These easy conversation heart cookies are made without icing so they're simpler and faster to put together than frosted sugar cookies. But the cookie colors and sayings still make a pretty Valentine's Day treat.
1red edible ink markeror red writing icing or red royal icing
Instructions
In a small bowl, beat an egg. Add in 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ¼ teaspoon almond extract and ¾ teaspoon salt. Set aside.
In another bowl, mix together 2½ cups of flour, ¼ teaspoon baking soda and ¼ teaspoon baking powder. Set aside.
Cut up 2 sticks (1 cup) of cold (straight from the refrigerator) butter into ½ inch chunks.
Process the butter and 1 cup of granulated sugar in the food processor until combined, about 30 seconds.
Blend in the egg mixture until combined, another 30 seconds.
Add the flour mixture and process until all of the flour is combined, about 30 seconds.
Divide the dough into four parts.
Put one ball of dough into a small bowl.
Add a few drops of food coloring to the dough.
Fold the dough around the color. Then knead it until the color is distributed throughout the dough.
Put the ball of dough in between 2 large sheets of parchment paper.
Use the rolling pin to roll the dough out to about 1/8" thick.
Put the rolled out dough on a cookie sheet or tray, still keeping the parchment paper on both sides.
Repeat with the other balls of dough, using a different color of food coloring for each one.
Refrigerate the rolled out dough for 1½ hours, or freeze for 30 minutes.
When the cookie dough is stiff, take the first sheet of cookie dough out of the refrigerator (leaving the other ones in).
Peel off the top layer of parchment paper.
Cut hearts in the cookie dough with the cookie cutter.
Use a thin spatula (or a cake knife) to separate the cookies from the bottom layer of parchment paper. If the dough has become soft and is losing its shape, put it back in the refrigerator for 15 to 20 minutes until it is stiff again.
Repeat the process with the other three sheets of cookie dough.
Put a piece of parchment paper down on the cookie sheet.
Then lay out the cookies about ½ inch apart.
Bake at 300℉ for 12 to 16 minutes, until the cookies have an even color across the top but are not brown.
Let cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet. Then move to a wire rack and let them cool completely.
Roll out the extra dough to create another batch of cookies.
Once the cookies are completely cool, write conversation heart sayings (like BFF, HUG, and KISS) on the front of the cookies with the edible ink marker.
Notes
Using parchment paper on both sides of the cookie dough while rolling will keep the dough from sticking to the rolling pin.
Refrigerating the cookie dough prevents the cookies from losing their shape while they are baking
Parchment paper on the cookie sheet keeps the cookies from spreading and maintains the heart shape.
Only bake one cookie sheet at a time since stacking them in the oven will cause uneven heating
The conversation heart cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for about 3 days, in the refrigerator for about a week or in the freezer for up to 3 months. To keep your cookies looking their best, place a layer of parchment paper between each layer of cookies.