Homemade Oatmeal Cream Pies

I have always loved Little Debbie Oatmeal Creme Pies. When it comes to store bought, individually wrapped desserts, they have been my favorite since I was a kid. This past Saturday I baked a homemade version of this classic treat and fell in love - I could not stop eating them no matter how hard I tried!! They tasted even better than the store bought pies (sorry Debbie) and are definitely better for you since they are all natural and fresh.

Oatmeal Cream Pies

adapted from Bake or Break

makes 13-14 big cream pies (26-28 individual cookies)

For the oatmeal cookies...

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3 cups uncooked Quaker "one minute" quick cooking oats
• 2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup tightly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar (I actually was out of granulated sugar, so I used 1/2 cup tightly packed light brown sugar instead and they came out great!)
• 1 large egg
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 375°. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Stir in oats. Set aside.
3. In the bowl of your standing mixer, beat butter, brown sugar, and sugar until creamy (about 2 minutes.)
4. Add the egg and vanilla and mix well.
5. Gradually add the flour mixture, mixing until well blended.
6. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls, 2 inches apart, onto prepared baking sheets.
7. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until cookies are firm enough that you can handle them to put filling on them without them breaking, but still are moist and soft.
8. Cool on pan for 2-3 minutes, then remove to wire racks to cool completely.

For the cream filling...

• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups confectioners sugar
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. In the bowl of your standing mixer, beat butter, heavy cream and vanilla together until creamy.
2. Add the confectioner's sugar one cup at a time and mix until well incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as you mix.
3. Spread about 1 tablespoon of filling over the bottom side of half of the cookies. These will be the bottoms of the pies. For the tops, try to find cookies that are about the same size/shape as the bottoms and press them gently on the bottoms so that both bottom sides of the cookies are touching the filling.
4. Devour!!!