Mini Red Velvet Whoopie Pies (gluten free option

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside.

2. Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.

3. In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar on low speed until just combined. Increase the speed to medium and beat until fluffy and smooth, about 5 minutes.

4. Add the egg and vanilla, beating well and then add the food coloring and mix well.

4. Mix half of the flour mixture and half of the buttermilk, beatt on low until just incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the remaining flour mixture and remaining buttermilk and beat until completely combined.

5. Grease your hands with a bit of oil, form teaspoon-sized balls and gently flatten down to form a disk onto the prepared cookie sheets.  Try to be as uniform as you can so you will having matching cookies at the end.

These are not very forgiving, so the smoother the balls the smoother the cookie.spacing them at least 2 inches apart. Bake one sheet at a time for about 7-9 minutes each, or until the cakes spring back when pressed gently. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and let the cakes cool on the sheet for about 3-5 minutes before transferring them to a rack to cool completely.

While the cakes are cooling, prepare the filling…

1.  In a medium bowl, beat together the cream cheese and butter on medium speed.

2.  Add the marshmallow creme and fold into the creamed mixture.

3.  To assemble: Spread or pipe the creme filling onto the flat side of one cake using a knife of spoon, or you can use a pastry bag with a round tip (I used a #12 Wilton tip) to pipe the filling onto the cookie. Top it with another cake, flat-side down. Repeat with the rest of the cakes and filling.