So I made a batch and managed to steal a few minutes here and there to decorate them.

Sometimes I let things sound so time intensive in my mind that I  never get around to doing it.  Sugar cookies usually fall in this category.  This time I tried flavoring the royal icing with some pina colada flavoring oil.  It added a fun scent and subtle taste to the cookies which I like because royal icing isn’t the yummiest frosting on earth.

I’ve decided to make small batches more often so I’ll get it through my head that it’s really quite simple.

The technique above was my #1 goal.  I wanted to try it.  I’d seen a picture in a catalog and wanted to learn how.  Mine aren’t exactly like the picture, but they were so much fun to make.  After filling in the centers with royal icing, I put a little circle of contrasting icing in the center, then quickly pulled a knife down through the center of the dot to form the heart  (a lot like I did with this baking project).

I really like how this tiny cookie turned out as well.  It reminds me of my baby.

I have hosted many baking parties for my girls, and every time I think about how much fun it looks while I supervise the organized chaos.  I had so much fun decorating this batch on my own (ok, my oldest daughter helped too).  It was a great creative experience and I learned something new.

Now they’re waiting patiently to be devoured for our FHE treat tonight.  Except for one, which we used on Friday for a mini-celebration….

See that little nibble on the edge?  I’ll share the reason soon.

Meanwhile, Happy Valentines Day!  I hope you’re having a fun one.

Sincerely,
Jennifer

Using this technique (again!) I made a rolled paper heart.  You can see the other things I’ve made with these flowers here, here and here.

Unlike the wreath, this project took just a little while to complete.  I still really like the look and feel of this technique.

Once it was done, I taped the back of the heart to a piece of pink cardstock paper that I’d cut to 8×10 inches.  I removed the glass from a large silver frame and put the heart in.

Right now it’s functioning as a simple piece of art above our bed.

It’s a nice twist on Valentine decor.  Neutral in color, understated, not too feminine, but still fun.  I like the three dimensional quality it has while not being too obvious.  And unique.  I’m big on unique.

I love projects like this.
Hope you’re having a great day!

HH

Last fall I bought some sugar roses to use for my daughter’s baptism.  BUT we forgot about them, so now they’re finding new purpose as Valentine’s Day decor.

I cut a large heart out of foam board and hot glued the sugar roses to it.

Every year I think about how fun it would be to make something like this with real flowers, but for some reason I’ve never done it.  This is a fun substitute.  Made from materials I had on hand, it cost me nothing.

I glued ribbon around the outside edges of the heart to hide the foam base.

I love that it’s unexpected but very simple.   And white.  I still love white.

It also looks pretty against red.  A bit more traditional.

The weekend is underway at our house, with several things to celebrate.  Should be fun!

Jennifer

We made a second batch of our favorite brownies, but this time we divided the batter into six inch cake pans.

I traced six inch circles onto parchment paper, cut them out, and lined the bottoms of the pans for easy release.  I also lightly sprayed the sides with non-stick baking spray.

Divide the batter between the three pans, then mix up these ingredients:

4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 large egg yolk
2 Tb. sugar
2 Tb. flour

Mix until smooth.

We used this recipe to make this version in the fall.  I love how such a simple thing can be adapted to many occasions.  My girls decided they wanted to add pink food coloring this time.

Scoop the filling into a disposable decorating bag, cut off the tip, twist the ends, and set your daughters loose (or have some creative fun yourself).

They came up with these designs:

Bake them at 350 for about 20-25 minutes.  I’ve found that they sometimes need a little extra time because they’re so thick and the cream cheese on top makes the centers take longer to cook.  Watch the center carefully so you don’t end up with gooey, under-cooked brownies.

They’re so cute when they’re done, and we liked how the pink worked.

Once they’ve cooled, remove from the pan and peel the parchment paper off the bottom.  Place on a paper doily, then add a cardboard cake round to support the bottom.

We wrapped them in cellophane to share with friends.  This would also be a fun dessert to have at a romantic dinner for two.

I bought a little bunch of these roses at the dollar store recently.  I thought their slightly vintage feel would look fun on packages.  I wrapped the stem around the cellophane and added a simple tag.  Ready to go!

Next time I think I would order a set of these pans to bake brownies in.  So cute!

Hopeful Homemaker

Whip up a batch of brownies (try this best ever brownie recipe for great results) and simply cut them using a heart shaped cookie cutter.

Simply place them on a pretty paper napkin and serve.  Your family or guests will love them.

Want to make them even more fun?  Package them.

I bought some super cute pink and white striped cookie bags and simply punched my favorite scalloped circle to make a tag.  A bit of hand lettering and a simple heart stamp finish it off.

I bought the bags here, and was impressed with how quickly they shipped them.  If I had a small fortune to spend on packaging, I think I’d buy some in every color.  They are just too cute.

Next I cut a piece of parchment paper to wrap around the brownie to prevent oil marks from forming on the striped bag.  Simply insert the brownie into the bag…

fold the top and punch holes in both the tag and bag.  Add a ribbon and you’re done!

It’s so much fun to wrap up a little treat as an unexpected gift.

If I had planned ahead and ordered different bags, I would be all over these two downloadable designs for Valentine treats.  This one is especially for brownies, and this you could use for any kind of treat.  It never occurred to me that I could run these little bags through an ink jet printer.   She has a shop where she sells the bags in sets of 25 for $5.  I hope she updates the brownie bag next year, because I’d love to use it.   Check them out!

Up next, Valentine Brownies Part II.

Hope you’re having a great day!
Jennifer

I wanted a quick Valentine treat the other day, so we whipped up some basic Rice Krispy Treats.  Instead of pressing them into a pan to cool, we scooped them out with an ice cream scoop for fun.

Once they cooled we dipped the tops in pink tinted chocolate and added my favorite new sprinkles.

They were a big hit with the girls, who of course wanted to help.

They turned out so cute that I kept taking pictures.  All these little balls with pink tops…

And then, when the chocolate had set, we put them on sticks.

As Bakerella has repeatedly demonstrated, the cute factor of any treat jumps way up if you put it on a stick.  These were no exception.

But since cake pops are WAY too sweet for my stomach, Rice Krispy Treats made a great substitution.  The children loved them as well.  We will definitely be making these again.

They didn’t last long enough at my house to try it, but I think they would also be super cute in little treat bags tied with a ribbon for sharing.

If you try it, I’d love to hear.

Jennifer

I don’t believe in letting Valentines day get BIG.  But it is a lot of fun to gather supplies and make sweet things.  It’s also a fun time to focus on expressing love to my family and making them feel like the crazy special people that they are.

I always have more ideas than I can use and most years I don’t get to them, but this year I’ve promised myself some time to experiment, try some of my ideas and see what I can come up with.

One of them might involve those sprinkles.  They’re about 1/16th of an inch in size and I can hardly get over how cute they are.

What are you planning for Valentines Day?

Jennifer

I glued the ribbon around the edge of the footprints to help create the image of a heart.  Nothing fancy, but a special little first valentine for my baby on her first Valentine’s day.

Zero cost, and only a few minutes out of my day.  A precious little reminder of how sweet and small she is.

Years ago I found these miniature mailboxes.  They’re metal, so they’re sturdy, and I love the color.  They were on clearance, so I bought the rest of them and every Valentines Day I get them out.  Each family member has their own mailbox.   It’s photos like this that make me think “Sheesh!  There really are a lot of us!”  That seems like a really LONG line of mailboxes!

We line them up in a spot where everyone can reach them (my dining room window sill) and all of a sudden my house gets unusually quiet with children scurrying around making valentines for each other.   Instead of the traditional method of putting the flag up for outgoing mail, they put the flag up when mail has been delivered.

Looks like we’ll have a love-filled week.  Hope yours is as well!