Valentine Sugar Cookies

Soft and sweet Valentine sugar cookies are the perfect way to say I love you! They are super simple and make a great treat for gifting.

Cookies are always a good idea in my book. And when it comes to holidays they are especially sweet and festive. For more Valentine dessert magic try Cherry Almond Cupcakes, Chocolate Covered Strawberries, and Chocolate Lava Cake.

“I LOVE YOU” In Cookie Form

Nothing says “I love you” on Valentine’s Day like a red or pink heart. What could be better than an edible one (based off of our classic sugar cookies)?

These heart cookies are not only adorable, but delicious!

The kids love to decorate these sweet treats together to give out to friends. They are perfectly customizable making them the perfect gift-able treat. You could even use a smaller tip and wright a name on the cookie, or even a sweet phrase.

Frost and sprinkle, and then wrap these up in cellophane and tie with a bow for a “sweet” gift for that special someone.

HOW TO MAKE Valentine’s Day Sugar Cookies

PREP. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

DOUGH. Cream butter, cream cheese, sugars, egg and almond in large bowl (or Kitchen-Aid) until fluffy. In a separate medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Add dry ingredients to creamed mixture. Stir until soft dough forms.

ROLL & CUT. Use a rolling pin to roll out the cookie dough. Cut with cookie cutter. Thin dough will make crunchy cookies. If you want soft dough, it needs to be about ⅜ in. {NOTE: Try not to handle the dough too much}

BAKE. Place on lightly greased baking sheet and bake 8-10 minutes. Let cool.

HOW TO DECORATE

FROST. Make sugar cookie frosting by mixing all ingredients (unsalted butter, powdered sugar, milk, vanilla extract and almond extract) with hand mixer on high speed. If too thick, add a little more milk. NOTE: For minimal chunks in the frosting, sift the powdered sugar.

Add your food coloring. Frost the cookies with pink and red frosting (royal icing can be used too but we prefer our classic frosting).

DECORATE. Use the decorating gel to add texture to the valentine sugar cookies. Sprinkle with red and pink sugar sprinkles and let set to harden before gifting or delivering.

Decoration Variations – Heart shapes, pink, and red scream Valentines, but you don’t have to stick to those exclusively. 

• Frost the heart shaped cookies with any color 
• Use other cookie cutter shapes and frost with pink or red. 
• Adding “valentine” sprinkles or writing on loving words will help give the cookies a Valentine’s feel.

RECIPE TIPS

One thing I have noticed about cooking is that people using the exact same recipe can get a little different results. Maybe the unnoticable quirks in peoples cooking methods come to play. Perhaps it’s the oven or even the weather. No matter what it is I like to provide information about commonly asked questions.

For sugar cookies it’s about texture. 

• Avoid over-mixing the dough as it can cause it to toughen. 
• Rolling the dough too thin will give a crunchy cookie. Too thick and the middle won’t bake completely. I stick to about ⅜” thick
• If you think your dough is too crumbly and wont hold its shape, wet your hands and knead the dough until it will hold its shape. Rewet hands as needed. 
• If the dough is too sticky simply sprinkle in a bit of flour until it’s workable.

FAQ

Can you make the dough ahead of time? There are a couple ways that you can store the dough to be baked later.

• Dough log: Roll the sugar cookie dough into a log and wrap them with plastic wrap then again with foil. Freeze for up to 3 months. Allow to thaw in the fridge then roll and cut out shapes. 
• Dough Shapes: Cut out the cookie shapes and line them up on a pan. Place them in the freezer until they are solid. Transfer to a freezer safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to bake them place the shapes on a cookie sheet and allow them to thaw before baking.

How to store the cookies? You can STORE the baked cookies unfrosted or frosted. Unfrosted cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. 

How to store frosted cookies? If you have frosted the cookies the storage times are the same you just need to be more careful about stacking the cookies. Make sure that the frosting has set and that you put parchment paper in between layers.

For more Valentine treats, try:

• Red Velvet White Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Chocolate Mousse
• Strawberry Shortcake Kabobs
• White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake
• Red Velvet Poke Cake
• Copycat Swig Cookies
• Valentine Cookies