Red Hot Velvet Whoopie Pies with Cinnamon-Cream Cheese Frosting

Okay, so after my montage of anniversary pictures, I gotta get focused back on the food :) As part of our celebration, I treated my Mountain Man to a yummy picnic at the park during the day. Our menu included Asian Arnold Palmer's (which we called Tiger Wood's), Pork Belly Banh Mi's, Asian Noodle Salad, & Red Hot Velvet Whoopie Pies. I should honestly be posting these recipes in order of how we ate them, but that's just not the way I roll. Dessert always comes first in this household. And it was just the yummiest ever. I was shocked at how much I loved these whoopie pies. I added cinnamon to the red velvet batter to reinforce the flavor. But the real shocker of cinnamon came from the cinnamon-cream cheese filling that was then rolled in crushed red hot candies. This dessert was perfect for our romantic picnic, but carried a fiery lustful punch! I really loved these... who would ever think cinnamon would work so great with red velvet? I didn't! I will be posting the rest of our recipes from our picnic later on this weekend! Enjoy :)

My Mountain Man Enjoyin' His Whoopie Pie

Everybody Loves Whoopies!

The Best Part: Crushed Red Hot Candies

Red Hot Velvet Whoopie Pies with Cinnamon-Cream Cheese Frosting & Crushed Red Hot Candies

For the Red Hot Velvet Whoopie Pies:

2C AP Flour

2T Cocoa Powder

½t Baking Powder

¼t Salt

1t Cinnamon

1 Stick of Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature

1C Light Brown Sugar, Packed

1 Large Egg

1t Vanilla

½C Buttermilk, Room Temperature

1t White Distilled Vinegar

1oz Red Food Coloring

For the Cinnamon-Cream Cheese Filling:

1 8oz Block of Cream Cheese, Softened

5T Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature

2t Vanilla

2 ½C Confectioners’ Sugar, Sifted   

2t Cinnamon

Red Hot Candies, Slightly Crushed (for rolling) & Whole (for garnish)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment paper, and then set aside. 
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. In the bowl of a standing mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and brown sugar on medium-high speed until light & fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Beat in the egg until incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Blend in the vanilla. In a small bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, white distilled vinegar, and red food coloring until blended. Reduce the speed to low, and beat in a third of the dry ingredients, followed by half of the buttermilk mixture, beating each addition until just incorporated. Repeat so that all the buttermilk has been used, and then mix in the final third of the dry ingredients (do not over-beat). 
3. Using a large ice cream scoop, scoop the batter onto the prepared pans. Bake for 7-10 minutes or until the tops are set, rotating the baking sheets halfway through. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheets for at least 10 minutes, until they can be safely transferred to a cooling rack. Allow them to cool completely before filling. 
4. To Make the Cinnamon-Cream Cheese Filling: In the bowl of a standing mixer, beat together the cream cheese & butter on medium-high speed until well combined & smooth, about 2-3 minutes. Mix in the vanilla. Gradually beat in the sifted confectioners’ sugar & cinnamon until totally incorporated and smooth. Transfer the frosting to a clean pastry bag fitted with a plan round tip, and fill the big with the frosting.
5. Pair the cookies up by shape and size. Flip over one cookie of each pair, so that the flat side is facing up. Pipe the frosting onto the flat-sided cookie of each pair, leaving the edges clear. Sandwich the cookies together, so that the flat sides are facing each other and press gently to help the filling to reach the edges. Roll the edges of the frosting in crushed red hot candies for a nice crunch & presentation. 
6. Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container until ready to eat!

source: red velvet whoopie pies.


*Check out Sweets For A Saturday for this recipe, as well as many others!!*