I love regional sweets. There’s something very special about having a taste of your childhood still available today. I guess for many New Englanders, that treat is the Whoopie Pie. The name of the treat might sound a little strange to an outsider, but that’s part of the appeal. Just saying the name of these is fun. Say it out loud. Go ahead. Whoopie Pie. Draw out the “oo” sound. It’s hard to suppress a smile when you’re saying something so silly.
Labadie’s Bakery has been in the same Maine location since 1925. That’s a lot of Whoopie Pies sold over the years, and they must be doing something right, because their thriving mail order business sends Whoopie Pies all over the country.
So what is a Whoopie Pie? Basically, it’s cream filling (vanilla or peanut butter) sandwiched between two small, round slices of chocolate cake. Much more than just a cookie, they resemble individually wrapped snack cakes from Hostess or Little Debbie’s. In addition to regular Whoopie Pies, Labadie’s Bakery makes 12″ and 16″ Whoopie cakes, as you can see in the above pic.
But if you think you’d like to try your hand at making these from scratch, here is a delicious recipe courtesy of the Worcester Telegram & Gazette News. These look good enough for anyone to say “Whoopie!”
I never knew that whoopie pies were a regional delight. They’re very common here on the Canadian east coast as well.
I have made this whoopie pie recipe and it is amazing. I haven’t heard about labadies before, but I plan on ordering from wicked whoopies. Thanks for posting this!