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Red, White, and Blue Whoopie Pies

Red, White, and Blue Whoopie Pies are soft, cake-like sandwich cookies baked until springy, then filled with fluffy vanilla cream. The patriotic red and blue sanding sugar coating and sprinkles make an easy, festive Fourth of July dessert.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
chill time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 17 minutes
Servings: 12 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 370
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

For the Whoopie Pies
  • 2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 0.5 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 0.5 tsp salt
  • 0.5 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 cup buttermilk
For the Filling
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tbsp heavy cream
Decoration
  • 0.25 cup Red sanding sugar
  • 0.25 cup Blue sanding sugar
  • 2 tbsp Patriotic sprinkles

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan

Method
 

Bake the Whoopie Pies
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and line baking sheets with parchment paper for nonstick release.
  2. Whisk together all-purpose flour, unsweetened cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt until evenly combined and no streaks remain.
  3. Beat unsalted butter, softened, and granulated sugar until fluffy and lighter in color.
  4. Add the large egg and vanilla extract to the butter mixture and mix until smooth.
  5. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and buttermilk, mixing just until incorporated and the batter looks thick and smooth.
  6. Scoop the batter into evenly sized rounds on the prepared baking sheets, leaving space between each cookie.
  7. Bake for 10–12 minutes, until the tops look set and spring back lightly when touched.
  8. Cool completely on the baking sheets or a rack so the cookies don’t soften when filled.
Fill and Decorate
  1. Beat the filling ingredients—unsalted butter, softened; powdered sugar; vanilla extract; and heavy cream—until light and fluffy.
  2. Pipe the vanilla cream filling onto half the cooled cookies, forming a mound near the edges.
  3. Top with the remaining cookies to form sandwich whoopie pies.
  4. Roll the edges in patriotic sprinkles and colored sugars, using the red sanding sugar and blue sanding sugar for the signature look.
  5. Serve immediately or refrigerate until needed for about 45 minutes so the filling firms up.
Make sure every ingredient is used
  1. Confirm all decoration includes red sanding sugar, blue sanding sugar, and patriotic sprinkles; if any remain, sprinkle them lightly over the finished whoopie pies before serving.

Notes

For clean sandwich edges, make the cookie rounds uniform and cool them fully before piping; warm cookies melt the filling. Store assembled whoopie pies in the refrigerator up to 3 days in an airtight container; freeze unfilled cookie halves up to 2 months, then thaw and fill. For a lighter option, use a reduced-fat butter substitute in the filling (texture may be slightly softer).