So, remember that food show I mentioned we went to on Sunday? The one were I got all sorts of freebies? Well, one of the stalls was a little more exciting than the others – the one with the whoopie pies. In the US, these are common place but here in New Zealand we are just starting to discover them. I have already made a couple of whoopie recipes on this blog – my carrot cake cookies and my blueberry oatmeal cream cookies, both of which were actually whoopie pies. So, I was rather surprised when I saw this stall of whoopie pies, and they had some damned good-looking ones too. I spoke to the gentleman behind the counter and mentioned my blog. He handed me over a couple of his pies and I said, thank you muchly.
Now, I wanted to photograph them, which meant I couldn’t eat them and that took a lot of fortitude of character. I let them sit in their pretty container all evening and in the morning, they were still there on the bench looking at me so I had to act fast. I distracted myself for a bit while the sun came round to shine in my kitchen window and then I grabbed my camera. They were so photogenic that I only needed to snap a few photos and then came my reward. I sliced out a quarter of each one and laid them on a plate and boiled the kettle. Why only a quarter you might ask. And the answer to that would be in the shape of my son, who had also been eying them. And also, these pies are man-sized and just one of these would demolish one’s waistline.
On my plate, I had a piece of red velvet pie with cream cheese filling and a piece of vanilla bean pie filled with something pink. I’m afraid I was admiring them so much at the show I didn’t listen properly to the gentleman describing these creations with such passion. But the pink filling tasted super good as did the vanilla pie. The cream cheese filling also exceeded expectations but I can’t get my mind around red velvet anything. I know it’s a fashion and that many have tried to substitute the ghastly red colouring with substitutes like beetroot, but all have failed. Apparently the beetroot taste dominates. So, I say, why not have a golden velvet pie and leave it natural? That would be my only complaint about these whoopie pies, but who are they to defy the wave of the red velvet trend? Anyway, I would like to give a shout out to these guys for a job well done. They are called Sweet & Unique and they have a shop at 2A Hakanoa Street in Grey Lynn, Auckland. They also deliver nationwide so give them a call on 9466743 or email them at lucy@whoopie.co.nz.. This is their website: https://www.whoopie.co.nz/
By the way, I am not being paid to review these whoopie pies but I figured you Kiwis all needed to know about this endeavour and they really are very good.
I’ve heard of whoopie pies but I didn’t know what they were. These look so delicious. What a great find Suzanne. They’re colourful and really pretty xx
Charlie, your kids would love them – as well as you, of course. They are quite delightful.
Suzanne
Maine is so crazy about whoopie pies that they wanted to make it the state dessert.
I think that would be a brilliant idea. They couldn’t choose a better one. I am a fan.
Suzanne
Whoopie pies are such a fun dessert!
They are pretty good for morning teas and afternoon teas too!
Suzanne
Such a fun dessert! I’m OK with the red dye (I so rarely eat anything that contains it) but it is an issue for some – makes sense to me to have golden velvet pie. I won’t be dropping into that shop to buy any (a bit of a swim), but I’m hungry for some whoopie pies now, and have a convenient local source that may get a visit!
I guess I just don’t like the idea of the red dye when it is so unnecessary. And it really isn’t such a pretty red – a bit too dull.
Yes, it would be a long swim.
Suzanne
Whoopies are new to me too. I saw a couple of recipes for them on some of the blogs I follow but I have never tried one. Your describtion makes me want to change that soon
They are well worth trying. There is something seductive about them.
Suzanne
Those looks so darn delicious! I am going through detox after our vacation indulgences and it’s hard to look at those whoopie pies. You know, these are relatively new to the U.S. as well! I had never heard of them until they popped up last year on blogs. Yay for bringing back something that I’m not even sure where they came from!
The story I was told by the man at the food show was that the Amish women used to make these and when their men, who were working out in the fields, opened their lunch boxes and saw them, they used to cry out, “Whoopie!”
I hope the holiday went well and your kids enjoyed themselves.
Suzanne
Wow, I came here following the lovely comment you left on my blog and now I’m completely hooked! (The chocolate cheesecake bars, the carrot cookies, and that deep dish cookie pie are making my head spin with sugary cravings.)
The whoopie pies look irresistible too.
I’m with you on the red velvet issue. I don’t quite understand it, but it seems to be incredibly popular, and I’m a bit of a willow-the-wisp when it comes to flying in the direction of what’s most loved. 😀
Good to see you here, Valerie. I love your blog.
I might, at a push, add a drop of red colouring to make a pretty pink colour but those red velvet recipes have tablespoons of the stuff and that’s going too far for me. Actually I don’t have any food colouring in the house and haven’t had since my son was young and we used it to make our own coloured play dough.
By the way, that deep dish cookie pie is completely gluten-free and I have even made a similar one with no sugar, substituting dates instead for the sweetness. So completely healthy as well as delicious. These are both recipes I found at the Chocolate-Covered Katie blog.
Suzanne