Out of Hibernation

12.14.17

Well well well.  Look who decided to show up.  It’s ME! It’s surreal logging into the backstage parts of this blog to find tons of spam comments waiting for me to delete, link backs from a website who listed some of my recipes (not mad about it), and a draft of a post labeled October 16th. It was the first version of the recipe I’m giving you today! But after months away from my home in New York, I knew I had to revisit this before putting it up, and honestly there were a few kinks that needed tidying anyway.

If anyone didn’t read the last few posts before my hiatus, I’ve been touring all over the Northeast corner of the continent with a show.  As I’m sure you can tell by my lack of ads and sometimes spotty posting schedule, this blog is a love of mine, but not the first.  I’m definitely an actor before a blogger and I was lucky enough to be cast in a touring production which began in October and ended just a few days ago. It was so many things, more good than bad, and it was a bittersweet ending.  I am so glad to be home, so glad to be back with close friends and my husband, and so happy to be on public transportation instead of driving hours to our next performing destination. But I miss all the incredible kids we performed for, all the families who thanked us after shows for coming, all the stunning theatres I performed in, bringing a show to life over 50 times, and a few people from the cast whom I grew to love. Touring life is NO JOKE and while I hope to do it again, I’m looking forward to staying in one place for a bit.

Could I have been more diligent about reposting some of my favorite recipes on my Instagram account during my absence? Of course.  But I didn’t.  Instead I was caught up with life on the road; and since I’m sure you’ve gathered that I’ve seen the inside of more hotel rooms then some people will in their lifetime,  you can guess baking on the road was not an option.  

But tour is over and I’m ready to start baking in all the glorious spare time I now have.  I watched the new GBBO season on Netflix which has made me feel inspired and excited and hungry.  At my cafe job this summer, I was presented with a whoopie pie recipe. A classic treat, and easy to make.  So why not change it up? I took out the cocoa and replaced it with everyones favorite wintertime spices, kept the traditional filling and added a dollop of homemade apple butter.  They became a welcomed return to my favorite hobby.

Truth bomb here.  I love that marshmallow filling stuff.  I wish I didn’t.  It is THE epitome of processed food, but man is it a good way to settle a sweet tooth craving.

The first time around I added spices and apple butter to the filling itself and it was a bust.  Too much in too many places. Second time around I scaled back the flavor and kept the filling as is, with just a small amount of apple butter on top of the filling for the perfect touch.

As Christmas parties begin, and everyone starts gathering around to drink spiked cider and egg nog, maybe instead of cookies you put down a plate of these and give everyone a pleasant surprise.

It feels good to be back!  

Wintertime Whoopie Pies

Ingredients

For the Apple Butter

• 5 1/2 lbs apples, cored and sliced
• 2 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground clove
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp salt

Cakes

• 2 1/2 + 1/3 cup flour
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp ground ginger
• 1/8 tsp ground clove
• 1/8 tsp cardamom
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk

For the Filling

• 1 cup vegetable shortening
• 1 cup confectioners sugar
• 1 1/3 cups Marshmallow Fluff (basically equals out to the entire jar)
• 1/4 tsp salt dissolved in 1 tbsp water
• 1 Tbsp vanilla extract

Instructions

For the Apples Butter

• Place sliced apples into slow cooker
• Mix sugar, salt and spices, sprinkle over apples, along with vanilla extract and maple syrup
• Gently toss together, cover slow cooker and cook on low for 8-10 hours, until apples are thoroughly broken down
• Once broken down, turn off cooker, use blender or food processor to smooth
• Place in mason jars and refrigerate

For the Cakes

• Preheat oven to 350 and line two baking sheets
• In a stand up mixer, beat together sugar, butter, baking powder, baking soda and spices until smooth
• Add in egg and beat until smooth
• Alternate adding in flour and milk until a sticky batter comes together
• Spoon dollops onto baking sheet and gently spread to about 2 inches wide, make sure to create as much a circular shape as possible
• Bake for 10 minutes and allow to cool about 5-10 minutes before places on cooling racks

For the Filling

• Once cakes are cool make filling
• In bowl of stand up mixer beat together Marhsmallow Fluff, sugar and shortening until combined
• Add in salt dissolved in water then vanilla, allow to combine
• Spoon into piping bag with star tip and pipe onto the flat side of half the cakes
• Dollop a small amount of apple butter on top of frosting and gently press the cakes without filling on top to make sandwich
• Keep in airtight container and enjoy within 48 hours