A Kiss Countdown

Here is a fun way to count down the days until Valentines Day.  After all...who doesn't love to get kisses?

What You'll Need:

- A bag of Hershey Kisses

- 25 - 30 inches of Plastic Wrap (like Saran Wrap) Mine was 12 x27 inches long

- Twine or ribbon

The How To:

- First lay your piece of plastic wrap out on a table

- Then lay out two rows of 13 kisses on the plastic wrap.  (see photo 1 below)

- Now fold one side of the plastic wrap over the rows of kisses. And now fold the other side of the plastic wrap over the kisses. (see photo 2 below)

- Next, you will use your twine/ribbon to tie the plastic wrap into 13 sections.  2 kisses will be in each section. (see photo 3 below)

-Then you can embellish it with ribbon, hearts, or what ever you want (photo 4)

 I tied on a piece of twine that was long enough to allow me to hang the countdown on door knobs or coat hooks or whatever.

The countdown is meant to start on February 1st.

 

My kids are excited to start getting their 'kisses' each day.  =)

Meringue Hearts

Meringues are easy to make and taste delicious!



This recipe makes about 60 meringue cookies (but we gobbled them up in a day or 2)

What You'll Need

- 4 Egg Whites

- 1 tsp Vanilla

- 1/4 tsp Cream of Tartar

- 1 1/3 cups Sugar

- Food coloring (optional)

- cake decorating icing bag

The How To

- Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.

- In a medium mixing bowl you are going to beat the Egg Whites, Vanilla, and Cream of Tartar on high until SOFT peaks form. (that is where the tips curl)

- Then add the Sugar....ONE Tablespoon at a time.

- Now you need to beat the mixture until STIFF peaks form (that is where the tips stand straight up)

- Next if you want to color your meringue, nows the time to add food coloring until you get your desired color.

- Then fill the cake decorating bag with the meringue mix.  I did NOT put a decorating tip on the bag.

- Now to put your hearts on the pan.  For each heart, squeeze the meringue on to the pan in a V formation....making sure that the lines of the V touch. 

-Time to stick them in the oven and bake them for 20 minutes (until they are firm and the bottoms are lightly browned)

- Put your meringues on a cooling rack.

- When cooled off....ENJOY!!!

'It's Love' Cookies

My kids just raved about these cookies and couldn't stop saying 'mmmm' while they ate them.

What You'll Need:

- 1 Bag Milk Chocolate candy hearts.

- 1/2 C. Butter, softened

- 1/2 C. Peanut Butter

- 1/2 C. Granulated Sugar

- 1/2 C. Brown sugar

- 1/2 t Baking Soda

-1/2 t Baking Powder

- 1 Egg

- 1/2 t Vanilla

- 1 1/4 C. Flour

The How To:

- 1. In a large mixing bowl beat the butter and peanut butter on medium high for 30 seconds.

- 2. Add the sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, and baking powder. Beat until combined, scraping side of bowl occassionally.

- 3. Beat in the egg and vanilla till combined.

-4. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with mixer. Then stir in the remaining flour.

-5. If necessary, cover and chill dough till it is easy to handle.

-6. Shape the dough into 1 inch balls and place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

-7. BAKE at 375 for 7 - 9 minutes or till the bottoms are lightly browned.

-8. Take them out of the oven and immediately press the chocolate heart into the center of each cookie.

-9. Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack

Let them cool and then enjoy!

Chocolate Covered Cake Hearts

 What you'll need:

-Frosting (your choice)

-Cake Mix (your choice)

-Red, Pink & White Melting Chocolate

-Cake Decorating Bag

 The how to:

-Make the cake according to the directions on the package.

-Crumble the cake into a bowl and mix in the frosting.







-Mix in enough frosting until you can make the cake stick together without falling apart.


-Cover the bowl and put it in the Fridge for about an hour.








-Shape the cake mix into hearts and balls shapes.  What ever size you want.


-Melt chocolate in bowls stirring every 30 seconds until melted.



-Drop the hearts/balls in the chocolate one at a time.

-Use a spoon to pour chocolate over them until completely covered.

-Scoop the hearts/balls up with a fork (don't spear them) and gently tap the fork on the side of the bowl.  The excess chocolate will drip off.

-Use a knife or fork to push the heart/balls off the fork and onto wax paper, filling any wholes with chocolate on a spoon.  Let harden.

-Place the white chocolate wafers in the frosting decorating bag.

-Microwave for 30 second intervals, mushing the chocolate between each, until chocolate is melted.

-Cut of the tip of the decorating bag creating a very narrow opening. (or use a small round decorators tip)



-Zigzag the white chocolate back and forth across the hearts/balls.

-Allow to harden.

-Trim off any extra chocolate around the edges with a sharp knife.

To add some variety to your sweets, use different kinds of sprinkles when decorating.

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Hearts

 Here's a simple way to make a tasty strawberry heart!

What you'll need:

-Strawberry's

-Chocolate Candy Melts or Almond Bark

-White Chocolate Candy Melts or Almond Bark

-Frosting Decorating Bag

 

The how to:

 -Cut the strawberry's in half.

-Lay the strawberry halves flat, and trim the sides and top of the berry to look like a heart.

 

-Melt the chocolate in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until melted.

-Dip the strawberry hearts in the strawberry hearts in the chocolate and lay in on wax paper to harden.

-Melt the White Chocolate in a plastic decorating bag.  Squeeze bag every 30 seconds until chocolate is melted.

-Clip the tip off the decorating bag, creating a very small opening.

-Zigzag the white chocolate back and forth over the chocolate covered strawberry's.

-Once the chocolate is hardened, use a sharp knife to trim off any unwanted pieces of chocolate along the sides.

Use these sweet hearts to top cupcakes and cookies, or just eat them as they are.