I made these whoopie pies last year for the first time, and I don't know why it took me so long to make them again. These are really moist and really yummy and if you like pumpkin then you're sure to like these. I was halfway into making the recipe when I discovered that I didn't have enough pumpkin puree in my cabinet. Thus began my journey across Massachusetts in search of pumpkin, where I heard the same thing repeated over again, "I'm sorry but we won't carry pumpkin until October." One grocery store gave me a little more info. Apparently, there is a pumpkin shortage (who would've thought?), so make sure you stock up when pumpkin does come out so that you can make these and make the infamous Libby's pumpkin roll as well! Even though I traveled across the world to get the puree for these (I finally got some from my mother-in-law), it was well worth it when I bit into one.




pumpkin whoopie pies with mascarpone filling
adapted from Martha Stewart's recipe found here

ingredients for the cookies:
3 c. all-purpose flour
1 t. salt
1 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda1 1/2 T. ground cinnamon
1 t. ginger
1 t. ground cloves
2 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1 c. canola oil
3 c. pumpkin puree, chilled
2 large eggs
1 t. vanilla extract
ingredients for the filling:
16 oz. mascarpone cheese
2 c. powdered sugar (to taste)

Preheat oven to 350. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and spices and set aside. In another large bowl, whisk together the brown sugar and oil until well combined. Add the pumpkin gold to this mixture until combined. Add in the eggs and vanilla and whisk again. Sprinkle the flour mixture over the pumpkin mixture and whisk until fully incorporated.

Using a small ice cream scoop or two spoons, drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto your lined baking sheets, spaced about 1 inch apart. Bake until toothpick comes out clean, about 15 minutes or 10 minutes for mini whoopie pies. Let cool on pan.

For the filling:
In the bowl of an electric mixture, whip cold mascarpone cheese until creamy(er). Pour in powdered sugar 1/4 c. at a time until reaches desired sweetness. The pumpkin cookies are fairly sweet, so I preferred the icing a little less sugary.

Put a dollop of icing between two cookies and sandwich together, pressing together slightly so the filling reaches the edges of the cookies. Refrigerate up to 3 days.

note: if you are making mini-whoopie pies, which are great if you're making these for a lot of people, use an extra-small ice cream scoop and the yield is about 3 dozen whoopie pies. I put the mini ones in decorative mini-cupcake liners to make them easier to eat.

Is there anything better than BBQ chicken pizza? Well, yes, but not many when you grill it, too. We went over to Grandma and Papi's house for an early Labor Day, and we had a pretty good system grilling pizza for a lot of people. Don't be afraid to try this. The first time I tried to grill pizza, I vowed to never do it again because the dough ended up in an inedible, burnt, yet somehow gooey mess beside the grill.

Enter in Mike, however, a grill aficionado who grills almost anything well and he taught me the correct way to grill pizza. See below for how to get this goodness...

Grilled pizza

ingredients
pizza Dough (if you don't want to make it get it from your grocer)
olive oil
flour for dusting

Heat your grill on med-hi heat. Roll out your pizza dough to your desired shape and brush both sides with olive oil; if using multiple pizza crusts then place wax paper in between each dough after brushing with the oil.

Remove wax paper and place dough on very hot grill. Once it's almost ready to flip, the dough will start to bubble up (this means you're doing it right). You'll want the dough to have grill marks and be lightly browned. Flip the crust and repeat for the opposite side. Once dough is cooked, remove from grill and put desired toppings on. Return to grill to warm the toppings and melt the cheese, and then it's ready to eat!




bbQ chicken pizza
I made half of this pizza with chicken and jalapenos and half without...

ingredients
chicken (we used leftover chopped up nuggets from Chick-fil-A)
cilantro, chopped
fontina cheese, grated
mozzarella cheese, grated
parmigiano reggiano cheese
bbq sauce (Bull's Eye, taste test winner from Cook's Illustrated)
jalapenos
garlic infused olive oil

Follow directions above, but after pizza comes off the grill but before you put the other toppings on, brush one side of the crust with the garlic infused olive oil. (I pressed 2 cloves of garlic through a garlic press and mixed with olive oil) Spread grated fontina and mozzarella cheeses over crust. I hope this is making you hungry...

Sprinkle chopped cilantro over pizza, then use a squirt bottle to add the bbq sauce in a fancy shmancy pattern over the top. Add the chicken, and jalapenos if desired, and then grate the fresh parmesan over the top. Place the pizza back on the grill until the cheese melts. The bbq sauce on top caramelizes just slightly and melts in your mouth with all that delicious cheese. Hope you enjoy!

Another pizza option is to use homemade pesto, fresh tomatoes and fresh mozzarella with grated parmesan cheese, which is this pizza...


Before













After














Or use whatever toppings you'd like...this is Bob's perfectly arranged pizza:)