Homemade Oatmeal Cream Pies

Having my sister in town this week has made me nostalgic and reminiscent. There’s nothing like a sibling or long time childhood friend to make you think, and act, like a kid again. Yesterday, my sister and I took a boat trip out to Buck Island for some snorkeling and swimming. It was gloomy and dreary when we left the house, but by the time the boat set sail, the sky had cleared and the sun was shining, turning the skies from bruised overcast clouds to wide expanses of brilliant blue dotted with puffs of white cotton, and the seas from steely gray to vivid turquoise and deep cerulean.

The ride out was…exciting. Yeah, that’s what we’ll call it. The seas were relatively high, and sailing out was closer to a roller coaster ride than a boat trip, but we kept our eyes on the horizon and our hands in the air. 🙂 In no time, we reached gorgeous Turtle Beach and set off for some fun in the sun.

We spent about an hour on this gorgeous beach, practicing our snorkeling, goofing around, and generally cracking each other up while everyone else questioned our sanity, before heading back to the boat and traveling to the other end of the island for some serious snorkeling amongst Buck Island’s thousands of acres of gorgeous reef.

Yesterday, I laughed so hard with my sis that I was in tears. It was the kind of laughter that only two people who have known each other their whole lives can share. The kind of laughter that makes your stomach hurt and steals your breath away, but you don’t want it to end. It’s the kind that adds five years to your life. 🙂 I’ll miss my sis when she leaves, but I’ve been giggling and goofing off more this week than I have in a while, and I confess, all this silliness and reminiscing has made me want to bake up childish memories too.

That’s why these little babies came to mind, and made my house smell wonderful and my family’s bellies feel happy. Oatmeal cream pies have always been a favorite with my family, when I was a little girl and now, as a wife and mother, so I knew they’d be a hit. What I didn’t know was how very easy they would be to make. Or how incredibly fast they’d disappear! I certainly won’t be buying them anymore, not when I can make an even yummier, homemade version at home in less than an hour (p.s. I’ve included instructions for vegan/dairy free versions, and I’m working on gluten free conversion).

For the cookies, I stuck with my favorite oatmeal cookie recipe, which is a little softer and thicker than most. If you like a thinner, slightly crisper cookie (which is actually what is pictured), reduce the flour by a half cup. All you need for the cookies is all-purpose flour, brown sugar, unsalted butter (at room temperature), eggs, sugar, oats (either slow or quick cooking work), cinnamon, baking soda, and salt (these can also be made vegan and dairy free by replacing the butter with margarine, and the eggs with apple sauce). And I like to add a splash of vanilla to mine sometimes too.

In a large bowl, or the bowl of a standing mixer, cream the butter for about 30 seconds, then add both sugars and beat until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla, mix well, and scrape the bowl as needed.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Add the flour to the butter mixture in 2 or three increments until just combined. Stir in the oats until evenly distributed.

I like my cookies on the larger side, so I used a  two tablespoons spring-loaded scoop to drop the cookies onto the pan, at least 2 inches apart (I baked 6 cookies at a time). For smaller cookies, use only one tablespoon of dough. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes, until golden. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for two minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack. Allow to cool completely before filling or serving.

Now all they need is filling…

I decided to use the same filling that I make for my Fauxstess cupcakes. Since the Fauxstess cupcakes and the cream pies are both recreations of nostalgic childhood snacks, I thought it made sense to try using the same filling. I’m really happy I came to this conclusion because that filling was so wonderful in these cookies!

I was never a great fan of oatmeal cream pies as a child, but I’d have one occasionally. If I’d ever had these instead…I would have had them a lot more often. A lot more. I love the bit of nutty, oat-y flavor from the cookies set off by the sweet cheerfulness of the filling. Yep. That’s right. I called the filling cheerful. But seriously, when it makes you smile the way this stuff ddoes, what else can you call it?

These ended up lasting all of about two-point-seven seconds the day that I made them. Everyone who got to have them had seconds…and some people had thirds.

*whistling and looking away*

I can’t wait to make them again. They were very quick and really take no effort at all. Fresh oatmeal cookies (which, I might add, are fantastic on their own) in less than 20 minutes, and with the additional of creamy, homemade filling you have a special childhood treat in only a few minutes more! Enjoy!

Oatmeal Cream Pies
Makes 1 dozen Sandwiches
Ingredients

**If you choose to make this vegan, make sure all of your sugars are vegan

FOR THE COOKIES
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature (margarine for vegan/dairy free cookies)
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs (1/2 cup apple sauce for vegan/dairy free cookies)
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt (reduce to 1/4 teaspoon if using margarine)
3 cups oats (quick or slow cooking)

FOR THE FILLING
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature (margarine for vegan/dairy free)
1/2 to 1 cup, confectioners’ sugar
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
pinch salt
1 1/4 cups marshmallow spread (vegan brand marshmallow spread, such as Suzanne’s Ricemellow Creme for vegan/dairy free)

To make the cookies: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheet with Silpat mats or parchment paper.

In a large bowl, or the bowl of a standing mixer, cream the butter for about 30 seconds, then add both sugars and beat until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla, mix well, and scrape the bowl as needed.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Add the flour to the butter mixture in 2 or three increments until just combined. Stir in the oats until evenly distributed.

For large cookies, drop 2 tablespoons of dough onto the pan, at least 2 inches apart (I baked 6 cookies at a time). For smaller cookies, use only 1 tablespoon of dough. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until golden. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack. Allow to cool completely before filling or serving.

To make the filling: In a medium bowl, cream the butter and sugar together. Stir in the vanilla and pinch of salt. Mix in the marshmallow spread and whisk until light and fluffy. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes. If the filling is too soft or runny, add more sugar as needed (I had to use 1 cup of sugar total).

Assemble the sandwiches: Place 1 to 2 tablespoons of filling on the bottom of a cookie, then place another cookie, bottom side down, on top.

Recipe by Darla