Red Velvet Whoopie Pies

Ingredients

• 1 (18.25 ounce) box Red Velvet cake mix*
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons water
• 2 whole eggs
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, softened
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 2 cups Marshmallow Creme
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Cookies

1. Combine dry cake mix with oil, water, and eggs.
2. Use a 2 ounce cookie dough scoop to drop scoops of dough onto ungreased cookie sheets 2 inches apart.
3. Bake at 325 degrees F for about 13 minutes. Cookies should be firm enough to handle, but not overdone and crispy.
4. Cool on wire racks, then make sandwiches with filling.

Filling

1. Beat together butter and powdered sugar.
2. Beat in the Marshmallow Creme and vanilla extract, blending until smooth.
3. Spoon 1 to 2 tablespoons of filling onto the bottom of a cooled cookie.
4. Press the bottom of another cookie on top of the filling to make a sandwich.
5. Repeat with remaining cookies and filling.
6. Store pies between layers of wax paper in an airtight container, and refrigerate for up to 2 days.

Notes

* 18.25 ounce boxes of cake mix have been replaced by 16.5 ounce and 15.25 ounce boxes. To compensate for the volume loss in a 16 ounce box, whisk 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour into the dry cake mix before proceeding with the recipe. To compensate for the volume loss in a 15.25 ounce box, add 1/2 cup + 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour and 1/4 teaspoon baking powder.

Variation: Use devil’s food cake mix!