When I was in elementary school, we had a special Valentine’s Day tradition. Each student brought in a shoebox wrapped in decorative paper with a mail slot cut into the top. Then everyone brought little Valentine cards to share with the whole class and we’d scurry around the classroom putting cards in each other’s decorated shoeboxes. My mother took the shoebox decorating very seriously. One year, she chose a purple with silver hearts one year, red and white hearts another year, and once she even wrapped it in my bedroom wallpaper which was pale pink hearts. For me, this tradition set the tone for how I feel about Valentine’s Day – it’s about love, but not just romantic. I brought that idea with me when I went to college and I’d put a slip of paper with a Valentine’s message on each of my classmate’s dorm door. Yep, I’m a bit extra.
Here’s a recipe for making the perfect heart-shaped cookies for Valentine’s Day:
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Red food coloring (optional)
- Royal icing (optional)
- Decorations such as sprinkles or nonpareils (optional)
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In a separate large mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
- Beat in the eggs, one at a time, followed by the vanilla extract.
- Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, mixing until just combined.
- If desired, add a few drops of red food coloring to the dough and mix until the desired color is achieved.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Roll the dough out to about 1/4 inch thickness on a lightly floured surface.
- Use a heart-shaped cookie cutter to cut out the cookies, re-rolling the dough as necessary.
- Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheets and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden brown.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
They’re delicious, beautiful heart-shaped cookies perfect for Valentine’s Day. You can wrap a few cookies up in parchment paper with a ribbon to give as treats. If you’re feeling inspired and have the time, decorate the cooled cookies with royal icing and various decorations such as sprinkles or nonpareils. Allow the icing to set before serving or packaging the cookies. Enjoy!