Friday, February 11, 2011

Bakin' My Way to His Heart


I'm not afraid to admit it: I love Valentine's Day.

I spent the better part of my insanely awkward teenage years wishing I had a Valentine, and yet still celebrating the holiday with my equally awkward girlfriends. We embraced our glasses-wearing, brace-faced, frizzy-haired selves, and reveled in V-Day slumber parties that involved lots of raw cookie dough, prank phone calls, and late-night viewings of "Loveline with Dr. Drew."

I was the classic dorky teenager.

Today, I'm fortunate enough to have secured a somewhat permanent, and exceptionally stellar Valentine in my life. This guy draws me pictures of stick figures, cleans off my KitchenAid stand mixer, and warms up my car every morning. He also puts up with my hideous singing voice, my resistance to putting clean dishes back in the cabinet, and my minor obsession with Coldstone Creamery's Cake Batter ice cream.

To thank my sweet dude for all the ways he shows he cares, I baked my way to his heart. This year, it came in the form of Chocolate-Dipped Cherry Shortbread Cookies.

Buttery. Flaky. Pink. And chock full o' love.

These little cookies are subtly sweet and just plain precious. Semi-sweet chocolate was a perfect match, but I imagine that white chocolate or dark chocolate would go equally as well.

So, whether your Valentine is your significant other or your best friend, your mom or your favorite co-worker--there's always someone out there who could use a little lovin' from you.

Bake up some Cherry Heart Cookies for them this weekend. And be grateful you don't have braces anymore.

Chocolate-Dipped Cherry Shortbread Hearts
(recipe from
Taste of Home)

These cookies look like the essence of Valentine's Day. Pink + Chocolate + Hearts. Bonus: They taste awesome and buttery!

Ingredients:
  • 1 - 1/4 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
  • 3 TBSP sugar
  • 1/2 cup cold butter, cubed
  • 1/2 cup maraschino cherries, drained and chopped
  • 1 TBSP cold water
  • 1/2 tsp. almond extract
  • 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 1 TBSP butter
Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 325 degrees and coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.

2) In a mixing bowl, combine the flour and sugar. Cut in butter and mix with a fork until crumbly. Gently add in cherries, water, and extract--be gentle! Shortbread can be tricky :) Feel free to add a dash more of water to hold the dough together if you need to.

3) On a lightly floured surface, gently roll/pat the dough out to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut using small heart cookie cutters and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes, or until lightly browned. Allow to cool on a cooling rack.

4) In a double boiler, melt the chocolate chips and 1 TBSP butter. Dip half of each cookie in the chocolate and place on wax paper to cool. Give to your Valentine.

13 comments:

  1. Aw, these are so cute! I'm single, so I might make these for my family instead of a boy :)

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  2. How cute are those cookies! I love the idea of cherry shortbread and of course the chocolate doesn't hurt. ;) YUM!

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  3. These are adorable...and you and I sound like we would have been fast friends in high school. I'm so glad that we found such great guys! I'm so glad it is finally Friday. I hope you have a wonderful weekend of relaxation, love and laughter. Thank you for sharing, my friend!

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  4. Those look so stinkin cute-presentations everything right? Well in some peoples case-i'll eat anything ,ha!

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  5. Sounds like you snagged a good permanent Valentine!! :-) I bet he appreciates you just as much!

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  6. You and your cookies are so adorable. I must confess that all I ever wanted as a teenager was a Valentine as well. I'm completely appreciative to have someone to shower with treats and vice versa!

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  7. These are so cute! As is your description of Adam :) I love when the bf is willing to clean ice off my car or warm it up. Or, of course, do dishes!

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  8. Sounds like you've got a great guy on your hands. I wish I met a guy like him!

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  9. These really look wonderful. I'm new to your blog and have just spent some time browsing through your earlier posts. I really like the food and recipes you feature here. I'll definitely be back. I hope you have a great day. Blessings...Mary

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  10. Oh my goodness these look awesome! Thanks so much for the recipe. They look absolutely delicious! I have hit a milestone on my blog and I want to Thank You for helping me get there. I appreciated your nice comment.

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  11. Your history with Valentine's Day sounds a lot like mine. I loved it even when I didn't have a Valentine and was rocking the awkward braces and frizzy hair.
    Happy V-Day!

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  12. hehe, being single, I still hang out with girls on V-Day. :D These look and sound amazing! I'll have to make them for my sister sometime because she's obsessed with chocolate and cherries. Such pretty cookies!

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