What are you baking for Valentine's Day?

[chiantiglace]

Actually, beleive this or not. Actual chocolate is add to port wine through the final stages of processing. I thought the same thing as you and everyone else that it had to be an extract, liqueur or escense of some kind. But that is not so. It tastes wonderful with a chocolatey aroma.

[DiH]

Oh, that's easy it's the Cook's Illustrated one:

2 sticks butter

1 cup sugar

1 egg

1 egg yolk

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp almond extract

1/2 tsp salt

2 1/2 cups flour

No leavening?

Di

[momlovestocook]

Hi

For our romantic supper, I'm making dh the tart Grenobloise from Herme's book. For the kids to bring to school, I'm making heart shaped sugar cookies and may make heart shaped marshmallows.

Sandra

[JSkilling]

No leavening?

Di

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No, I don't want them to rise. They do puff a bit but stay basically the size that you cut. I might fiddle around with some baking powder in them though if someone tells me it will make the cookie a bit stronger but not tougher.

[Mangoe]

2 sticks butter

Hello, loved your cookies. I have a question, how much is 2 sticks of butter. Is it 1 cup and is it unsalted.

[chiantiglace]

1/2 lb butter unsalted

[JSkilling]

2 sticks butter

Hello, loved your cookies. I have a question, how much is 2 sticks of butter. Is it 1 cup and is it unsalted.

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Two sticks of butter is one cup and I used unsalted and add salt back into the recipe.

[kthull]

Ok, my current thought is heart-shaped petit fours decorated like the little message candies. I'm figuring either a strawberry or raspberry buttercream as the filling.

Not entirely sold on the idea, but I saw some nice looking ones in some home-y magazine that my wife reads. Their recipe and method sucked, but the finished product looked cool.

These are for second and fourth graders.

Anyone have a recipe or experience using white chocolate poured fondant? I've seen reference to it by googling, but no actual recipes. Another option: How firm does white chocolate ganache set up? I need something that's finger-food friendly for the kids and I've worked plenty with dark chocolate ganache, never white.

Thanks!

[lemon curd]

I just finished baking the heart shaped cookies using JSkilling's recipe and I'm very pleased with the results. The flavour is better than the typical 'decorator' cookie and the parchment paper technique also worked really well (less flour mess). I plan to freeze the baked cookies and then will decorate them next weekend.

[lemon curd]

I ended up doing two projects for Valentines. The first was some heart shaped chocolates and the second was JSkilling's decorated heart cookies. I'm a little disappointed with my decorating skills on the cookies - I used powdered meringue and found it a bit challenging to get the right consistency and really do a professional decorating job. After trying these I also have even more admiration for JSkilling's decorating skills!

Here's some pictures:

[JSkilling]

I think they came out darling! The key to the red and white swirl mixture is to lay down stripes of each color and then run your toothpick all the way through in one direction to pull those stripes of color out. You can pull one way and then reverse the next line or you can pull them all the same way.

[ablosh]

I agree! Those heart-shaped cookies look so darling! Wish I had the skills to decorate. I tried frosting my cookies once...Have to admit they weren't quite so eye-appealing...

[Chezkaren]

Hi Fwed -- Hope you don't mind but I'm stealing your idea! Karen

[Qui]

Valentine's Day being the next big day for the bakery/restaurant business, what are you planning on making?

I plan on making an assorted chocolate candy box, 6 pieces in a box, chocolate truffles with assorted flavor.

A flourless chocolate cake, topped with fresh raspberry and dollop of creme fraiche.

Maybe a heart shaped cake, genoise soaked with strawberry syrup, lined with fresh strawberries, champagne mousse, finish off with chocolate shavings.

What are you making for this Valentine's?

[K8memphis]

Maybe a heart shaped cake, genoise soaked with strawberry syrup, lined with fresh strawberries, champagne mousse, finish off with chocolate shavings.

What are you making for this Valentine's?

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I'm making serious plans to get some of that strawberry cake of yours!

[Kerry Beal]

250 plus boxes of truffles, six in each plus a little molded heart or frog, for the preschool truffle drive.

[mrose]

I usually make a 7" chocolate heart box with a red bow and a 3 x 5 " chocolate box with a red bow. I make both passion fruit hearts & caramel hearts to put in the boxes.

[patsikes]

In an attempt to use up some of the packaging we bought up after Valentines Day last year (thinking we would still be in business), I think I will do a bunch of boxes of turtles to send to our friends and family.

I have 8x5 storage room here in Florida filled with packaging and supplies for Christmas, Valentines, and Easter and no place to make chocolates to fill them! Life sure does throw twists & turns!

Happy new year everyone!

[Desiderio]

75 boxes of only red heart and sea salt caramels ( I am thinking of making passion fruit filling for the heart and see if I like how they turn out )and chocolate filling as well, for a corporate gift , then probably a bounch of other boxes in different sizes and color for the regular customers.I am working on flavors and I think a creamy chocolate filling will be the main followed by the sea salt ( now everybody is addicted to )so I cant skip that one,I was thinking a strawberry balsamic filling and I wanted to try a couple of things from the Wybauw book that look and sound delicious.

Lets hope everything goes smooth

[Lindacakes]

Cherry marshmallows with a dark chocolate coating . . .

[aguynamedrobert]

Man Valentines day is alread approaching? I gotta get on the ball...maybe I should get a girl first lol....either way I hope to make some Raspberry Truffles to give to the Girls that are in my life...always make them feel special...

Raspberry Truffles

Robert

Chocolate Forum

[Chezkaren]

I just finalized the menu yesterday and (shudder) getting ready to plan for Easter. Among numerous heart-shaped chocolate items, I'm doing a cherry pie for two, butterscotch pot de creme, a heart-shaped pull apart cinnamon roll coffee cake, and blueberry bread pudding for two.

Karen

[tammylc]

I'll be offering four flavors of truffles and bonbons - strawberry-balsamic, fleur de sel caramel, hot cinnamon, and white chocolate rose. I think. I haven't sent out the announcement yet, so I could still change my mind.

[emilyr]

Man Valentines day is alread approaching? I gotta get on the ball...maybe I should get a girl first lol....either way I hope to make some Raspberry Truffles to give to the Girls that are in my life...always make them feel special...

Raspberry Truffles

Robert

Chocolate Forum

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For Raspberry Truffles, I'd volunteer!

[tammylc]

250 plus boxes of truffles, six in each plus a little molded heart or frog, for the preschool truffle drive.

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That's a huge amount of volume, Kerry! I'm impressed. Can you describe a little bit about how you're going to handle production and how long it will take you? IIRC, it's not like this is your day job, right?