St. Valentine's Recipes

Heart Sugar Cookies

2/3 cup shortening
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon grated orange peel
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
4 teaspoons milk
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Cream shortening, sugar, orange peel and vanilla.
Add egg and beat until light and fluffy.
Stir in the milk.

In a separate bowl: mix in the rest of the dry ingredients.
Take the creamed mixture and blend it into the dry mixture.

Roll dough into a big ball and chill it in the refrigerator for an hour.  

Using a cutting board and a rolling pin; sprinkle some flour on the board and the rolling pin. Roll out the dough and use your heart shaped cookie cutter to cut out cookies. Place cookies on a greased cookies sheet. Use red, white and pink sprinkes and tubs of icing to decorate your hearts.

Preheat over to 375º F . Bake cookies 6 - 8 minutes.

(recipe by Gloria Watson)

Red Velvet Cake

1/2 cup shortening
1 1/2 cup sugar

Mix well with a spoon. Then add the following ingredients:

2 eggs
(2) 2 oz. bottles of red food coloring
1 teaspoon cocoa

Mix together with a spoon

Adding the rest of the ingredients with a mixer:

2 1/2 cups plain flour (sifted)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 Cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon white vinegar

Pour into two 8 inch round cake pans

Bake at 350º F for 30 minutes.

Remove both cakes from the oven and let cool for about ten minutes. Remove cakes from cake pan and let them cool completely. Once they are completely cool slice both through the center - making four layers. Frost each layer.

Icing
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup sugar

Mix well.

3/4 cup milk

Mix with an electric mixer for 10 minutes until light and fluffy.

(recipe by Nancy Benson)

Drop Quaker Oats Cookies (No Bake)

2 cups sugar
1/2 cups cocoa
1 stick (1/2 cup) margarine
1/2 cup milk

Mix the above ingredients in a sauce pan on medium high. Let come to a hard boil as you stir. Let boil hard for one minute without stirring. Remove from stove top and add:

2 1/2 cups Quick Quaker Oats
1/2 Cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix well. Place a sheet of foil on a counter top. Scoop a full teaspoon of the mixture and let drop on the foil until all the mixture is gone. Let cool and they are ready to serve.

(recipe by Melinds Day)

Chocolate Heart Sheet Cake

2 cups self rising flour
2 cups sugar

Mix in a bowl

1/2 cup shortening
4 table spoons cocoa (3-4)
1 stick (1/2 cup) margarine
1 cup water

Bring to a boil slowly. Pour over flour and sugar mixture. Mix well; then add:

1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla

Mix well and pour into a heart shaped 9 x 9 inch baking tin. Bake at 350º F for 20-25 minute. Let cake cool.

Icing

4 tablespoons cocoa
1 stick (1/2 cup) margarine
6 tablespoons milk

Bring to a boil slowly, then add:

1 box powdered sugar (sifted)
1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix well and spread or pour on cooled cake. To make this cake have a special look of Valentines, use some red and white tube icing adding some hearts, arrows and flowers.

(recipe by Jo Clifton)

Heart filled Pavlova (with berries)

4 egg whites (room temperature)
2/3 cup granulated white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup heavy whipping cream
4 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon white vinegar
1 cup (or more) fresh berries mixed (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries are great for adding Valentines colors)
a glass bowl
pastry bag and a tip (optional)
baking sheet
baking parchment paper (wax)
mixer or a wire whisk

Pre-heat oven to 250º F

Place egg whites in the glass bowl, add the vinegar. Beat the egg whites and vinegar until fluffy. Slowly add sugar. Once the egg whites are very stiff, add cornstarch and vanilla and whisk a few more times (try not to over whisk).

Wet the baking parchment paper (wax), crinkle it up, cover the baking sheet with it.

Draw a heart shape on the parchment paper to the size you want it to be. If you use a pastry bag, place a tip on it (a star top works best). Fill the pastry bag about half full with the egg foam and twist it to close it off. Squeeze the pastry bag and make your meringue heart (about 10 inches in diameter) on the wax paper. A spoon will work if you don't have a pastry bag. Build the meringue on the wax paper and make a well in the middle to create a heart shaped shell.

When your heart is finished, start stacking the meringue along the edge until you have a deep heart (bowl to add the berries). Place the meringue in the oven. Let bake for 45 minutes then the hear off. Leaving the meringue in the oven for another hour, or until it is completely cool. It is fine to the meringue overnight.

Remove the meringue heart from the oven, making sure that it is cool, if not, leave it for a little while.

Whisk the cream until stiff, then fill the meringue heart with the whipped cream and put the berries on top. If left too long, the meringue will go soggy. Some people actually perfer it this way. Enjoy.

Nilla Waffer Cheese Cup Cakes

2 8 oz. creme cheese (philadelphia blocks)
2 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix all the above in a bowl with a mixer.
Pre-heat oven to 350º F

1 box nilla waffers
1 can cherries (or fruit of your choice)
cupcake papers
cupcake baking tins

Place cupcake papers in the tin and fill about half way with the mixture. Bake in oven for 15 minutes.

Let them cool completely and add the cherries to the top of each. Just the right size to enjoy.

(recipe by Nancy Benson)