Description
Slice and Bake Valentine’s Day Cookies are buttery sugar cookies with a hidden pink or red heart in the center of each slice. Festive, fun, and make-ahead friendly, they’re perfect for gifting, Valentine’s dessert tables, or a sweet baking project to share with loved ones.
Ingredients
¾ cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
Red or pink food coloring
Instructions
- In a large bowl, beat butter, sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes).
- Add eggs one at a time, mixing until just combined.
- In another bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Gradually add dry mixture to wet ingredients until dough forms. Add 1–2 tbsp more flour if too sticky.
- Divide dough: keep ½–⅔ plain, tint the rest with red or pink food coloring.
- Freeze tinted dough for 5 minutes, then roll to ½-inch thick. Freeze again for 20 minutes.
- Cut out hearts with a 1.5-inch cutter. Lightly dampen one side of each and stack into a 10-inch log. Freeze 30 minutes.
- Wrap plain dough around the heart log to form a cylinder. Wrap in plastic and chill 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Slice dough into ¼-inch rounds. Arrange 2 inches apart on sheets.
- Bake 12 minutes, until bottoms are lightly golden. Cool completely before serving.
Notes
- Chilling is essential for clean slices and defined heart shapes.
- Use gel food coloring for bold colors without adding liquid.
- For festive edges, roll log in sprinkles before chilling.
- Swap the outer dough with chocolate for a two-tone effect.
- Freeze unbaked dough logs up to 3 months; bake directly from frozen, adding 1–2 minutes.
- Prep Time: 30 mins (plus 1½–2 hrs chilling)
- Cook Time: 12 mins per batch
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 120
- Sugar: 9g
- Sodium: 60mg
- Fat: 5g
- Saturated Fat: 3g
- Unsaturated Fat: 2g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 16g
- Fiber: 0g
- Protein: 2g
- Cholesterol: 20mg
