You don’t have to be from the South to enjoy southern-style Red Velvet Whoopie Pies! My recipe makes it easy by doctoring up a cake mix for soft, chewy and irresistible whoopie pies in minutes!
So I have a bone to pick with California cuisine.
It’s good, but not great. Our Mexican food is generally pretty bomb and authentic, depending on where you go of course. And I love our take on sushi!
But otherwise, I feel like the South gets all the good food. Am I right?
Southerners have traditional Southern food, Creole, Cajun… all that deliciousness, plus Tex-Mex which is good (although I generally prefer California Mexican over Tex Mex!). Gumbo, jambalaya, fried chicken, cornbread, banana pudding, pulled pork. And like, a thousand different BBQ sauces. My mouth is watering just thinking of it!
We don’t have many Southern-style restaurants here in California, except for a chain called Lucille’s. It is delish but by no means authentic which stinks. To be honest, I don’t think Southern cuisine would fit in here which sucks. Everyone here is all about poke bowls and smoothie bowls and quinoa bowls. Basically we’re in a state-wide bowl epidemic that I’m dying to get out of. If it doesn’t have quinoa or magic mushroom powders in it, people here don’t want it. Except for me. I could go a lifetime without ever eating quinoa again and be satisfied.
When I made these Red Velvet Whoopie Pies for my true Texan neighbors Hayden and Ashley, they told me they were the best whoopie pies he’s tried! I think that’s pretty high praise coming from someone who hails from whoopie pie country, don’t you?
These whoopie pies are made simple with a doctored up boxed cake mix. Trust me, you won’t even know these started from a box! The whoopie pie “cookies” themselves are very soft and chewy, not crisp or harder like a traditional cookie. They are more pillowy and yielding than say, your average chocolate chip cookie. The filling is a tangy cream cheese frosting that pairs beautifully with the rich red velvet. Plus, it looks beautiful – striking white against bright red!
To make these even more festive, I like to sprinkle the tops of the whoopie pies with a little confectioners’ sugar for a pretty appearance.
Be sure to do yourself a favor this holiday season and give these a try for your Christmas cookie trays!
*from my book, Out of the Box Holiday Baking
Red Velvet Whoopie Pies
Author: Hayley Parker, The Domestic Rebel
Recipe type: Cookies
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 8
These Red Velvet Whoopie Pies are extraordinary! Soft and pillowy, rich red velvet “cookies” sandwiched around the most delicious tangy cream cheese frosting!
Ingredients
- .One box red velvet cake mix (do not follow ingredients on back of the box)
- ½ cup vegetable or canola oil
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- FOR THE FROSTING FILLING:
- 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 4 Tablespoons butter, softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups confectioners’ sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, oil, eggs, and vanilla and stir to combine until a thick dough forms. Drop 2-Tablespoon-size balls of dough 3″ apart on the baking sheets. If there are little parts of the whoopie pie dough sticking up, press them down gently with a damp finger.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes, rotating pans halfway through baking time to ensure even cooking. Cool for 5-10 minutes on the baking sheets, then carefully transfer the cookies to a wire rack to finish cooling completely.
- For the frosting: In a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla with a handheld electric mixer until combined and smooth, about 30 seconds. Add in the confectioners’ sugar gradually, mixing well after each addition until frosting is smooth and fluffy.
- Attach a large open-circle tip to a piping bag and add the frosting to the piping bag. Pipe a generous amount of frosting onto one of the flat sides of the cookie. I like to make a circle with the icing just shy of the actual edge of the cookie, then fill the circle in with more frosting like a spiral. Top the frosted side of the cookie with another cookie half.
- If desired, dust the tops of the whoopie pies with confectioners’ sugar. Store any leftover whoopie pipes airtight in the fridge or at room temperature.
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Sweet, rich, cool and delicious, you are going to love these flavorful and festive whoopie pies!
Have a super sweet day!
xo, Hayley
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