Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, and I usually make a special dessert. Whether it’s cheesecake, chocolate covered strawberry’s or sugar cookies, I love having a treat to look forward to while celebrating. This year, I thought dressing up sugar cookies would be really fun to make, especially since I saw these cute Valentine’s Day sprinkles at Marshall’s the other day.
Lance and I have been together for a year and a half, so we’ve only spent 1 Valentine’s Day together so far. Last year was pretty low key since we were moving in together, I traveled to see my family in Virginia Beach, and I also started a new job all in the same month. I remember we made the best Scrimp Scampi though. Dinner, a glass of wine and being with Lance was all I needed. Honestly, we’ll probably do exactly the same thing year, except we’ll have these yummy Valentine’s Day Sugar Cookies too.
The sugar cookie recipe is your basic sugar cookie dough, however, I like to add a little almond extract to the mixture. Whenever I can add almond extract I do because I love it. For the icing, I melted white chocolate and added a few drops of red food coloring. I really like the melted chocolate with the sugar cookies! These quick, easy and fun sugar cookies would be the perfect treat to make for your significant other, kids, co-workers and best friends!
What are everyone’s Valentine’s Day plans? Do you celebrate with your best friend(s) or significant other? Do you typically stay in or go out to dinner?
Yield: 20-22 Cookies
Prep Time: 10 Minutes (Plus 1 hour to refrigerate dough)
Cook Time: 10 Mintues
Total Time: 1 Hour 20 Minutes
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, at room temperature (2 sticks)
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
11 oz bag white chocolate chips (I used Ghirardelli brand)
Red Food Coloring
Valentine’s Day sprinkles (optional)
Instructions
Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl and set aside. Cream together butter and sugar in a stand mixer until smooth. (Scraping down sides occasionally.) Add egg to butter and sugar mixture and beat for 2 minutes. Then add vanilla and almond extract.
Slowly add the flour mixture until all combined. Shape dough into a flat disc and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least an hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll dough out on a floured surface to about 1/4 inch thick. Use cookie cutters to make cookies shapes. Take excess dough and roll into a ball and roll out to get additional cookies. Bake cookies at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Cool on cooling rack.
Pour white chocolate chips into a microwave safe bowl. Heat white chocolate chips 30 seconds at a time, mixing after each 30 seconds. (It took me 1 minute to completely melt the white chocolate chips. I stopped at 30 seconds and mixed and put in for an additional 30 seconds.) Take a couple scoops of the mixture and pour into a sandwich bag and cut off the tip on one end. To the mixture in the microwave safe bowl add a few drops of red food coloring. Dip cookies in the melted chocolate and let harden on a cooling rack. Once hardened, take the white melted chocolate in the sandwich bag and drizzle over the top of the cookies. Add sprinkles on top.
Recipe Adapted From: http://robynsview.com/kitchen-basics-101-basic-sugar-cookie-dough-plus-five-different-ways-use/
Ashley's Paige 