Tasting Whoopie

Whoopie pies, for the uninitiated, aren’t really pies at all—they consist of a thick layer of icing sandwiched between two rounds of cake, sort of like a soft, oversize Oreo.

According to one Pennsylvania legend, the treats got their name from Lancaster County farmers, who’d yell “Whoopie!” whenever they discovered the confections in their lunch bags. But now, it seems there’s trouble in Paradise – some folks in Maine claim that the treats originated there, not in the Keystone State. And Starbucks recently began offering a sissy petite red velvet version, which is sure to only add to the confusion.

Hey Starbucks: A Lancaster County whoopie pie called. It wants its missing piece back.

We may never know who invented these goodies, but the Allentown Morning Call is determined to answer the question that really matters: Which state makes the best whoopie pie? I don’t usually read the paper in print, but in a most fortunate twist of fate, I happened to spot a copy a couple weeks ago at my local bike shop. Upon reading that the paper had put out a call for prospective taste testers, I immediately rushed home to write my essay:

Dear Whoopie Pie Test Team Selection Committee:

Why should I help you test whoopie pies? Let me count the ways...

1. As a lifelong Pennsylvanian (save for four sadly whoopie-pieless years when I went to college in Virginia), my appreciation for the whoopie pie goes back decades.  

2. I believe that magical things happen when cake meets icing--so much so that I recently started blogging about it.

3. I do my best to spread the joy of whoopie pies across state lines. I've been known to go to as many as four stores in search of the perfect whoopie-pie hostess gift, and I even once carried a six-pack of them on a flight to Texas, which earned me a little extra quality time with the TSA officers. (No, they didn't "touch my junk"--and yes, I got to keep the pies.)

At least one person at the paper has an odd sense of humor…because I will be joining the test session today (after some treadmill time). Whoopie! I guess Duff Goldman was busy or something. Will Pennsylvania’s honor be upheld? Or will we emerge from the smackdown with pie on our faces?