Banana-Carrot Cake Whoopie Pies

Today is my lovely, beautiful sister’s birthday – Happy Birthday, Sharon! To celebrate this most joyous occasion, I decided to make an absolutely epic, multilayer, drenched/dipped/filled with chocolate cake. And then my plans were thwarted . . . by the birthday girl herself.

Oh yes, Sharon had the notion that the birthday girl (and not the baker) actually gets to choose the cake! The nerve. She dropped hints about wanting a small (WHAT) cake and a warm cake (I said I could microwave my ten-layer one) and finally, it came out that she wanted individual molten chocolate cakes. Which, okay, I absolutely love. But I was still a little sad about missing an opportunity to create a dessert masterpiece.

Which leads me to these whoopie pies. As you may have noticed by now, these are not quite the same as a ten-layered cake. They are, however, an exciting (I hope?) venture into whoopie pie land, where I have never before dared to journey.

And they have cream cheese frosting. Do we need to have this conversation again? I.Love.Creamcheesefrosting. You may have noticed the pound of frosting smashed between each cake layer? Umm yeah. Not a mistake. Oh, and my sister (for whom these treats were intended, of course!) also enjoys a love affair with cream cheese frosting.

Oh, and you might be wondering about the addition of banana? I decided to cut the sugar a bit and replace it with the natural sugar of a banana! Sharon calls this technique “sneaky,” but I’m pretty sure she just forgot the word for “genius.” That’s what happens when you get older . . .

. . . sorry, was busy running for my life after she saw what I just typed! Just kidding, darling. A happiest birthday to the coolest, smartest, kindest, bestest big sister I could ever ask for!

P.S. We’re going to Birthday Brunch today at Blue Mesa Grill. Excitement abounds!

Banana-Carrot Cake Whoopie Pies

Yield: About 15 whoopie pies

Notes:

• The pie halves originally turned out a little thinner than I wanted, so I lessened the amount of milk accordingly. Still, these pies may not be as thick as you like, so feel free to decrease the milk to achieve an even thicker batter.
• I also used an ice cream scoop to create a circle of batter, then used the back of the scoop to slightly flatten out the batter and widen the circle to about 2 inches in diameter. Depending on your needs, you can make them smaller or larger.
• I love the taste of cream cheese, so I don’t use as much powdered sugar as typically found in cream cheese frosting recipes. You may wish to add additional powdered sugar. Please refrain from doing so. Just kidding! Add as much powdered sugar as your heart desires.

Ingredients

Whoopie Pie

1)   2 cups all-purpose flour

2)   2 teaspoons baking soda

3)   2 teaspoons baking powder

4)   2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

5)   1/2 teaspoon salt

6)   1/2 cup (one stick) butter, softened

7)   2/3 cup packed brown sugar

8)   1/2 cup granulated sugar

9)   4 eggs

10) 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

11)  1/2 cup milk

12)  3 cups grated carrots

13)  2 large overripe bananas, mashed

14)  1 cup chopped pecans

Filling

1)   1/2 cup (a stick) butter, softened

2)   2 packages (16 oz total) cream cheese

3)   2 teaspoons vanilla extract

4)   2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

5)   2 cups powdered sugar

Instructions

Whoopie Pie

1)   Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.

2)   In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and both sugars until fluffy. Add in eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Mix in vanilla extract. Alternate adding in the flour mixture and milk until combined.

3)   Finally, stir in carrots, banana, and chopped pecans. Use ice cream scoop to drop circles of batter onto parchment paper. Shape to desired size. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Filling

1)   Beat together butter and cream cheese until creamy. Mix in the vanilla extract and ground cinnamon. Finally, gradually beat in powdered sugar until fully incorporated.

2)   Use a spatula or piping bag to cover one half of a whoopie pie with the cream cheese filling. Cover with another half, and enjoy immensely!