Wooly Spider Whoopie Pies

I fear spiders. I have been known to stay out of rooms for days if I spot one taking up ceiling space. I felt the exact same way about snakes until I met my late husband – who at one point, owned many. Reticulated, Burmese and Indian pythons to be exact. Over the years my fear mellowed from OMFG! to OMG! every time I came near their cages. Lots of people share my same fears, so it’s no surprise that spiders and snakes play a big role in “creepy” and “scary” Halloween decor and themed treats. Heck, I’ve even made Halloween Snake Sandwiches in previous years.

This year I decided to make Wooly Spider Whoopie Pies.  More cute than scary…. even with branches and fake spider webs in the photos – I still smile when I look at them.

I found the recipe in the same Halloween Food, Fun & Crafts (Pil Cookbook) where I found the Caramel Corn Apple O’s recipe. This was my first attempt at making whoopie pies and it went pretty smoothly.

Ingredients:

• 2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
• 1/2 Cup – Plus 2 Tablespoons Cocoa Powder – divided
• 1 1/4 Teaspoons Baking Soda
• 1 Teaspoon Salt
• 1 Cup (2 Sticks) Butter – softened and divided
• 1 Cup Packed Brown Sugar
• 1 Egg
• 2 Teaspoons Vanilla – divided
• 1 Cup Buttermilk
• 1 1/4 Cups Powdered Sugar
• 2 Cups Marshmallow Creme
• 1/3 Cup Chocolate Sprinkles
• 1 Cup Semisweet Chocolate Chips
• 12 Candy Coated Chocolate Pieces
• 12 Black Licorice Twists – sliced in half

Notes:
We used real butter, full fat buttermilk, 1.5 bottles of chocolate sprinkles, M&M’s for the eyes and Haribo Black Licorice Wheels for the spider legs. We doubled the recipe and ended up with 14 spider pies and lots of filling left over. Next time I want to make mini spiders – or maybe mini lady bugs or turtles with pretzel nugget legs or something fun like that.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and spray 2 cookie sheets with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Sift flour, 1/2 cup cocoa, baking soda and salt in medium bowl. Beat 1/2 cup butter, brown sugar, egg and 1 teaspoon vanilla in large bowl with electric mixer at medium speed until blended. Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk, beating at low speed after each addition until smooth and well blended. Spoon scant 1/4 cupfuls 2 inches apart onto prepared cookie sheets.
3. Bake 12 minutes or until puffed and tops spring back when lightly touched. Cool on cookie sheets 10 minutes. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.
4. Meanwhile, beat remaining 2 tablespoons cocoa, 1/2 cup butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla, powdered sugar and marshmallow creme in large bowl with electric mixer at medium speed until smooth.
5. Place sprinkles on small plate. Place chocolate chips in small microwavable bowl; microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until smooth.
6. Spread rounded side of six cakes with melted chocolate. Dip in sprinkles; place candy-coated pieces on top to create eyes. Cool completely.
7. Spread bottom of remaining cakes with cream filling; lay four licorice strips across middle. Top with dipped cake halves.

Notes:
We used parchment paper on our cookie sheets. Baking time was about 14 minutes. I poured the sprinkles from the bottle – skipped the plate and dipping process all together. I used the back of a spoon to spread the melted semisweet chocolate frosting on the spider bodies and then sprinkled away until they were coated. I put the eyes in place and waited for the chocolate to set. Buy more licorice than you think you will need. Pieces broke as we peeled them from the wheels. The filling is somewhat addicting, but make sure you wash the bowl immediately or you will have a sticky mess.

I hope you are all off to enjoy weekend Halloween parties. No costume or party this year for us, but a jam packed weekend filled with friends and dinners out.