Pi(e) Week: Whoopie Pie

As you all know by now, I’m not a huge fan of chocolate. Yes, I like it here and there, but what I really love are vanilla-flavored things. I also love coffee, but most coffee-infused desserts are made with chocolate, and that just won’t work for me. 

So when I came across Diary of an Air Force Wife’s Mama’s Inside Out Cake with Vanilla Bean and Espresso-Butter Cream, I knew I absolutely had to make it. But there was one problem. The recipe called for a vanilla bean and I didn’t have any at the time, so I tucked this recipe away in my “to-make” folder.

Luckily, my grandma sent me a variety of vanilla beans for my birthday back in January. I’m using several to make my own vanilla extract, and I used one for this recipe. Let me just tell something, when I tasted the butter cream, I literally had to close my eyes because it was so delicious. The coffee and vanilla were absolutely perfect together. PERFECT.

Check out the specks from the vanilla bean! I can’t wait to find more uses for the rest of my vanilla.

I should also mention that this was my very first whoopie pie. I’ve heard and seen them, and have always wanted to try one. Luckily, these did not disappoint. I had some issues with the cake part, but it wasn’t the recipe’s fault; I was too eager to make these and didn’t let the butter come to room temperature first. I also wish I made them smaller than I did, because although I think they’re delicious, bite-sized would’ve been much better.

One thing is certain. I’ll be making the butter cream again very, very soon, perhaps on a cupcake. Pi(e) week rocks!