New York's Amish Trail

Amish Whoopie Pies Recipe

Ingredients:
2 cups sugar
1 cup shortening
2 eggs
4 cups flour
1 cup baking cocoa
2 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. salt
1 cup sour milk
2 tsp. baking soda
1 cup hot water

Directions:
1. Cream sugar and shortening. Add eggs.
2. Sift together flour, cocoa, and salt.
3. Add to creamed mixture alternately with sour milk.
4. Add the vanilla and dissolve soda in hot water and add last. Mix well.

About the Amish

Old Order Amish use no electricity, no running water and dress in plain clothes of grays and blues.
Their cooking stoves are powered by propane, kerosene or wood. They use kerosene lamps.
They never work on Sundays and rotate church meetings at various homes within their districts.
Their children traditionally speak German until they start school at about 6 years of age where they are taught English.
They go only until grade 8 then they go to work with their family.

The Amish – WHY???  Female Response

Here is a little bits and pieces of our Old Order Amish.  We believe in having our own private Churches and our own private schools, etc.  We go through first to eighth grade in school.  Have to pay our own school taxes plus help the English pay their school taxes which I really don’t think is quite fair, but if that is how it shall be we want to be satisfied too.  We have no electricity, have to work hard to make a living but imagine that is healthier for us than to just play around.

There are many questions about the Amish Culture and even more answers.  While the questions are only natural, some of the answers are less than correct and others downright misleading.  Some are well meant, some make the Amish look better than they are and some worse.  Some authors of books have done a fairly thorough research and others have done a good job of whipping up some exciting details.  Having said that, here is my perspective on why there are Amish and why they live as they do.

Tell us about your tour of the Old Order Amish community in Western New York.

Whoopie Pies (a traditional Amish recipe)

Whoopie Pies are a most loved traditional Amish treat. Made like a sandwich with two generously sized soft cake-like chocolate cookies and a fluffy vanilla cream filling they are the ultimate nostalgic comfort food.

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups of Brown Sugar
• 2 cups of Sugar
• 2/3 cups of Karo Syrup
• 2 cups of water
• 2 1/2 lbs. of peanut butter
• 7 ounces of marshmallow creme

Instructions:

1. Pour Brown Sugar, Sugar, Karo Syrup and water together in saucepan.
2. Boil the ingredients for a few minutes then cool.
3. Add the peanut butter and marshmallow creme.
4. Stir well.
5. Cover and keep at room temperature.

This year, March has been mild and so everyone is enjoying the warm weather. The Amish are out in their “convertibles” which are actually open buckboard-style wagons that let them enjoy the warm breezes. The picture to the left shows a familiar site in the SW part of Cattaraugus Co. looking up Seager Hill Rd.

Ingredients

• 12 Ritz crackers
• Peanut Butter
• Chocolate Bar (optional)
• 12 large Marshmallows

Instructions

1. Spread a bit of peanut butter on each cracker
2. Put a square of chocolate on top of peanut butter
3. Top with a marshmallow
4. Place on cookie sheet
5. Broil for 1 minute until marchmallows are golden brown

Hope you enjoy and comment below with alterations to the recipe that you find to be really good.