Peppermint Whoopie Pies

I remember last December as just being extremely busy. We moved into our townhouse and then a few weeks later the holidays hit and in January we had our housewarming party. That party was easy in terms of hosting – chips, store-bought dip, veggies, and some appetizers from Trader Joe’s.

Comparing last year’s party to the holiday one we had a few weeks ago in terms of the food we served is pretty different. This year I went all out and probably shouldn’t have bought half the stuff I did and then attempt to make it all. Most of it did get eaten, don’t get me wrong, it’s just that I can’t use parties as an excuse to try a bunch of new recipes at once. I need to make an appetizer for dinner one night for the two of us to share or maybe bring something to a friend’s on the weekend if we hang out. This will be way more cost-effective in the long-run :)

Anyways, back to the party and the recipes I tried out. My favorite was the Peppermint Whoopie Pies, though Hubby is not a fan of minty flavored stuff. I LOVE anything mint so I was pretty excited to try these out. Chocolate + peppermint + some fun sprinkles = a good time

I got this recipe from one of my favorite food blog – The Girl Who Ate Everything. I love love love her recipes – they’re not too difficult, don’t use a lot of weird ingredients, and each one I’ve tried has come out pretty close to perfect. I followed her recipe almost exactly, but added another teaspoon of peppermint extract to make the frosting extra minty.

I call them whoopie pies because they are quite large…they’re definitely not oreo-sized. You will be full after having just one of these things, trust me! I guess for next time I will make the cookies a little smaller and try flattening them a little more so they’re thinner. Technically they are not soft like whoopie pies typically are but you get the idea.

Also – I will definitely put the frosting in the fridge for 20-30 minutes to let it thicken a little before frosting the cookies. It was slightly soupy (but that could be because I ran out of confectioner’s sugar and was about 3/4 of a cup short), and I think it would be easier to assemble them if the frosting is slightly thicker. All in all, a great holiday dessert – received lots of compliments on them so I will definitely be making them again next year!