Gobs … You Know You’re from Western Pennsylvania if …
Johnstown, Pennsylvania – my hometown – is known for many things. There are the beautiful rolling mountains; its world famous floods of 1889, 1936, and 1977; Glosser Brothers Department Store; the legend of Morley’s dog; Coney Island Hot Dogs; and of course … home of the GOBS. For those of us from Western Pennsylvania, this term conjures up a chocolately-sweet-creamy sandwich memory that is the sheer definition of childhood in this part of the state. All it takes is one little bite of these yummy cake-like confections, and youthful mayhem carries you back to barefoot summer days playing “Kick the Can” until it was dark enough to catch fire flies.
Every family in the area seems to have at least one semi-secret gob recipe. I say only semi-secret because recipe swapping is also a bit of a tradition among these Western PA folks, and they happily share everything they own. Just recently, when going through some of my Mom’s recipe books and collections, I came across a hand-written copy of one such recipe. I don’t recognize the handwriting, but I believe it may have been one of her sisters – I am guessing Betty or Helen – or her sister-in-law, Naomi. I am hoping some of my Lugar Clan cousins can identify the writing.
And — since it IS the holiday season, which means it is ALSO baking season, I figured I would take this vintage recipe out for a spin. PS~~~ they are as yummy as I remember, even in December without fire flies, and no one to play Kick the Can with me. 😉 The steps listed below are as they appear on the paper, but a printable version is available at the end of the post (you’re welcome).
Cream together 2 cups sugar and ½ cup Crisco (side note – there are very few recipes that I keep in my arsenal that I actually use Crisco or shortening and not a substitute as it is not the healthiest ingredient out there. However – THIS is one of them).
Add 2 eggs and 1 cup milk…
… 1 cup boiling water … and 1 teaspoon vanilla.
Sift together 4 cups flour, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ¾ cup cocoa. (Another side note – yes, that is my assistant James, taking a brief sifting break from his homework, which is seen resting with his pencil nest to the bowl – a Mom’s gotta multi-task).
Add flour mixture to sugar mixture. Blend well.
Drop by spoonful onto ungreased cookie sheet. The batter will not spread much, so you can place them fairly close together – I did about an inch apart. I also lined my sheets with parchment paper, and found this really was an unnecessary step (again with the side note – sorry for the shadow … I did not inherit my father’s photography skills, nor am I able to make nice round mounds of the batter, as evidenced below…)
Bake at 450 degrees for 5-7 minutes.
To make the icing:
Place 1 cup milk and 5 tablespoons flour in a sauce pan on the stove. Heat until thick, stirring constantly to avoid burning.
Once thick, remove from heat and allow to thoroughly cool. THIS IS IMPORTANT! Don’t get so excited to put your gobs together that you don’t let this get completely cool or your icing won’t set properly (yet another side note — trust me – I have learned this by experience).
Once cooled, beat in 1¾ cups powdered sugar, 1 cup Crisco (again with the Crisco! What is it with vintage recipes and Crisco?!), ¼ teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon vanilla.
Beat until creamy and fluffy.
Spread between your gob cake rounds. I am always kind of skimpy on icing at first and then heavy handed at the end when I still have a lot left in the bowl, so I now ice one side without putting the “top on. That way, I can add more icing to the lighter ones when I know I had enough to cover them all.

GOBS
Creamy vanilla icing sandwiched between two palm sized chocolate cake rounds - a bite of Pennsylvania heaven!
Ingredients
Cake round ingredients
- 1/2 c Crisco
- 2 c sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 c milk 1 c boiling water
- 1 t vanilla
- 4 c flour
- 2 t baking soda
- ½ t baking powder
- ¾ c cocoa
Icing Ingredients
- 1 c milk
- 5 T flour
- 1 ¾ c powdered sugar
- 1 c Crisco
- ¼ t salt
- 1 t vanilla
Instructions
Cake Rounds:
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Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
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Cream together sugar and Crisco.
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Add eggs, milk, boiling water, and vanilla.
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Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and cocoa.
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Add to mixture
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Drop by spoon onto cookie sheet.
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Bake 5-7 minutes at 450 degrees.
Icing:
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Combine milk and flour in a sauce pan. Cook until thick, then let milk cool.
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Once cool, add powdered sugar, Crisco, salt, and vanilla.
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Beat until creamy and fluffy.
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Spread between two of the cake rounds.
So — do you have one of these semi-secret gob recipes? Is there a trade family secret ingredient? Do tell ….
Thank you for sharing your special recipe! It was a delight to read about your family then and now making these famous Gobs. I am from NY and have moved to a little tiwn outside of Washington PA. Gobs are favorites here. I never made them for my husband, but this Christmas he and our children will have some of your family’s Gobs! Thank you again for sharing!!! Katie in Claysville
Katie — SO glad you like the recipe!!!! And I hope you LOVE raising your children in PA as much as I loved growing up there! There is nothing like small town living for sure – and I am BEYOND delighted that you are using our family recipe to make your own memories!!!! Happy Thanksgiving! (Hope you subscribed to the blog!) 🙂
I was born in Johnstown, and my mom made gobs a lot, thank you
So glad it brought back good memories for you — hope you enjoy eating them!
I love Gobs. I have not made them in years and was glad to find this, because I was not able to find my old recipe. I notice some problem in your ingredients list. You do not have the 1/2 cup of crisco, and the eggs were also not listed. I was able to figure it out with your step by step instructions, which are great, and I also found them on your original recipe photo, which was really coo.
Thanks for posting this.
Thanks for catching this — I will be sure to fix it!
Hope you subscribe!
Hi! Is this 54 sandwiched cookies or 54 halves? Thanks!
That would be 54 halves.
I will be making these to sell at a concession stand and packaged individually. I see your recipe would make about 22 sandwiches. Would you say they would be small medium or pretty large? How big of a spoonful do you recommend putting on the pan?
Thanks!
I usually use a metal soup spoon, which makes the cake part I would say medium o large (they will spread a little during cooking).
Oh my goodness, I was from the mountains in New Paris, PA which put me closer to Central City!! I haven’t spoke to my family due to unfortunate events but LOVE gobs!!! So thankful came across this recipe! I love in the South now and they make Whoopi pies but put fluff and such sweet inside filling…THESE ARE WHAT I LOVE!! I can’t wait to share with my husbands family!!
So glad to hear you enjoy the recipe! I think this has to be one of my most popular posts (especially for all of us that had to pick up roots and move elsewhere!) Also – sorry for the delayed response – life sometimes gets in eth way of my thinking/writing. 🙂
Thanks for posting. I have been looking for the best gob recipe, when I came across yours. I had to read since I am originally from Windber Pa, now living in upstate NY. These are the gobs from my youth. And you are right you just can not substitute the crisco. Thanks again.
So glad to be of help!!! We went to church in Windber! SS Peter and Paul Orthodox church – the one at the top of the ill with the “gold onion” on top!
Hi, just surfed the web looking for gob icing recipe and came across your site. I had to click because it said you were from Johnstown! I am from Johnstown too (Ferndale) and wanted to make up some gob cake for a party this weekend. Thanks for sharing your recipe. Nothing like good old Johnstown cooking 🙂
Thanks! Hope it turned out well!
I’m from the Johnstown area, actually Dunlo/Llanfair now residing in sunny south Fl. I keep this tradition alive with my kids and grandchildren ❤️
I grew up in Davidsville, but now live in Virginia. I never found my mother’s secret gob receipe. I’m glad you shared yours. You can take the girl out of PA, but you can’t take PA out of the girl.
Hope you enjoy! We are located in Virginia now as well!
Normally the milk needs to also be soured by using vinegar. It really does make a difference but I have had them both ways and they are still delicious. I have a book called Gobba Gobba Hey with countless Gob recipes and the original calls for soured milk. Just my two cents.
Thanks Tim! Next time I make them I will have to give that a try!
Just made some gobs today and was disappointed, got a gob pan for a gift from wilton and used their recipe. The cake part was alright (they baked up good but they fall apart) now the big disappointment was the filling…after following the recipe to a tee you could not use it ( you could pour it out of the bowl like soup) so added somemore conf sugar (about 2 cups) and it thickened up some but when put on the cake it just ran over the sides and the top cake slides off. So i am looking for a good filling (something that is thick and stays in place like frosting) will try this one and see how it works. The recipe i used called for marshmallow creme so after i let them sit in the fridge it got stiff buts thats not what i want…Am also from Pa. (Mundys Corner) now in Fla.
will look forward to hearing what you think of the filling
Just as a added note. Those whoopie pans are great. Nice round cakes (consistent) 3″ round. Inexpensive got an extra one from Amazon. Makes 12 cakes.
My dad was from Johnstown, my mom from Windber. (Do NOT say she was from Johnstown – rivals, you know. LOL) Although I have never lived there, Johnstown will always be home. Her recipe for gobs is just a bit different than yours – it uses sour milk, as someone else mentioned, and only 1/2 c of boiling water, 1/2 c of cocoa and no vanilla. It also includes 1/2 t salt and 1/2 t cinnamon.
Your filling is listed as an “alternative” on her recipe. I asked her about it, and she told me that we liked this one better, so that’s the one she made. I have no idea where it came from.
1/4 lb Oleo
1/4 t salt
1 t vanilla
1 lg egg
3 3/4 C powdered sugar
Finally, we individually wrap the gobs in saran wrap and let sit at least over night. This softens the cookie and melds the flavors.
Oh my. I’m going to have to go make some, now! Thanks for the memories!
Will give your tweaks a try as well! Glad it brought back good memories!
It’s almost the same recipe my grandmother had! I’m also from Johnstown! We couldn’t wait for Granny’s Gobs! I miss my Granny!😪
I’m so excited to find this recipe. My parents are from Berlin and my grandmother always made gobs. I’ve made Whoopi pies but to me they’re not the same. Looking forward to making these!
I am glad you found it as well!
From somerset/Berlin area here…now living in California (state) and so excited to find this so i can make them for my kids!
Sure hope they like them!