Homemade Twinkies

The idea of ingesting something that could theoretically survive a nuclear winter is a little unnerving, but when a friend requested 'homemade Twinkies' for his birthday cake, I had to do it. Probably should not have used whole wheat flour. But then we wouldn't have laughed as hard as we did. The mascarpone cream was tasty.

Ingredients

Cake

• 6 eggs
• 3/4 C organic granulated sugar
• 1-3/4 C white whole wheat flour
• 1/2 t salt
• Also needed: spray oil, mini loaf pans, simple syrup

Filling

• 1-1/2 sticks butter, softened
• 2 T pure vanilla extract
• 3-1/2 C organic powdered sugar, sifted
• 1/4 C organic heavy whipping cream
• 1/2 C mascarpone cream

Procedure

Cake
Preheat oven to 375°F. Coat 6 mini loaf pans with pan spray. Combine eggs and sugar in a large bowl. Set the bowl over a pot of simmering water, and whisk it continuously until the eggs are warmed and sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and continue whisking until thick, foamy and pale yellow.

Sift flour and salt over eggs all at once, and fold together, being careful not to deflate. Transfer batter to prepared pans, filling 3/4 full. Bake until golden brown and firm, about 15-20 minutes. Cool cakes 10 minutes, and while still warm, invert to remove from pan. Brush each cake with simple syrup, then cool completely.

Filling
Cream butter in a large bowl with a sturdy spoon or electric mixer until smooth and lump free. Add vanilla. Slowly add half the powdered sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Add half the cream, and mix well. Add the remaining sugar and mascarpone. Beat until fluffy. Makes about 5 cups.

Assembly
Once the cakes are cooled, slice a trough out of the top. Cut off the bottom of the trough so that you have just the lid to replace. Spoon the filling into the hollow. Replace the lid. Spread more filling over the top.

"Tasty, but definitely not a Twinkie!" was the general consensus.