Spice Cookie Dough Stuffed Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

Yield: about 20 pies                                                                                         [click for printable recipe]                                                             

Pumpkin pie shells:                                                                                                        

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

1 ½ teaspoons baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup (packed) golden brown sugar

3/4 cup sugar

½ cup vegetable oil

3 large eggs

1 ¼ cups cooked and mashed pumpkin or canned mashed pumpkin

 ½ cup milk

Nonstick vegetable oil spray

1. Sift first 5 ingredients into large bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter and both sugars in another large bowl until blended. Gradually beat in oil. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating to blend between additions. Beat in pumpkin.  Add dry ingredients in 2 additions alternately with milk in 1 addition, beating to blend between additions and occasionally scraping down sides of bowl. Cover and chill batter 1 hour.  Transfer to a piping bag with the end snipped or fitted with a large round piping tip.
2. Arrange 1 rack in bottom third of oven and 1 rack in top third of oven; preheat to 350°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment; spray lightly with nonstick spray.  Pipe batter onto baking sheets (about 3 tbsp. per cake) spacing apart. Let stand 10 minutes.
3. Bake for 10 minutes.  Rotate pans and bake for another 10 minutes. Cool cakes completely on baking sheets on rack. Using spatula, remove cakes from parchment.
4. Line cooled baking sheets with clean parchment; spray with nonstick spray, and repeat baking with remaining batter.  Keep stored in an air-tight container until ready for assembly.

 Spice chocolate chip cookie dough:

¼ cup unsalted butter room temperature

¼ cup molasses (not black strap – look for golden or sorghum molasses)

¼ cup light brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

½ tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp allspice

¼ tsp salt

½ cup mini chocolate chips

1. In a large bowl beat butter, molasses and brown sugar together until well combined.  Add in vanilla and mix well.
2. Add flour, spices and salt and mix on low speed until well incorporated.  Add chocolate chips and mix on low speed (or by hand) until chips are evenly dispersed in batter.
3. Roll the dough between two sheets of parchment or wax paper.  Transfer to freezer and chill until firm.  Cut cookie dough into small square pieces using a chef’s knife.   Work quickly, as the dough can become sticky as it defrosts. Transfer cookie chunks to a bowl and store in the freezer while you make the whipped filling.

Whipped cream cheese filling:

1 ½ cups heavy whipping cream

½ cup granulated sugar

1 8oz. box cream cheese, room temperature

1 tsp. vanilla

1. Beat heavy whipping cream in a large bowl on high speed with an electric mixer.  When mixture thickens, gradually add in ½ cup sugar.  Beat until stiff peaks form.
2. Add in room temperature cream cheese 1 oz. at a time.  Beat in vanilla. Mixture should be thick and fluffy. Remove bowl of cookie dough pieces from the freezer and fold half into the whipped cream cheese filling.

Assembly:

1. Spoon filling onto the flat side of 1 cake. Top with another cake.  Press spice cookie dough into the sides of the filled pies.  Keep pies in an air-tight container in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before serving.

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