Valentine’s Day Treats

Valentine’s Day is a month away!  Valentine’s Day is a great time to let someone know how much you love them.  While we’re still in a pandemic, it’s more important than ever to reach out to friends and loved ones.  I think a homemade Valentine is a great gift.  Why not make your special someone homemade Valentine cookies with messages?  We have a terrific recipe from when we were featured on WGN-TV.  Of course, these look amazing in our personalized Valentine’s Day gable boxes.  They are the perfect treat to leave on a doorstep!  You could also fill the boxes with candy and little love notes.

The recipe below is also featured on our website in our Studio Insights.  You can find all types of tips from writing etiquette, personalized napkin tips to party accents.  

Sugar Cookie Recipe

1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla
1 egg
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Mix butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add vanilla and egg.  Combine dry ingredients in separate bowl.  Add to butter mixture and mix to combine.  Roll out dough between two sheets of parchment to ¼ inch thickness.  Chill for 1 hour to overnight.  Cut into shapes and place on parchment lined baking sheet.  Chill again for 15-20 .  Bake at 350 for 7 minutes, rotate pans, then bake for approximately 3 minutes more until cookies are just beginning to turn golden brown.  Cool on wire racks until completely cool.

Cookie Glaze

3 ¾ – 4 cups powdered sugar
6 Tablespoons whole milk
1 tsp almond flavoring
6 Tablespoons corn syrup

Combine powdered sugar, milk, and flavoring.  Mix until smooth.  Add corn syrup.  Stir until combined and smooth.  If desired, add paste food coloring.

Tips

• Chilling sugar cookie dough for rolled and cut sugar cookies hardens the butter in the dough so that the cookie dough rolls out more easily.  After cutting the cookies, you can chill them again so that the cookies retain their shape while baking.
• Instead of store bought frosting, take time to make a cookie glaze which makes cookies look professional, smooth and dries hard for decorating.
• Use paste food coloring to make vibrant colors for cookies.  Liquid food coloring may change consistency of glaze or royal frosting.  Experiment by combining different colors to make unique shades.
• For a clean edge on the cookie, outline with royal frosting, then fill in with cookie glaze.  This stops the glaze from running down the sides of the cookie.
• Great tip for decorating:  Use a squeeze bottle to “fill” surface with glaze.  Spread glaze to corners with toothpick or small knife.  You can purchase bottle at any craft store or Wal-Mart
• Once the glaze is dry (can take several hours) decorate cookies with a pastry bag for a professional look.  Pastry bags are available at any craft store or in a pinch use a zip-loc bag.
• Experiment with different types of sprinkles, sugars, and decorations.  For instance, make a border with pearl candies or large sprinkles and/or use sanding sugar for a sparkling effect.

Enjoy!

xoxo,

Jennifer