Apple Cider Whoopie Pies with Cinnamon Red Hot Frosting

September 20, 2012 18 Comments
I want you to meet my new favorite Fall baked good…
apple cookies with red hot frosting
is it bad to want these whoopie pies to be my best friends for life?
I’m guessing after my confessions yesterday regarding my shrunken jeans,
that I should probably stay as far away from the delicious baked goods.
Why is it so hard though?  I just.can’t.stop.baking!!!!
apple cookies with red hot butter cream
Seriously, you should see the pile of scrap papers on my desk with ideas,
and the lists in my notebook and on my phone.  It’s pretty ridiculous!
I better start scheduling 8 mile runs every day, if I’m going to make everything on my lists.
Soooo, we are still in the middle of Applicious Week…
have you enjoyed everyone’s recipes so far?
When Aimee and I first came up with the idea of an apple week,
I started brainstorming apple ideas and making lists.
Of course things like muffins, cakes, crisps, cookies, and pies were all on the list.
But I also wanted to do some things that were different, out of the ordinary.
Now I realize that a whoopie pie is nothing new
and doesn’t make me an extraordinary food blogger…yet:-)
Are you wondering what sets this bad boy apart from all the rest?
It’s the frosting.
Cinnamon Red Hot Butter Cream!!!
apple cookies with red hot butter cream
Now to be honest and fair, this wasn’t my idea.
Oh, I had apple cider whoopie pies with cinnamon frosting on my list…
but the idea to use the red hots came from my awesome hubby!!!!
Usually when I start talking blog stuff and recipe ideas,
he gets this kind of far away and glazed look in his eyes.
I’m pretty sure he doesn’t care about desserts, pinterest, ads, traffic, stats, apple parties…
So, imagine my surprise when I was just talking out loud about these apple cider whoopie pies.
He jumped right in and said, “You should use red hots in your frosting.”
I paused and let it sink in…I did have a box of red hots in the baking cupboard.
The more I thought about this concept, the more excited I became.
The whoopie pies are super easy to do.  Box mixes do that for you.
I just love the versatility of what you can make with those mixes.
I substituted apple cider for the water and added some shredded apples
and spices to give it a good apple flavor.
They were so soft and applicious!!!  Perfectly ok to just eat like a cookie.
But I like to put frosting on just about everything…it’s why yoga pants are probably in my near future:-)
Plus, when a recipe makes 46 cookies,
that’s a lot of cookies sitting on your counter calling your name.
Fill them with frosting and you’re are down to 23 cookies…an easier amount to eat, or get rid of.
Now I will tell you, I had to make this frosting twice to get it right.

You boil the red hots with a little bit of water to make a nice cinnamon sauce.
Well, I thought that it needed to cool a little bit,
so it didn’t melt my butter and affect the frosting consistency.

Bad idea!!!

Red hots don’t stay liquid for very long when you only use a little bit of water.
I let it cool a few minutes and then poured it into my butter.
It turned clumpy right away.
I tried to make it work by beating it really hard.
Nope didn’t work, so into the trash it went.
It’s a good thing I stay stocked in butter…it was easy to start again.

This time as soon as the red hots were liquid, I poured it in and let my kitchen aid do the rest.

The cinnamon flavor is subtle without being overpowering.
It is enough of a red hot taste that you know it’s there and you know what it is.
Totally compliments the apple flavor in the whoopie pies.

I really want to make some more, but if I make them, I will eat them.
So I guess I will just drool over the pictures and remember how awesome they were.

Make sure you visit all the bloggers participating in Applicious Week…

Carrie from Bakeaholic Mama
Ali from Jam Hands
Aimee from Shugary Sweets
4 Sisters from Crumbs and Chaos
Averie from Averie Cooks
Cassie from Bake your Day
6 Sisters from Six Sisters Stuff
Print
Apple Cider Whoopie Pies with Cinnamon Red Hot Frosting

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Yield: 46 cookies/23 whoopie pies

Apple Cider Whoopie Pies with Cinnamon Red Hot Frosting

Apple cider cookies filled with a cinnamon red hot butter cream.

Ingredients

For the Whoopie Pies
1 box white cake mix
1/3 c. apple cider
2 eggs
3 Tbsp. oil
1 c. shredded apples
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
For the Red Hot Frosting
1/4 c. butter, softened
1/4 c. shortening
pinch of salt
2 Tbsp. red hot candies
1 Tbsp. water
4 c. powdered sugar
5 Tbsp. heavy cream

Instructions

    For the Whoopie Pies
  1. Squeeze all the excess juice from the shredded apples and set aside. In a mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, apple cider, eggs, oil, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Beat for 1 minute on low and then 1 minute on medium. Stir the shredded apples in by hand.
  2. Scoop out by spoonfuls onto a baking sheet. Bake at 350* for 10 minutes. Cool 2 minutes on the pan and then remove to a wire rack. Makes 46 cookies.
  3. Fill with Cinnamon Red Hot Frosting. Store in a loosely sealed container.
    4. For the Red Hot Frosting
  4. Beat the butter, shortening, and salt until creamy. Beat in 1 c. of powdered sugar and set aside. In a small saucepan on low-medium heat, combine the red hots and water. Stir until melted. Pour the hot red hots in the butter mixture and beat immediately. Slowly add the rest of the powdered sugar and heavy cream until completely mixed in.

Notes

Note: Do not wait to mix in the liquid red hots. It will harden very quickly.

http://insidebrucrewlife.com/2012/09/apple-cider-whoopie-pies-with-cinnamon-red-hot-frosting/
 
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Jocelyn Brubaker (646 Posts)

Jocelyn is the baker, photographer, and writer behind Inside BruCrew Life. She is married to her best friend, and they have three great kids. She spends her days baking sweet treats, and then trying to find ways to give the treats away without eating them all. Grab a cup of coffee and visit while she shares life from their kitchen.


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Filed Under: Cookies & Whoopie Pies, whoopie pies Tagged With: , , , , ,

Comments

  1. Aimee says:
    September 20, 2012 at 2:24 PM

    Oh my word, LOVE that you used red hots. LOVE LOVE. And your photos, of course, are gorgeous!!

    Reply
  2. Hayley @ The Domestic Rebel says:
    September 20, 2012 at 2:27 PM

    OB.SESS.ING. over that Cinnamon Red Hot Buttercream! How amazing is that!? I love Red Hots and need to try your version of RHB ASAP! This combo can’t be beat, girl. And Applicious Week was a huge success; congrats!

    Reply
  3. Cassie/Bake Your Day says:
    September 20, 2012 at 2:31 PM

    This frosting is brilliant. Such a fun recipe!

    Reply
  4. Jamie @ Love Bakes Good Cakes says:
    September 20, 2012 at 2:51 PM

    Oh my! I love the idea of Red Hots frosting!! Pinned!

    Reply
  5. Jessica@AKitchenAddiction says:
    September 20, 2012 at 3:36 PM

    Brilliant! Love the use of red hots!

    Reply
  6. 4Sisters says:
    September 20, 2012 at 4:08 PM

    Every now and then those husbands have a great idea ;) These look fabulous, I love the color of the frosting – so beautiful!!

    Becca @ Crumbs and Chaos

    Reply
  7. Erin says:
    September 20, 2012 at 7:57 PM

    I think I am in love with this frosting! What a great idea, one of my favorite candies!

    Reply
  8. Dorothy @ Crazy for Crust says:
    September 20, 2012 at 8:53 PM

    Awesome Jocelyn! And you sound like me…and your husband sounds like mine. Must run in the blogging family…

    Reply
  9. Ashley @ Kitchen Meets Girl says:
    September 21, 2012 at 1:29 AM

    You’re just amazing…that’s all I have to say. Well, that and I want some of these!

    Reply
  10. Shiloh Barkley says:
    September 21, 2012 at 2:31 AM

    I love that your husband came up with the red hots idea. So cool!
    http://www.shilohstaste.com

    Reply
  11. Tanya says:
    September 21, 2012 at 4:00 AM

    Oh goodness…these look soooo good! Yum. Visiting from Happy Hour =)

    Reply
  12. Jen Grantham says:
    September 21, 2012 at 1:40 PM

    Stopping in from the Weekend Potluck. Another recipe of yours I can’t wait to try. Pinned this one too!
    Jen @ Craftymisadventures.com

    Reply
  13. Craftberry Bush says:
    September 21, 2012 at 10:44 PM

    Sounds and looks delicious…I’ve never tried these but makes me want to ..:) I’ll be featuring you this weekend..thank you so much for linking to our happy hour linky party…xo

    Reply
  14. Angie says:
    September 22, 2012 at 1:41 PM

    Awesomeness right there! I shared this on my fan page and the fans went nuts….Thank you so much for sharing at Foodie Friends Friday.

    Reply
  15. Holly Lefevre says:
    September 27, 2012 at 6:49 AM

    Cinnamon red hot buttercream…very dangerous. I have shrunken jeans too. Reading your blog does not help my shrunken jeans (and I mean that in the nicest way possible)…they shrink more just with the eye candy!

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Apple Snickers Cake says:
    February 27, 2013 at 8:28 PM

    [...] Apple Cider Whoopie Pies [...]

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