[Sca-cooks] Medieval German "whoopie pies"???

[wheezul at canby.com]

She might be extrapolating from 'krapfen' recipes.  However, there are the
'gefullte oblaten' recipes that are wafers filled with marzipan, or figs
and raisin, or cherry sauce and then fried.  It's *sorta* like a filled
cookie, especially if you are using a spiced wafer.

You can read about my analysis of all the recipes I could find here:

http://jillwheezul.livejournal.com/224339.html

If I could find anything like cakes with cream in them in a medieval
cookbook I would be all cookie monster on that! Gefullte oblaten are
wonderfully delish but are a long way from a whoopie pie tho.  I too have
a horrible sweet tooth :)

Katherine

> This would be one of those "facts" I'd almost consider worthy of
> writing the author about and asking exactly where she got her
> "facts".
>
> It does appear on the web--
>
> http://mogallants.wordpress.com/2011/03/01/whoopie-pies-are-from-medieval-germany-pa-wins/
>
> "Susan Kalcik says that according to her research for the Johnstown
> historical society in PA she found that cakes with filling originated
> in medieval Germany which means that the dessert would be more likely
> to have followed Germans to America.  And since PA has always had a
> strong German heritage Kalcik thinks that it showed up here and in
> other areas with a large German population."
>
> http://whatscookingamerica.net/History/WhoopiePieHistory.htm
>
> Susan Kalcik, a folklorist and archivist with the Southwestern
> Pennsylvania Heritage Preservation Commission in Johnstown, said her
> research shows that the Gob’s origin can be traced back to medieval
> Germany. "They were making a cake-like pastry with a filling. It
> probably was brought to America by various German groups like the
> Amish or German Brethren."
>
> I don't know exactly how a chocolate filled cake (often with crisco
> cream filling) originated in medieval Germany prior to the voyages of
> discovery which brought chocolate back to the Old World, but there you
> have it.
>
> So what exactly is this medieval German treat that is cake-like with a
> filling?
>
> BTW- Maine and Pennsylvania are having a war over them.
> http://heritageinmaine.blogspot.com/2011/06/making-whoopie-comment-on-whoopie-pie.html
> http://mongooseofmystery.blogspot.com/2011/03/whoopie-pie-war.html
>
> Johnnae