The Iconic Dessert You Never Knew Was Created By The Amish
While the most visible image of the Amish may be the horse and buggy along with old-fashioned dress, the crafts of the Amish leave a lasting impression, too. And when that craft happens to be food, some the Amish cooking traditions are not only inventive but also incredibly tasty. The Amish community was growing their own food and eating local long before it became mainstream cool (via Taste of Home). With their "waste not, want not" culture, they are experts at using the entire product, be it animal or plant, and at preserving this bounty for sparer times.
And when it comes to baking itself, simple ideas based on these principles can yield deliciously delightful results. Case in point: the whoopie pie.
The whoopie pie is said to have developed from the practice of using up leftover cake batter (via Discover Lancaster). The Lancaster Amish and Pennsylvania German communities would make these hand pies when ingredients warranted. Lucky farmers and happy youth would find these surprise treats in their lunch and they'd yell out "Whoopie!"
A dessert that will make you shout 'whoopie!'
Your traditional whoopie pie is made with chocolate cake that resembles more of a cookie and a vanilla cream filling. As the recipe has grown in popularity, so have the variations in cake flavor and filling. The original recipe features ingredients like cocoa powder, flour, sugar, shortening, and vanilla extract. Egg whites make the creme filling hold shape, and you won't find any hard-to-pronounce chemicals or preservatives in the authentic version.
If you are near Amish territory, or in many, many east coast locations, you can likely find whoopie pies to purchase, too. For true, hardcore fans of this Amish classic, you can level up the experience at the Lancaster County Whoopie Pie Festival (via Whoopie Pie Festival). In normal travel years (read: not 2020) you can visit the area and sample your way through over 400 flavors. Fortunately, until then we can also order from the host, Hershey Farm itself, and get some cake and creamy goodness shipped online.