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At Her Campus, we very much enjoy getting our bake on any time of year, but Valentine’s Day provides an extra excuse to rustle up some pretty delicious goodies.
Whether you’re wanting to rustle up pudding for a romantic dinner, make edible gifts for friends or are just in the mood for a holiday themed sweet treat yourself, one of the following recipes should tick those boxes right off… take your pick from our ‘Love Struck Jammy Dodgers’, White chocolate and Strawberry Rocky Road or Melted Heart Chocolate Fondants…
First we have…
Love Struck Jammy Dodgers:
Credits: http://www.auburnantics.co.uk/
You will need:
– 250g butter, softened
– 140g icing sugar
– 2tsp vanilla extract or paste
– 1 large egg yolk
– 375g plain flour,
– Approx 170g of strawberry jam.
Method
1) In a large mixing bowl, beat together the icing sugar and butter until light and fluffy.
2)Add in the vanilla extract and the egg yolk before mixing until evenly combined.
3)Sift in the flour and mix into a thick, soft dough, which can be moulded into a ball and wrapped in cling film.
4)Slide into the fridge for at least an hour to firm up.
5)Get your cutters of choice out at the ready, pre heat your oven to 170C and lightly flour your work surface.
6)Roll out the dough to about 2cm thick and get cutting your hearts out!
7)As you’ll have a lot, you will probably have to do a few batches, but for each batch, use a smaller cutter (or knife) to cut out the inside of the heart.
8)Bake these biscuits in the oven for about 8-10 minutes until lightly golden, brown.
9)Smother the solid shaped hearts with a good spoonful of jam and gently press on the cut out hearts, allowing the sweet sugary jam to squidge up through the gap. You can now either leave them plain or drizzle with a little icing
Et voila!
At number 2… White chocolate, cranberry and strawberry rocky road
Credits: http://technicolorkitcheninenglish.blogspot.co.uk/
You will need:
– 800g white chocolate, chopped
– A bag of quartered white marshmallows
– 200g sweetened dried cranberries
– 100g of dried apple
– 200g freeze-dried strawberries, sliced lengthwise
Method:
1) Very lightly butter a 8×12 inch baking tin and line it with greaseproof paper
2) Place your chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of barely simmering water, being careful not to let the bottom of the bowl touch the water and cook until chocolate is deliciously smooth and melted…
3) Remove from the heat, add the marshmallow, dried apples and cranberries, keeping some of the cranberries for decoration – and stir until well combined. Pour mixture into prepared pan and smooth the top.
4) Sprinkle with the dried strawberries and cranberries. Place in the fridge until firm, which should take anywhere between 2 and 3 hours.
5) Cut into pieces, remove the foil and serve… so, so easy!
As a side note – the recipe makes a lot of Rocky Road! Anywhere up to 32, so perhaps one for housemates (or quantity halving…)
And finally… Melted Heart Chocolate fondants:
http://www.poiresauchocolat.net/2010/08/melted-heart-chocolate-fondants.html
You will need:
– 15g unsalted butter at room temp
– 1 medium egg
– 15g soft brown sugar
– 8g plain flour
– 60g best quality dark chocolate
– pinch of fleur de sel (optional)
Method:
1) Preheat the oven to 180C.
2) Grease two ramekins with butter and then dust them with cocoa powder.
3) In a food processor whizz up the butter, flour, sugar and egg (and salt if using) until you have a smooth batter.
4) Melt the chocolate slowly in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. When the chocolate has cooled slightly, pour it into the processor and blend until smooth.
5) Spoon into the prepared ramekins. At this point, you can cover the ramekins and keep them in fridge for a day or two (simply bake for 3 minutes longer).
6) Bake in the oven for 9 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare plates and the ice cream. When you remove them, run a knife around the edge then turn out onto a plate. Serve hot.