Oatmeal Creme Pies

Who doesn't love two cookies sandwiched by delicious filling?  I'm a sucker for a good whoopie pie, and when I saw these Oatmeal Creme Pies on Tracey's Culinary Adventures, I just had to give them a try.  While in appearance and taste, they don't remind me of the childhood classic Oatmeal Creme Pie a la Little Debbie, they do remind me of whoopie pies and that makes me oh so happy.

These cookies are much thicker and have a more hearty chew to them than the classic Little Debbie pies.  The flavor and texture is quite addicting.  The filling between the cookies strays from the classic as well and tastes more like a traditional buttercream with a hint of marshmallow-y goodness rather than straight up marshmallow cream.  If you're looking for a delicious oatmeal whoopie pie, I'd definitely recommend these; however, if you're looking for a homemade version of the original Little Debbie, I might suggest you look elsewhere.

I think these are delicious, but I'm definitely curious to try out a recipe more reminiscent of the Little Debbie Oatmeal Creme Pies in the future.

Oatmeal Creme Pies
via Tracey's Culinary Adventures
makes 20 small pies

For the cookies:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375 F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, oats, baking soda, salt and cinnamon together.  In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 4-5 minutes.  Add the egg and vanilla and beat to combine.  Add the dry ingredients to the mixer in 3 additions, beat just until combined.

Use a small cookie scoop to portion the dough into approximately 1 tablespoon balls.  Place them on the prepared baking sheet, leaving about 1 1/2-2 inches between them.  Bake for 9-10 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies are golden brown and set (the middles may still seem a little underdone - they'll set up as they cool).  Transfer the baking sheet to a wire rack and let the cookies cool for a few minutes then remove them to the rack to cool completely.

For the filling:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 7-oz container marshmallow creme
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and marshmallow creme on medium speed until smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Add the confectioners' sugar in 2 additions then add the vanilla and continue beating until the filling is smooth and thick.

Match the cookies in pairs by size.  Transfer the filling to a piping bag and pipe about 1 tablespoon onto the flat side of one cookie of each pair.  Sandwich the cookies together, and press the filling to the edges.

Enjoy!