It’s not too late to bake up a batch of Valentine’s Day treat! That was what I said to myself at 2am this morning after I procrastinated through all the late night talk shows. A few days ago, I saw some limited edition heart shape York Mint Patties complete with pale pink filling. They jumped into my shopping basket before I even had a chance to talk myself out of it. I know it’s a cop-out to make Valentine’s Day treat by simply slapping a piece of candy on top of a cookie but these patties were just too cute. They practically begged to top a tender cocoa peppermint shortbread cookie. I granted their wish.
Adorable, no? As if that was not enough cuteness for a day, I took advantage of my right to be kitschy and tacky on Valentine’s Day. A batch of pink royal icing tested my rusty piping skills but I persevered to inscribe messages of love onto each and every one of the cookie. Who needs conversation hearts when you can have chocolate mint cookie!
I turned to my tried-and-true espresso biscuit recipe from Martha Stewart as a starting point. I skipped the ground espresso and vanilla in favour of 1/2 teaspoon of peppermint extract. As soon as the cookies emerged from the oven, I gently pressed an unwrapped peppermint pattie on top. The warmth of the cookie was enough to melt and later adhere the chocolate securely. Once the cookies completely cooled, I mixed a batch of classic royal icing using meringue powder and tinted it pink. A bit of frustration with my make-shift piping bag later and I had a batch of lovey-dovey cookiegram in front of me.
If you haven’t gotten the drift already, I should point out that I’m completely smitten by these limited edition mint patties. Look at that perfect shade of pale pink filling! In the shape of a heart! All I know is that by tomorrow, I’ll be all over the discount candy aisle trying to scooping up as many bags of these candies as I can. You can scoff at the commercial aspect of Valentine’s Day all you want. I live for limited edition candies. Also on my shopping list? Pink and red Smarties and Reese Peanut Butter Hearts.
For more kitschy Valentine’s Day fun at Dessert By Candy, don’t forget to check out my Nutella Buckeyes from last year. They are still one of my favourites! Of course, if you’re not a fan of chocolate, there’s also these pretty Strawberry Pistachio Éclairs in hues of pink and green.
Happy Valentine’s Day, Happy Chocolate Day, Happy Bah Humbug Day, whichever you choose to celebrate!
