Though technically there are a few weeks left of summer, what most people actually consider summer is over. Labor Day is here, school has begun and nights are cool enough to warrant turning off the ceiling fan.
To me, the quintessential summer was those of my childhood, about when I was in elementary school. On the most mundane days, dad would bike us to daycare in a kid trailer towed behind him. Once and a great while, he’d pick us up in his antique truck I got to name Gertrude.
There were weeks my brother and I would go to our respective scout camps. Every summer my Memere and Pepere would take my brother and I and our two cousins for a week for various outings and activities. But perhaps the most summery of the summer events were days spent at my Gramie and Grampie’s camp.
Back then, camp lived up to its name. The ceilings had exposed insulation. Most of the walls were ’70s paneling. The only heat source was a wood stove, which made sleeping in the bedrooms in the winter a bit chilly. There were bunk beds in the living room and in one of the two bedrooms. Even then, a good number of people slept in tents or RVs on the large lawn.
There my cousins, and second cousins, and aunts and uncles, and whoever else was invited along spent all day in bathing suits — swimming and tubing along the river or canoeing down to the lake. There were rambunctious games of tag and capture the flag. Horseshoes for the adults and hundreds of matches of Scrabble and cribbage between my great-grandmothers.
It was a place to lounge about in hammocks with a good book or play for hours on the tree swing (and later a big orange slide). Dogs ran about loose and dinners were cooked on grills outside.
Everyone brought food to share and there was always enough to go around even when those unexpected friends dropped in.
One thing I think was always a staple of those summer days are my grandmother’s Whoopie Pies. To me, they just scream summer. You need something with a ton of calories to get you through sun-soaked days of summer, right?
So when I was invited to a Labor Day gathering with my husband’s family, I made a batch to bring along. They are always a hit.
Gramie Kinney Whoopie Pies
For the cakes:
1 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
4 cups flour (Gramie swears by King Arthur flour)
1 cup cocoa powder
2 cups milk
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. vanilla
pinch of salt
For cream filling*:
Confectioner’s sugar
Marshmallow fluff
Shortening
Milk
*There are no measurements here. My Gramie never wrote any down. I usually start with 1/2 cup shortening, 1 cup Fluff, a splash of milk, then add confectioner’s sugar til it gets to be a thick, but creamy consistency. Add more milk or sugar to adjust until you get the quantity and creaminess you like.
For the cakes: Preheat oven to 425.
Blend shortening, sugar and eggs. Then, add flour, cocoa, milk, vanilla, baking soda and salt.
Drop in 2 tablespoon dollops on a greased pan or one coated with parchment paper.
Bake for 7 minutes. Watch carefully, these are easy to overcook/burn.
For the filling: Whisk together ingredients. Wait until cakes are cook and then form sandwiches with two cakes the cream in the middle.
Enjoy!
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