Ethics in baking?

I did something today that I'm not proud of. It went against every moral bone in my body, and now I won't be able to sleep tonight. And what was this heinous act, you ask? I used something in a recipe I vowed I would never use... shortening.

I know, I can hear your gasps of shock. Shortening. The white blob used to fry chicken. And me, the girl who doesn't like really sweet things and loves finding healthy alternatives, used vegetable shortening in her baking. There is something about solidified fat that just makes me cringe... Hmm, I should probably stop talking about why I dislike shortening if I ever have a hope of people reading this post.

Since I didn't have to worry about baking for a peanut allergy this week, I decided to venture in to the delicious world of nutty baked goods. And I just so happened to get an email from Martha Stewart (well, her automated cookie of the day email address) a couple days ago for Peanut Butter Whoopie Pies! I had never made a whoopie pie, but what could be wrong with a cake-like cookie and some sweet filling? Well now I know. Shortening.

(I don't want to give you a bad impression, these did turn out wonderfully, I just have a moral obligation to hate them because of the shortening). Here's the recipe:

Peanut Butter Whoopie Pies

Adapted from Martha Stewart. Yields a whole lot of Whoopie (I'll explain later)

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
4 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
1/2 cup granulated sugar (I used slightly less)
1/2 cup packed dark-brown sugar (I used slightly less)
1 large egg
1 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line as many large baking sheets as required with parchment paper; set aside. Sift together flour, cocoa, and baking soda into a small bowl; set aside.
2. Add butter, shortening, and sugars to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; cream on high speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add egg; beat until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add half the flour mixture, then the milk and vanilla; beat until combined. Add the remaining flour mixture. Beat together, scraping down sides as needed.
3. Drop slightly rounded teaspoons of batter 2 inches apart on each baking sheet. Bake the cookies in the upper and lower thirds of oven, 10 minutes; switch the positions of the baking sheets, and rotate each one. Continue baking until the cookies spring back to the touch, 2 to 4 minutes more.
4. Remove from oven; let cookies cool on baking sheets, 10 minutes. Transfer with a metal spatula to a wire rack; let cool completely.

Peanut Butter Filling

2/3 cup natural, creamy peanut butter

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar

Directions

1. Cream peanut butter and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on high speed. On low speed, mix in sugar until combined, then beat mixture on high speed until fluffy and smooth, about 3 minutes. Use immediately.
2. Spread 1 scant tablespoon filling on flat sides of half the cookies. Top each with one of the remaining cookies, flat side down, and gently press together.

Ok, my only issue with this recipe (besides the shortening) is the way it was written, it makes HUGE whoopie pies. I guess maybe it's my whoopie pie naivete, but how can one person eat so much whoopie? With the recipe I followed, I made about 24 cookies, and sandwiched together I would have wound up with 12 fist-sized whoopie pies. I've decided to serve them as 'open-faced sandwich' cookies or 'sandwich cookies folded in half' to make their size a little more bearable. When I placed the dough on the cookie sheet, I did heaping teaspoons of batter (the recipe originally called for slightly rounded tablespoons), but I would suggest just doing a teaspoon. And probably a level teaspoon at that!

Besides my cookies being monstrous, the pies turned out pretty well! The cookie has a nice texture, though not a lot of flavour. The peanut butter filling more than makes up for that though, and if anything it's nice not to have competing flavours. The recipes say to use the filling immediately, and that the cookies are best served on the same day as they are made, but I'll be handing mine out tomorrow, so we'll see how well they last.

I was so tempted to replace the shortening in this recipe with butter (as I've done in many other recipes), but upon reading some reviews, apparently the cookie's consistency comes from the shortening. If I had used butter, it probably would have melted more easily and my cookies would have been puddles. I am a little sceptical about whether this is true, but now that I've had a 'true' whoopie pie, I can try substitutions and see the results. If there is one thing this recipe has done for me, it's that I can try and make whoopie pies again (without shortening) and try to get myself back on the 'moral' path!