Make sure you end your Valentines Day with the perfect sweet treat. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
Healthy
If you’re trying to stick to a healthy diet during this holiday filled with candy, choose something a little less sugar-filled with some chocolate-covered fruit. One idea is to slice a kiwi into circles, stick a popsicle stick into the side (so it looks like a lollipop), and dip into melted chocolate. Or, fill an ice cube tray with melted chocolate and place a strawberry in each cube. Freeze for the perfect (and easy) chocolate-covered strawberries!
To melt chocolate, cut a chocolate bar into small, uniform pieces. Add 1 tablespoon of water, milk, or cream for every 2 ounces of chocolate.
Frozen Yogurt
Stay away from that raw cookie dough if you plan on making some cookies. Instead, try this chocolate chip cookie dough frozen yogurt. No ice cream machine required!
Ingredients
½ cups softened butter
½ cups brown sugar
¼ cups sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup flour
¼ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
¾ cups chocolate chips (mini ones or small chunks are best)
1 cup vanilla yogurt
Instructions
In a mixer, combine butter and sugars together until fluffy. While beating, combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl. Add vanilla to beaten mixture. Combine the butter and sugar mixture, dry ingredients from the bowl, and chocolate chips. After well mixed, add yogurt and combine completely. Put in a large bowl (make sure it is freezer-safe!) and let freeze for several hours or overnight.
Classic
Stick to the classics with some delicious s’mores. Spice them up with a cute heart shape! See instructions below to make your own heart-shaped graham crackers. Use your favorite chocolate and some marshmallows and you are set!
Ingredients
1 ¾ cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
¾ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
6 tbsp butter, chilled, cut into cubes
2 tbsp milk
1 tbsp orange juice
¼ cup honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350º.
Combine dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Work in butter to the dough with your hands and set aside. Combine wet ingredients in a small bowl. Add in the dough and stir well, them form a ball with the finished dough. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes. Roll the chilled dough out between 2 pieces of parchment paper to about 1/8 inch width. Use a medium sized heart-shaped cookie cutter to create the crackers. For an extra design, cut out a smaller heart shape in the center of the first one (as shown in photo in slideshow). Then, poke holes in the cut-outs with a fork. Bake for 15 minutes, until golden brown.
S’mores
To finish the s’mores, use the same medium-sized heart-shaped cookie cutter to create heart marshmallows so they will fit between the graham crackers. Then, dip one side of the sandwich in melted chocolate to hold everything together.
Cake
If you don’t own a heart-shaped cake pan, have no fear! Split the batter between one square pan and one circle plan. After they are baked, cut the circle cake in half and place one half on each side of the square cake (see photo in slideshow)
Comments