Oatmeal Cream Pies

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You can substitute commercial marshmallow fluff for the “marshmallow creme” filling recipe below, but something about making the whole thing yourself is so much more satisfying…

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Ingredients

  • Oatmeal Cookies
  • 8 ounces all purpose flour
  • 4 ounces rolled oats
  • 1/2 ounce cocoa powder
  • 2 ounces dried apple rings
  • 3 ounces unsalted butter
  • 2 1/4 ounces neutral flavored oil, like safflower
  • 7 ounces sugar
  • 1 1/2 ounce molasses
  • 3 ounces corn syrup
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon mace
  • 1 egg
  • 2 ounces milk
  • Marshmallow creme
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons gelatin powder
  • 2 1/2 ounces water, divided
  • 1 1/2 ounces corn syrup
  • 1/4 ounce molasses
  • 4 1/2 ounces sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3/4 ounce unsalted butter

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 350° and line two cookie sheets with parchment; set aside.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, oats, cocoa and apple rings. Process continuously for 2-4 minutes, or until no distinguishable oat flakes or apple bits remain. The mixture should look mealy, but uniformly textured. Set aside.

Cream together the butter together with the oil, sugar, molasses, corn syrup, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices on medium speed until thoroughly combined and lightened; about two minutes.

Add the egg and beat another minute. Reduce speed to low, add the dry ingredients all at once, then drizzle in the milk. Turn off the mixer, scrape the bowl thoroughly with a rubber spatula and mix another 30 seconds to combine.

Use a small ice cream/dough scoop (2 teaspoon capacity) to portion the dough, leveling each scoop by scraping it against the edge of the bowl. Portion the dough 15 to a cookie sheet, giving the cookies ample room as they will spread considerably during baking.

Bake for about 8 minutes, or until the cookies have puffed and set around the edges, but are still steaming. They will firm significantly as they cool; so if you bake them until they look perfectly done, they will wind up quite crisp.

The perfect bake time will probably differ from oven to oven, just remember that real oatmeal creme pies are a symphony of softness; so soft they can be folded in half without breaking. When in doubt, err on the side of underbaking.

While the cookies cool, make up the marshmallow “creme” filling.

The marshmallow filling can be made with all corn syrup, but as I’ve experimented with the recipe, I’ve found using just a touch of molasses gives it an extraordinary flavor, even if it’s a little more sophisticated than the original.

To make the filling, combine gelatin with 1 1/4 ounces water in the bowl of a stand mixer; mix with a fork. Set aside.

In a very small pot, combine the remaining water, corn syrup, molasses, sugar and salt over medium heat. Use a heat resistant spatula to stir gently until the sugar dissolves. Cook until the syrup registers 240° on a candy thermometer. (When measuring the temperature, make sure the bulb of the thermometer is fully submerged in the liquid for an accurate reading.)

When it reaches 240° remove the pot from the heat and cool to 210°. Once cool, add the sugar syrup to the gelatin mixture and, using the whisk attachment, mix on low speed until the gelatin dissolves. Increase the speed to medium high and whip until light and fluffy and the bowl feels cool to the touch.

Add in the vanilla and the butter and whip until homogenous. Transfer the mixture to a pastry bag fitted with a small, plain tip. Pipe a quarter sized dollop of filling onto half the cookies, then sandwich together with the remaining cookies.

The oatmeal creme pies will keep up to one week at room temperature, if stored in an airtight container, and up to six months if frozen.

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