Whoopies

Cooking Instructions

Adjust two racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cut aluminum foil to fit cookie sheets (you will need six pieces of foil, or you can wipe it off and reuse it between batches).

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt and set aside. In the large bowl of an electric mixer cream the butter. Add the vanilla and sugar and beat to mix well. Add the eggs one at a time, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula and beating until incorporated after each addition. On low speed add the cocoa and then the sifted dry ingredients in three additions, alternating with the milk in two additions, scraping the bowl with the spatula and beating only until smooth after each addition. (Before all the dry ingredients are added the mixture might look curdled-it's all right.)

It is important for these cookies to be shaped evenly and as close to the same size as possible. Use a 1/4-cup measuring cupful of the dough for each cookie. Use a narrow rubber spatula to fill the cup, level it off, and then to transfer the dough to the aluminum foil. Shape each mound of dough as round as possible-they will run and you want them to run into even circles. Place only five mounds of dough on one piece of foil-one in the center and one toward each corner. (During baking the cookies will spread to about 4-1/2 inches in diameter.)

Slide a cookie sheet under each piece of foil. Bake for 20 minutes, reversing the sheets top to bottom and front to back once to insure even baking. The cookies are done when they spring back very quickly and surely when lightly pressed in the center with a fingertip.

Slide the foil off the sheet and let stand for a minute or two. Then, with a wide metal spatula, loosen the cookies carefully from the foil and transfer them to large racks to cool. (The racks should be raised from the surface to make room for air to circulate underneath. Just place each rack on any right-side-up cake pan or mixing bowl.) If you don't have enough racks, as soon as some of the cookies have cooled they may be transferred to wax paper or foil.

You will have 27 very large cookies. If they are not all the same size, pick out the ones that match each other most closely and form them into pairs-there will be one cookie left over. Now lay them out in pairs, opened, with the flat sides up.

Place the flour in a 1-quart saucepan. Add the milk gradually, stirring with a rubber spatula. If the mixture is not smooth, strain it before cooking. Place it over moderate heat. Cook, stirring and scraping the bottom constantly with a rubber spatula, until the mixture becomes very thick and bubbles slightly. Simmer, stirring, for about 2 minutes. If necessary, beat with a small wire whisk to make the mixture smooth.

Stir in 1 tbsp of the butter and set the mixture aside to cool to room temperature-stir it occasionally while it is cooling.

Place the remaining butter in the large bowl of an electric mixer and beat until it is slightly softened. Add the salt, vanilla, and sugar (gradually) and beat well for about 2 minutes, scraping the bowl as necessary with a rubber spatula. Gradually, 1 large spoonful at a time, add the cooled flour and milk mixture. Then beat at high speed for a minute or two until the filling is smooth, light, and fluffy.

Now place a generous heaping tablespoonful of the filling on the center of one of each pair of the cookies-use all of the filling. With the back of the spoon spread the filling out to about 1/2 inch from the edges. The filling will be almost 1/2 inch thick. Top the filling with another cookie, flat side down. With the palm of your hand press down gently on the top cookie.

Then hold a sandwich in your hands and with your fingertips press gently all around to spread the filling almost, but not completely, to the edges.

The filled sandwiches may be layered in a large shallow box or on a large tray with wax paper or plastic wrap between the layers and over the top. (Or they may be packaged individually in cellophane or wax paper, or in plastic sandwich bags, but it is best to do this after they have been refrigerated.) Store in the refrigerator or freezer.

These may be served either cold from the refrigerator, or at room temperature. When they are cold, both the cookies and the filling will be firmer. At room temperature they will be quite soft, like the ones I used to buy.