each piece of dough into a disk about 1 inch thick. Wrap each disk with plastic wrap and chill at least 2 hours and up to overnight.

Pumpkin Pie Filling

Ingredients

2 cups pumpkin puree
1 cup whole milk
2 large eggs
¾ cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp ginger
¼ tsp ground clove
2 tbsp melted butter (unsalted)
1 tbsp corn starch

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Move the racks to the lower half of the oven.

2. Take a dough round and roll out to fit a deep dish 9” pie dish. Or, roll out the dough to fit 6-8 tartlet forms depending on size.

3. Chill the pie shell for about 10 minutes in the freezer. If making tartlets you will need to pre-bake the tartlet shells because they will not finish cooking when the filling has finished.

4. While the shell(s) is/are chilling; Place all ingredients into a blender. Pulse to blend, but do not over blend. The mixture is not thick.

5. When the pie shell has chilled place it on a cookie sheet. Pour the filling into the shell and carefully place the pie (on the cookie sheet) into the oven. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes.

6. If making the tartlets, once they have chilled, place them on a cookie sheet and bake at 375 degrees until golden brown. Take the shells out and cool. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees. Once they are cool, poor the filling into them and place them back in the oven. Bake until tartlets are set.

7. Reduce the heat to 325 degrees and bake until the pie is set, about 45 minutes.

8. Remove the pie or tartlets from the oven and cool. Once cool put the pie or tartlets into the refrigerator to chill for at least an hour before serving. Serve with homemade whip cream.

Note: If you have any filling left over and don’t want to waste it simply place it into a small baking dish or ramekins. This custard bakes nicely without a shell and is equally as delicious.

I will share a personal story in this blog post. My mother did not like to bake. As it turns out, I love to bake and loved it from the first time I was given a cake mix and a tub of frosting. Looking back, that was a weak moment for my mother. I am the youngest of five children. So, I suppose, that by the time I came around having a child underfoot in the kitchen when cooking for a family of seven…well, it can be a chore. I understand that feeling even though I only have two children.

I treasured the times that I actually got to bake. And, I especially loved the fall for it was the one time my mother would bake or rather prepare for baking. I think that was the most exciting part, the preparation. It was like being next in a line. The anticipation was almost better…almost.

Every autumn my father would carve a pumpkin for Halloween. Of course we’d set the jack-o-lantern out with a candle. But, there was always a second pumpkin and the “carving” of this pumpkin was more delightful than the first. The second pumpkin was carved into pieces that were peeled. My mother would boil the pumpkin down and puree it. This was the base of joy on earth for me. I’m a pumpkin pie junkie. I admit it. It was the only pie my mother ever made. She never made an apple pie, not sweet potato or any berry pies, no chocolate cream pie either. She only made pumpkin pies and only to be served on Thanksgiving and Christmas. The waiting, the anticipation are perfect appetizers for they make your appetite grow.

You’ll have to wait until Tartlicious Tuesday for the pumpkin pie recipe as I love to make the same filling in a tart shell. For now I will leave you with guidance on cooking your pumpkin down and toasting those delicious pumpkin seeds.

Cooking Down a Pumpkin

My mother had my father to clean out the pumpkin, cut it up while raw, peel it and hand it over ready for the pot. And, for many years I did it the same way. Then, one year I was very busy. I wanted the pumpkin, but not the labor. Thankfully, this was the same time that Martha Stewart popped onto my radar. It was in one of her books or on her show, maybe her magazine?…that I saw her method.

1. Line a cookie sheet with foil and pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

2. Cut the stem off your pumpkin in order to create a flat surface, but make certain to not cause any cracks.

3. Cut the pumpkin in half, creating two “bowls”.

4. Take the insides out, reserving the seeds in a bowl.

5. Place tinfoil on the bottom of the pumpkin “bowls”.

6. Place the pumpkin halves on the cookie sheet.

7. Pour water into the “bowls”. Fill ¾ of the way.
8. Carefully place the pumpkins into the oven.

9. When the peel of the pumpkin darkens test a piece to see if it will peel off easily.

10. The pumpkins may not be cooked through, but if the peel comes off easily the pumpkins are ready to be removed from the oven.

11. Let the pumpkins cool until they are able to be handled.

12. Peel the pumpkins and cut them into chunks.

13. Place 1-2 cups of water in the bottom of a large pot and add the cut pumpkin.

14. Cook the pumpkin over medium heat and as it softens mash down with a potato masher until all pumpkin is mashed.

15. Cook down until the pumpkin becomes less liquid.

16. Take the pot off the burner and cool.

17. Puree the pumpkin and then return to the pot to cook down more.

18. When the pumpkin has the thickness desired remove from heat. Let cool.

Place in storage containers and refrigerate for up to a week or freeze until ready to use.

It is at step 17 that I will mix in all the seasoning I’ll need for pumpkin pies or pumpkin cookies. When I need to make the pie, half the work is done already.

Cinnamon Sugar Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

1. While your pumpkin is in the oven soak the pumpkin seeds to clean them off.

2. Drain and rinse.

3. Pat dry with paper towels.

4. Line a cookie sheet with parchment or foil. Spread the seeds on the cookie sheet.

5. Once you have room in the oven bake the seeds for about 10-15 minutes depending on how toasted you want them to be.

6. When they are finished remove from the oven and cool.

7. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter.

8. Place seeds and butter in medium bowl.

9. Coat the seeds with the butter. Then add 2 tablespoons sugar and 1 tablespoon cinnamon in the bowl, tossing with the seeds. Spread mixture onto the cookie sheet to “dry”. If they sit in the bowls they will stick together.

The amount of sugar and cinnamon will vary to taste and by the quantity of seeds.

I will share a personal story in this blog post. My mother did not like to bake. As it turns out, I love to bake and loved it from the first time I was given a cake mix and a tub of frosting. Looking back, that was a weak moment for my mother. I am the youngest of five children. So, I suppose, that by the time I came around having a child underfoot in the kitchen when cooking for a family of seven…well, it can be a chore. I understand that feeling even though I only have two children.

I treasured the times that I actually got to bake. And, I especially loved the fall for it was the one time my mother would bake or rather prepare for baking. I think that was the most exciting part, the preparation. It was like being next in a line. The anticipation was almost better…almost.

Every autumn my father would carve a pumpkin for Halloween. Of course we’d set the jack-o-lantern out with a candle. But, there was always a second pumpkin and the “carving” of this pumpkin was more delightful than the first. The second pumpkin was carved into pieces that were peeled. My mother would boil the pumpkin down and puree it. This was the base of joy on earth for me. I’m a pumpkin pie junkie. I admit it. It was the only pie my mother ever made. She never made an apple pie, not sweet potato or any berry pies, no chocolate cream pie either. She only made pumpkin pies and only to be served on Thanksgiving and Christmas. The waiting, the anticipation are perfect appetizers for they make your appetite grow.

You’ll have to wait until Tartlicious Tuesday for the pumpkin pie recipe as I love to make the same filling in a tart shell. For now I will leave you with guidance on cooking your pumpkin down and toasting those delicious pumpkin seeds.

Cooking Down a Pumpkin

My mother had my father to clean out the pumpkin, cut it up while raw, peel it and hand it over ready for the pot. And, for many years I did it the same way. Then, one year I was very busy. I wanted the pumpkin, but not the labor. Thankfully, this was the same time that Martha Stewart popped onto my radar. It was in one of her books or on her show, maybe her magazine?…that I saw her method.

1. Line a cookie sheet with foil and pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

2. Cut the stem off your pumpkin in order to create a flat surface, but make certain to not cause any cracks.

3. Cut the pumpkin in half, creating two “bowls”.

4. Take the insides out, reserving the seeds in a bowl.

5. Place tinfoil on the bottom of the pumpkin “bowls”.

6. Place the pumpkin halves on the cookie sheet.

7. Pour water into the “bowls”. Fill ¾ of the way.
8. Carefully place the pumpkins into the oven.

9. When the peel of the pumpkin darkens test a piece to see if it will peel off easily.

10. The pumpkins may not be cooked through, but if the peel comes off easily the pumpkins are ready to be removed from the oven.

11. Let the pumpkins cool until they are able to be handled.

12. Peel the pumpkins and cut them into chunks.

13. Place 1-2 cups of water in the bottom of a large pot and add the cut pumpkin.

14. Cook the pumpkin over medium heat and as it softens mash down with a potato masher until all pumpkin is mashed.

15. Cook down until the pumpkin becomes less liquid.

16. Take the pot off the burner and cool.

17. Puree the pumpkin and then return to the pot to cook down more.

18. When the pumpkin has the thickness desired remove from heat. Let cool.

Place in storage containers and refrigerate for up to a week or freeze until ready to use.

It is at step 17 that I will mix in all the seasoning I’ll need for pumpkin pies or pumpkin cookies. When I need to make the pie, half the work is done already.

Cinnamon Sugar Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

1. While your pumpkin is in the oven soak the pumpkin seeds to clean them off.

2. Drain and rinse.

3. Pat dry with paper towels.

4. Line a cookie sheet with parchment or foil. Spread the seeds on the cookie sheet.

5. Once you have room in the oven bake the seeds for about 10-15 minutes depending on how toasted you want them to be.

6. When they are finished remove from the oven and cool.

7. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter.

8. Place seeds and butter in medium bowl.

9. Coat the seeds with the butter. Then add 2 tablespoons sugar and 1 tablespoon cinnamon in the bowl, tossing with the seeds. Spread mixture onto the cookie sheet to “dry”. If they sit in the bowls they will stick together.

The amount of sugar and cinnamon will vary to taste and by the quantity of seeds.

Whoopee for whoopie pies. The popularity of whoopie pies is on the rise. We’ve been making our own for years and are now seeing the trend grow. You can create many varieties of whoopie pies from the always popular chocolate with buttery marshmallow filling to sweet strawberry pies with a creamy, subtle strawberry filling.

Autumn is now upon us. Soon, if not already, we will smell the aroma of fireplaces taking the chill out of the air. We will see leaves turning gold and red. And of course, we will seek out pumpkins. If each month had a flavor October and November would have to share. There is no other time in the year when pumpkin is so revered. It is the flavor of the season with all the warm inviting spices that go with it. Why not a pumpkin whoopie pie with a cream cheese filling! Oh, yum! The only thing that will make that combination better is if the pies were shaped like pumpkins.

Thanks to Crate and Barrel that is just what you can make: pumpkin shaped whoopie pies.

“Bake up seasonal pumpkin-shaped whoopie pies in autumn’s favorite flavors. Nonstick pan recreates the classic East Coast treat that food historians believe originated in Pennsylvania’s Amish country. Lore has it that farmers would shout “Whoopie!” when they found one of the sandwiched sweets in their lunch pails.”

We would like to share our enthusiasm for whoopie pies by offering this adorable Crate and Barrel Pumpkin Whoopie Pie Pan as our give away for October. Do you have a favorite whoopie pie flavor? Let us know in the comment section and we will enter you into the giveaway. If you’ve never had a whoopie pie, it is high time you tried one! Tell us if you’ve never eaten a whoopie pie and we will enter you into the giveaway, too! Those outside the US will receive an Amazon gift certificate.

How to enter:

1. Please add our link to your blog roll & let us know you did by commenting
2. Re-tweet This on Twitter & let us know you did by commenting
3. Like us on Facebook & let us know you did by commenting.
4. Tell us your favorite Whoopie Pie Flavor
5. Tell us if you have ever eaten one, and what your experience was.

The giveaway will end on Wednesday, October 19th.  We will announce the winner on the next day.

While you are waiting for the results of the giveaway why not try making our favorite whoopie pie recipe:

Chocolate Whoopie Pies
Ingredients for “cake”

2 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 stick ( ½ cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 large egg

Ingredients for filling

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
2 cups marshmallow cream such as Marshmallow Fluff
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions Preheat oven to 350°F.

Whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt in a bowl until combined. Stir together milk and vanilla in a small bowl.

Beat together butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes in a standing mixer or 5 minutes with a handheld, then add egg, beating until combined well. Reduce speed to low and alternately mix in flour mixture and milk in batches, beginning and ending with flour, scraping down side of bowl occasionally, and mixing until smooth.

Spoon tablespoon sized mounds of batter about 2 inches apart onto 2 buttered large baking sheets. Bake until tops are puffed and cakes spring back when touched, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool completely.

For the filling

Beat together butter, confectioners’ sugar, marshmallow, and vanilla in a bowl with electric mixer at medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes.

Assemble pies:

Spread a rounded tablespoon filling on flat sides of half of cakes and top with remaining cakes.

NOTE: For an easier time with the batter us a small ice cream scoop (or any size to your liking) to portion each cake evenly. Fill the whoopie pie by piping the filling instead of spreading with a knife.