From Chef Oonagh Williams of Royal Temptations Catering
Makes about 2 dozen 2 inch pies
Ingredients:
- ½ cup (1 stick) soft butter
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2 cups light brown sugar, firmly packed
- 2 Tbsp. maple syrup
- 1 tsp. gluten-free vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ½ cups canned pumpkin (Ensure only pumpkin is listed in ingredients – don’t use pie filling)
- 2 1/3 cups Oonagh’s Gluten-Free Flour Blend
- 1 ½ tsp. xanthan gum
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. salt
- 4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease two baking sheets or line with parchment paper or non-stick liner.
- Beat together butter, oil, sugar, maple syrup, and vanilla for about 3 minutes. Beat until lighter in color and fluffier. The mix will still look slightly grainy. Scrape down sides.
- Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition, until fluffier.
- Gently beat in pumpkin.
- Add flour, xanthan gum and the rest of the dry ingredients, mixing well. The mix will start to thicken because of xanthan gum and baking powder.
- Use a 2 tablespoon scoop or a rounded tablespoon quantity to drop batter onto prepared sheets, leaving about 2 inches between each scoop.
- Bake in preheated oven for about 18 – 20 minutes until cookies feel firm, but are still soft. When you think they are cooked, give them about 3 more minutes. I found they have a tendency to deflate if not cooked enough.
- Remove from oven and leave to cool on a cooling rack.
Filling Ingredients:
- 8 oz. package of soft cream cheese (light is fine)
- 2 cups powdered/icing sugar
- 1 tsp. gluten-free vanilla extract
- ¼ cup diced crystallized ginger (optional)
- 2-4 Tbsp. heavy cream (optional)
Filling Directions:
- Beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla together until very smooth and creamy.
- Sandwich two cookies together with 2 tablespoons cream cheese filling.
Tip from Oonagh:
You can overfill the whoopie pies with filling and roll them in Halloween sprinkles or take a single cookie, top with some filling as a frosting and decorate with various gluten-free Halloween candy or toppings.