Best Moon Pies Recipes

SOUTHERN MOON PIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly grease a cookie sheet.
• To Make Cookie Crusts: In a large mixing bowl, cream together 1/2 cup butter or margarine and white sugar. Add egg, evaporated milk, and vanilla. Mix well. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, salt, cocoa powder, baking soda, and baking powder. Add flour mixture slowly to sugar mixture while stirring. Mix just until all ingredients are combined.
• Drop the dough onto greased cookie sheet by rounded tablespoonfuls. Leave at least 3 inches in between each one; dough will spread as it bakes.
• Bake in preheated oven for 6 to 8 minutes, until firm when pressed with finger. Allow to cool at least one hour before filling.
• To Make Marshmallow Filling: In a medium mixing bowl, blend together 1/2 cup butter or margarine, confectioners' sugar, flavored extract, and marshmallow creme. Mix until smooth. Assemble pies by spreading 1 to 2 tablespoonfuls of filling on flat side of a cookie crust, then covering filling with flat side of another cookie crust.

MOON PIES

Steps:

• For the cookies: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Whisk together the graham crumbs, flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl. In another large bowl, beat the sugar and butter with an electric mixer until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the vanilla and egg and beat to combine. Add the graham mixture and beat to incorporate. Knead with your hands to bring the dough together into a ball.
• Flatten the dough into a disk, place it on a piece of parchment paper and roll with a rolling pin into an 11-inch circle, about 1/4 inch thick. Use a 3-inch round cookie cutter to cut out 8 cookies. Reroll the scraps to 1/4 inch and cut out 2 more cookies. Transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheet. Discard the dough scraps.
• Bake the cookies until the undersides are golden brown and the tops are just set, 9 to 10 minutes. Cool completely on a rack.
• Put about 2 tablespoons of marshmallow creme in the center of a cookie (do not spread) and top with a second cookie to make a sandwich. The creme will ooze to fill the sandwich as it sits. Repeat with the remaining cookies, then freeze until the creme is firm, about 20 minutes.
• For the glaze: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place a cooling rack on top. Line a second baking sheet with parchment paper and lightly oil the paper.
• Put the chocolate candy coating in a heatsafe bowl (the smallest, deepest bowl it can fit in without surpassing the rim). Microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring after each interval, until melted and smooth, about 2 minutes.
• Submerge a cookie sandwich in the melted chocolate and pull it out using 2 forks, letting the excess drip off. Transfer to the prepared cooling rack and sprinkle with sanding sugar. Transfer to the oiled parchment on the second baking sheet to set. Repeat with the remaining cookie sandwiches.

MOON PIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets. In a small bowl, stir together the cocoa and boiling water. Let cool for 5 minutes.
• In a medium bowl, cream together 1/2 cup shortening and white sugar. Beat in the eggs one at a time then stir in the vanilla extract and cocoa mixture. Combine 2 2/3 cups flour with baking powder, baking soda and salt; stir into the sugar mixture alternately with the buttermilk. Drop by rounded tablespoons 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets.
• Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, until firm. To make the filling: In a small saucepan, stir together remaining flour and pinch of salt. Gradually whisk in the milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thick, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from heat, cover and refrigerate. In a medium bowl, cream together 3/4 cup of shortening and confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually add the vanilla and the milk mixture and beat until fluffy. Sandwich filling between cookies.

PAIFALA (AMERICAN SAMOA) - HALF-MOON PIES

Steps:

• Combine the pineapple, sugar and milk into a saucepan and heat until simmering. Be careful not to boil or the milk will curdle.
• Now mix the cornstarch with the reserved pineapple juice until it is smooth, and add to the pineapple. Stir until the mixture thickens, then remove from the heat and let cool.
• Put all of the dough ingredients into a bowl and blend until a dough forms. Divide the dough into five parts, then roll each part into an 8-inch circle.
• Spread some onto one half of each circle. Fold the other half over the top, stopping about a quarter inch from the edge. Fold the bottom quarter inch over the top edge, then crimp with a fork. Repeat until you've finished all of your pies.
• Prick a couple of holes in the top and put into a 375 degree oven for 30 to 35 minutes.

FULL MOON PIES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Line cookie sheet with cooking parchment paper.
• In large bowl, beat butter with electric mixer on medium speed until creamy. Add cake mix, pudding mix, 1/2 cup milk and the eggs; beat on medium-high speed until blended.
• Using 1 1/2-inch scoop, drop slightly mounded scoops of dough about 1 inch apart onto cookie sheet.
• Bake 10 to 12 minutes until set (do not overbake). Cool 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 20 minutes.
• In medium bowl, mix filling ingredients until well blended. For each pie, spread about 1 tablespoon filling on bottom of 1 cooled cookie. Top with second cookie, bottom side down; gently press cookies together.
• In small bowl, mix powdered sugar and 4 teaspoons milk with spoon until smooth. Drizzle icing over sandwich cookies. Sprinkle with edible glitter.

COPYCAT MOON PIES

Steps:

• Prepare the graham cracker cookies: whisk together whole wheat and all-purpose flours, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl until well combined. Whisk together honey, oil, eggs, and milk in a medium bowl until well combined. Add egg mixture to flour mixture, and gently stir together until a coarse dough begins to develop.
• Pour dough out onto a work surface lightly dusted with all-purpose flour and knead until dough becomes smooth, shiny, and slightly tacky, about 2 minutes. Divide dough into 2 even balls and shape into disks. Wrap each disk tightly in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour or up to 3 days.
• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Position racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven. Line 2 rimmed sheet pans with parchment paper.
• Working with one dough disk at a time on a surface lightly dusted with all-purpose flour, roll each disk into a 16x12-inch rectangle, about 1/8-inch thick. Cut twelve 3 1/2-inch circles out of each dough rectangle. Transfer circles to the prepared sheet pans spaced 1 inch apart from each other.
• Bake cookies in the preheated oven until fragrant and slightly firm, 12 to 14 minutes, rotating pans halfway through baking. Let cookies cool on sheet pans for 5 minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• Prepare the marshmallow: Combine gelatin and 1/2 cup water in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Allow gelatin to bloom, undisturbed, until thickened, about 15 minutes.
• While the gelatin is blooming, combine remaining 1/2 cup water with sugar, corn syrup, and salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, without stirring, over medium heat. Boil sugar mixture, without stirring, until a candy thermometer reads 240 degrees F (116 degrees C), about 10 minutes.
• Add vanilla to bloomed gelatin; beat on medium speed until completely incorporated, about 1 minute. Leave mixer on medium and carefully add hot sugar mixture until combined, about 2 minutes. Increase speed to high and beat until mixture is thick, sticky, and quadrupled in volume, about 10 minutes. Immediately transfer 1/2 of marshmallow mixture to a piping bag; reserve remaining marshmallow for another use.
• Arrange 12 cooled cookies upside down on a clean work surface. Cut a tip off the piping bag, leaving a 1/2-inch hole, and quickly and carefully pipe a 2 tablespoon circular mound of marshmallow in the center of each cookie. Top with remaining cookies and gently press down until marshmallow is spread about 1/4 inch from the edges. Allow cookie sandwiches to sit out at room temperature, uncovered, until marshmallow filling is set and slightly firm, at least 1 hour or up to (but not exceeding) 4 hours.
• Prepare the glaze: fill a medium pot with 1 inch water and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low. Place 28 ounces chocolate in a large heat-proof bowl and place on top of the pot with steaming water. Stir chocolate slowly until completely melted and smooth, about 5 minutes. Continue stirring until a thermometer registers 115 degrees F (46 degrees C), about 5 minutes. Remove bowl from the pot and set on a lightly damp kitchen towel to prevent the bowl from sliding. Allow chocolate to cool, stirring constantly, until a thermometer registers 90 degrees F (32 degrees C), about 5 minutes.
• Add remaining chocolate to the melted chocolate. Stir until completely melted and smooth, placing it back over steaming water briefly, if necessary, about 5 minutes.
• Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
• Working quickly, cleanly, and with one at a time, dip each cookie sandwich into the melted chocolate until completely coated, allowing excess chocolate to drain back into the bowl. Scrape the bottom of each along rim of bowl to remove any excess glaze. Place on the prepared sheet pan and smooth the top with a small offset spatula. Repeat to coat remaining cookies. Transfer to the refrigerator to cool until chocolate is set and firm, about 10 minutes. Allow cookies to rest at room temperature, covered with plastic wrap, until completely set, about 30 minutes.

MIDNIGHT MOON PIES

Steps:

• In a microwave, melt chocolate chips and butter; stir until smooth. Cool., In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugars, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Combine the egg, buttermilk, extracts and cooled chocolate mixture; add to dry ingredients and beat just until moistened (batter will be very thick)., Drop by tablespoonfuls or with small scoop 2 in. apart onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets. , Bake at 350° for 8-10 minutes or until edges are set. Cool for 2 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely., For filling, melt chocolate chips and butter; stir until smooth. Cool. In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese, marshmallow creme and almond extract until smooth. Beat in cooled chocolate mixture. Spread 1 heaping teaspoon of filling on the bottoms of half of the cookies; top with remaining cookies., Roll sides of cookies in miniature chocolate chips. Store in the refrigerator.

AMISH HALF MOON PIES OR PREACHING PIES

Steps:

• Cook the dried apples in a saucepan with water and the salt.
• When apples are soft and pulpy, add the sugar, orange and cinnamon.
• Simmer until water is cooked away.
• Roll pastry out and cut in 8 inch circles.
• Place generous portions of the mixture on half of the pastry rounds; fold the pastry over and pinch the edges tightly together.
• Bake in 450 degree oven for 10 minutes.
• Reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake about 35 to 40 minutes longer or until golden brown.

PUMPKIN MOON PIES

Steps:

• For the cookies: Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farenheit.
• Mix together the spice cake mix and pumpkin puree until everything is incorporated.
• Drop the mixture onto a greased cookie sheet or a Silpat in large tablespoonfuls. Flatten slightly with wet fingers and bake for 12 minutes.
• For the filling: Mix the cream cheese and powdered sugar together in a bowl with a hand mixer until smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl with a spatula a few times.
• In a small bowl, microwave the two white chocolate baking squares and milk on high for one minute. Stir until smooth and then slowly beat into the cream cheese mixture.
• Fold in the Cool Whip.
• When the cookies are baked and have cooled, sandwich two together with the cream cheese fluff.

CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER MOON PIES

Steps:

• In a standing electric mixer fitted with the paddle, beat the butter until creamy. Add the brown sugar and beat at medium-high speed until fluffy, 3 minutes. Beat in 1 teaspoon of the vanilla and the 1 whole egg. Add the 2 1/4 cups of flour and 1/2 teaspoon of salt and beat until a soft dough forms. Divide the dough into 2 mounds and transfer to 2 sheets of plastic wrap. Pat each mound of dough into a 1/3-inch-thick square, wrap and refrigerate until firm, 20 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350° and line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Working with 1 square at a time, on a floured work surface, roll the dough out to a 13-inch square, 1/8 inch thick. Using a 2 1/2-inch biscuit cutter, stamp out rounds and arrange them 1/2 inch apart on the baking sheets; repeat with the second square of dough. Gather the scraps and refrigerate until firm. Reroll and cut out more rounds, using the scraps only once. Refrigerate the cookies just until firm, about 10 minutes.
• Bake the cookies in the upper and middle thirds of the oven for about 15 minutes, until lightly browned, shifting the pans halfway through baking. Let cool slightly, then carefully invert the cookies onto racks and let cool completely.
• Spread the melted chocolate on half of the cookies and the peanut butter on the other half. Allow the chocolate to set.
• In a small saucepan, boil the corn syrup over high heat without stirring until it registers 230° to 235° (thread ball) on a candy thermometer. Meanwhile, in a clean standing mixer fitted with the whisk, beat the 2 egg whites with the cream of tartar and a pinch of salt until firm peaks form. Slowly drizzle in the hot corn syrup and beat at high speed until glossy, about 2 minutes. At medium-low speed, beat in the remaining 2 teaspoons of vanilla and the 1 cup of confectioners' sugar.
• Transfer the marshmallow to a pastry bag with a plain 1/2-inch tip or a large zippered plastic bag with the corner snipped off. Pipe 1 1/2-tablespoon mounds of the marshmallow onto the chocolate-covered cookies. Top with the peanut butter-covered cookies and press lightly to spread the marshmallow to the edges. Let the moon pies stand in an airtight container for 2 hours (they will soften slightly) before dusting with confectioners' sugar, cocoa and cinnamon and serving.

PECAN-PUMPKIN SPICE MOON PIES

Steps:

• Line a half sheet tray with parchment paper so that it hangs over the edges on all sides by about 2" (this will make the marshmallows easier to remove from the pan). Spray paper with nonstick cooking spray and dust generously with powdered sugar.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, sprinkle gelatin over ? Celsius cold water and set aside to bloom. Meanwhile, combine sugar, corn syrup, and salt with ? Celsius water in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Increase heat to high and continue cooking syrup until it reaches 240 degrees on a candy thermometer. Remove from heat.
• With the mixer on low speed, slowly pour the syrup into the dissolved gelatin. Increase speed to high and whip until very thick and glossy, about 15 minutes. Add vanilla and pumpkin pie spice and mix until thoroughly combined. Using gel paste food coloring, tint marshmallow mixture to a pale orange.
• Pour mixture into prepared pan, dust top generously with powdered sugar, and allow to sit for at least four hours. When marshmallows are set, turn out of pan onto a clean work surface dusted with powdered sugar, and peel off parchment. Using a 2 ½" ring mold or cookie cutter dusted with powdered sugar, cut out marshmallow rounds. Store wrapped in plastic or in an airtight container if not using immediately.
• Meanwhile, preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a food processor, finely grind the pecans together with the sugars. Add flour and salt to food processor and pulse to combine. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse crumbs, then add egg and vanilla and process until the dough comes together.
• Lightly dust a clean work surface with flour and turn the dough out. Form into a ball and then flatten into a disc, working in some of the flour from the table as needed. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill about 30 minutes in the freezer, or 1 hour in the refrigerator.
• Remove dough from plastic wrap and roll out to about ?" thick with a rolling pin, dusting work surface, dough, and rolling pin with flour as necessary to prevent sticking. Using a 2 ½" round cookie cutter or ring mold, cut out cookies. Space about an inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets, then bake, rotating once halfway through, 8-10 minutes (cookies should be slightly undercooked).
• Allow to cool completely before decorating.
• When cookies are ready, heat candy melts in a medium glass bowl in the microwave in 15-30 second increments, stirring after each, until completely smooth, thinning with 1 T. melted shortening at a time until candy melts reach a nice dipping consistency. Dip half of cookies into mixture, allowing excess to drip off, then place on a wire cooling rack set over a parchment-lined half sheet tray. Allow candy to set slightly before decorating with assorted sprinkles. If desired, mix a little gold highlighter with a small amount of vodka in a small bowl and splatter cookies with "paint." Allow to set completely, at least 30 minutes.
• To assemble, carefully spread remaining undecorated cookies with 1 t. apple butter. Place a marshmallow round on top of the apple butter, then sandwich together with decorated cookies, using a dab of apple butter on the underside of each as glue. Moon pies are best served immediately once assembled.

HOME MADE CLASSIC MOON PIES!

Steps:

• 1. Equipment:Pastry brush, 15- by 10-inch jelly roll pan, fine-mesh sieve, stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and paddle, candy thermometer, small offset spatula, 3-inch round cookie cutter, 2 1/2- to 2 3/4-inch round cookie cutter, parchment paper, rolling pin, 2 large rimmed baking sheets
• 2. Make the marshmallows: Brush the bottom and sides of a 15- by 10-inch jelly roll pan with vegetable oil. Using a fine-mesh sieve, dust the bottom and sides of the pan with 1/4 cup of the sifted confectioners' sugar, leaving any excess in the pan.
• 3. Place 6 tablespoons of the cold water in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Sprinkle the gelatin into the bowl and whisk briefly to make sure all the gelatin is in contact with water. Let soften while you make the sugar syrup.
• 4. In a heavy, small saucepan, whisk together the granulated sugar, corn syrup, salt, and the remaining 6 tablespoons cold water. Place over moderate heat and bring to a full boil (the mixture will become clear), stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Put a candy thermometer into the boiling sugar syrup and continue boiling, without stirring, for 5 minutes, then increase the heat to moderately high and continue boiling, without stirring, until the thermometer registers 240°F (soft-ball stage), about 5 more minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and let stand until the bubbles dissipate slightly.
• 5. With the mixer on low, pour the sugar syrup into the softened gelatin in a thin stream down the side of the bowl. Gradually increase the mixer speed to high and beat until the marshmallow forms a very thick ribbon when the whisk is lifted (the marshmallow will still be slightly warm), about 5 minutes.
• 6. Scrape the marshmallow into the prepared pan (it will be very sticky) and use wet fingertips to spread it evenly; smooth the top with a wet offset spatula. Dust the remaining 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar over the top of the marshmallows, then cover the pan with plastic wrap, being careful not to let the plastic wrap touch the marshmallow as they will stick together. Set the marshmallow aside to firm up, at least 4 hours or overnight.
• 7. Once the marshmallows are firm, use a 3-inch round cookie cutter to cut out 12 marshmallow circles-you will need to cut the marshmallows very close together so there are very few scraps. Dust the marshmallows with additional confectioners' sugar to prevent sticking DO AHEAD: Marshmallows can be stored, layered between sheets of wax or parchment paper, in an airtight container in a dry place at cool room temperature, for 1 week.
• 8. Make the graham crackers: Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and a second rack in the lower third then preheat to 350°F.
• 9. In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, pastry flour, wheat germ, salt, cinnamon, and baking soda.
• 10. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the cane syrup and honey and beat until well combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the mixer bowl then reduce the mixer speed to medium-low, add the flour mixture, and blend just until no streaks of flour remain, 1 to 2 minutes-the mixture will be a little crumbly.
• 11. Divide the dough into 2 equal portions. Place 1 half on a large sheet of parchment paper then cover with a second large piece of parchment paper. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough, between the sheets of parchment paper, to a 1/8-inch thickness. Remove the top layer of parchment and use a 2 1/2 to 2 3/4-inch round cookie cutter to press as many circles into the dough as possible. Use a small offset spatula to transfer the graham crackers to a large rimmed baking sheet, leaving about 1 inch between them then re-roll and cut any scraps of dough to make more circles. Repeat this process with the remaining portion of dough.
• 12. Bake the graham crackers, switching the baking pans between the upper and lower racks and rotating the pans about halfway through baking, until the graham crackers are firm around the edges and golden, 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer the graham crackers to a wire rack to let cool completely. DO AHEAD: Graham crackers can be baked ahead and kept, stored in an airtight container at room temperature, up to 1 week.
• 13. Melt the chocolate and assemble the moonpies: Sandwich 2 graham crackers around 1 marshmallow then repeat with the remaining graham crackers and marshmallows until you have 12 moon pie "sandwiches." (There may be a few leftover graham crackers.)
• 14. Coat a wire rack with nonstick vegetable oil spray and set it on top of a parchment paper- lined large rimmed baking sheet.
• 15. Place about 2/3 of the chocolate in a dry metal bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water and stir until melted and warm, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the remaining chocolate to the bowl and remove the bowl from the top of the pot. Let cool 5 minutes then stir until smooth. Stir in the coconut oil until incorporated thoroughly.
• 16. Hold 1 moonpie "sandwich" firmly in 1 hand and roll the sides through the melted chocolate, making sure the sides are completely coated so you don't see any marshmallow peeking through. Hold the moonpie over the bowl of chocolate and use a small spoon to pour and swirl chocolate over the top; invert onto the rack and coat the other side in chocolate. Repeat with the remaining graham cracker-marshmallow "sandwiches." Transfer the chocolate-dipped moonpies to a cool place to let the chocolate coating harden for 1 to 2 hours. DO AHEAD: Moonpies can be made ahead and kept, layered between sheets of parchment paper in an airtight container at room temperature, up to 5 days.

CHOCOLATE-OATMEAL MOON PIES

Steps:

• For cookies:
• Arrange racks in upper and lower thirds of oven; preheat to 350°F. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Combine oats, cherries, pecans, and chocolate in a large bowl.
• Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in another large bowl, occasionally scraping down sides of bowl, until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add egg and vanilla and beat to blend. Scrape down sides of bowl. With machine running at low speed, gradually add flour mixture; beat just to blend. Stir in oat mixture with a wooden spoon just to blend.
• Using a 1-ounce ice cream scoop or scooping out 2 level tablespoonfuls of dough, measure dough into 36 portions. Divide among baking sheets. Using your hands, gently press down on each dough ball until 1/2" thick.
• Bake cookies for 12 minutes. Rotate sheets front to back and top to bottom; continue baking until cookies are golden brown and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft (cookies will appear underdone and shiny in centers), 7-8 minutes longer. Do not overbake. Let cookies cool on baking sheets. DO AHEAD: Cookies can be made 2 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.
• Spread 1 tablespoon marshmallow creme on bottom of 18 cookies. Sandwich with remaining cookies.
• For chocolate dipping sauce:
• Place chocolate and honey in a medium bowl. Bring cream just to a boil in a small saucepan. Pour over chocolate and honey; let stand for 1 minute; stir until melted and smooth. Drizzle over cookies or serve alongside sandwich cookies for dipping.

TEHACHAPI MOON PIES

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, beat together the cream cheese, marshmallow cream, vanilla and orange zest with a hand mixer until smooth and fluffy.
• Using a 2 1/2 to 3-inch biscuit cutter or round cookie cutter, cut out the outside edge of each cookie to form clean smooth edges. You can use various size cutters to make different size cookies if desired.
• Spoon 2 to 3 tablespoons of the filling on to the bottom of 6 cookies. Top with the remaining cookies and lightly press down so that the filling is pushed to the edge of the cookie.
• Place the sprinkles into a saucer and roll the sides of each moon pie into the sprinkles. Place on a serving dish.

GANACHE-FILLED CINNAMON, CRANBERRY AND OATMEAL MOON PIES

Steps:

• For the chocolate ganache: In a 1-quart saucepan, bring the cream to a simmer. Add the chocolate, butter and glucose syrup. Remove from the heat and stir constantly until all of the ingredients are well mixed. Cool the ganache for later use.
• For the cinnamon cranberry oatmeal moon pies: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the brown sugar and butter together until light and creamy, approximately 3 minutes. Add the vanilla extract and egg and incorporate until smooth again. Add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt and mix until incorporated. Add the rolled oats and cranberries and mix until combined.
• With a 2-ounce scoop, portion out the moon pies onto a baking sheet and bake until light brown in color, 8 minutes. Let cool.
• To assemble, sandwich 2 moon pies together with the cooled ganache. Top with fondant icing, let dry for 5 minutes and decorate with colored luster dust.

CHOCOLATE-PEANUT BUTTER MOON PIES

Steps:

• In a standing electric mixer fitted with the paddle, beat the butter until creamy. Add the brown sugar and beat at medium-high speed until fluffy, 3 minutes. Beat in 1 teaspoon of the vanilla and the 1 whole egg. Add the 2 1/4 cups of flour and 1/2 teaspoon of salt and beat until a soft dough forms. Divide the dough into 2 mounds and transfer to 2 sheets of plastic wrap. Pat each mound of dough into a 1/3-inch-thick square, wrap and refrigerate until firm, 20 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350° and line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Working with 1 square at a time, on a floured work surface, roll the dough out to a 13-inch square, 1/8 inch thick. Using a 2 1/2-inch biscuit cutter, stamp out rounds and arrange them 1/2 inch apart on the baking sheets; repeat with the second square of dough. Gather the scraps and refrigerate until firm. Reroll and cut out more rounds, using the scraps only once. Refrigerate the cookies just until firm, about 10 minutes.
• Bake the cookies in the upper and middle thirds of the oven for about 15 minutes, until lightly browned, shifting the pans halfway through baking. Let cool slightly, then carefully invert the cookies onto racks and let cool completely.
• Spread the melted chocolate on half of the cookies and the peanut butter on the other half. Allow the chocolate to set.
• In a small saucepan, boil the corn syrup over high heat without stirring until it registers 230° to 235° (thread ball) on a candy thermometer. Meanwhile, in a clean standing mixer fitted with the whisk, beat the 2 egg whites with the cream of tartar and a pinch of salt until firm peaks form. Slowly drizzle in the hot corn syrup and beat at high speed until glossy, about 2 minutes. At medium-low speed, beat in the remaining 2 teaspoons of vanilla and the 1 cup of confectioners' sugar.
• Transfer the marshmallow to a pastry bag with a plain 1/2-inch tip or a large zippered plastic bag with the corner snipped off. Pipe 1 1/2-tablespoon mounds of the marshmallow onto the chocolate-covered cookies. Top with the peanut butter?covered cookies and press lightly to spread the marshmallow to the edges. Let the moon pies stand in an airtight container for 2 hours (they will soften slightly) before dusting with confectioners' sugar, cocoa and cinnamon and serving.