Friends!!! We made it :) The final week of Valentines Day tips, just in time for Valentines Day on Monday! If you missed the last two weeks you can read them here and here. Not to be biased (at all) but I highly recommend them, haha. Let us know what you think about those! This week I am actually switching gears and focusing on some treats that you and your kids can eat and indulge in. As always I'm keeping it super simple with activities that you can do together and not add any stress to your life. Remember it doesn't matter if it looks insta "worthy", what matters are the memories you're making with your kids. They will only remember the moments together (& how relaxed mom & dad were 🤪)
Without further ado, here they are:
Treats to make with your kids—
1. Heart shaped cake
I linked a recipe here in case you want one but this is really simple! No special cake pans necessary. All you need is a round cake pan and a square cake pan, any cake recipe (including the kind that comes from a box! Don’t complicate your life) and frosting (again— bought or homemade, whatever is best for your family!) You can decorate as much or as little as you want or can handle on that specific day. Conversation hearts make it very Valentines Day-esque with minimal effort. Your kids will love it no matter what! After the cake is baked, you’re going to turn the square cake so it looks like a diamond, cut the circle in half and attach it with frosting to the top of the diamond and you’ve got a heart! Delicious!
2. Chocolate covered strawberries
You can do this 1 of 2 ways. You can either cut a strawberry in half and attach the 2 halves using a toothpick & then dipping it in the chocolate and decorating if you wish. Or, you can cut a strawberry in half and then cut out a V at the top to make it look like a heart & then proceed with dipping and decorating. Whichever route you choose will be awesome, I guarantee it!
3. Tic Tac Toe
All you need for this simple treat are graham crackers, frosting (I like to use the kind from the grocery store that already comes in a little piping bag) and conversation hearts or m&ms work too. To make them you will pipe frosting onto the graham crackers to make it look like a tic tac toe board. After they dry you can play some tick tac toe using conversation hearts (or whatever else you choose) before eating them up. Super simple and your kids will think you’re so cool :)
4. Thumbprint / Kisses cookie
If you know me, you know I am a sucker for a good sugar cookie. Especially if you add a little love to it in the form of raspberry jam or a Hershey kiss! You can use literally any sugar cookie recipe but I will link the one I like to use below. A super simple way to make these more thematic for Valentines day (or any holiday) is by dying the dough whatever color that matches the holiday— In this case I suggest pink. You add a Hershey kiss and you’re golden! If you prefer to be more traditional and use jam, you can make a heart in the center instead of just a circle indent to fill with jam. Super simple and super delicious!
5. Breakfast for dinner
Some days you lose track of time and suddenly its dinner time and you didn’t plan or prep anything. I get it! As a nanny myself, its happened many times to me! Those are the days I spin it to the kids and say guess what!! Were having breakfast for dinner *cue cheering because Im the best nanny ever* Little do they know it was just poor planning on my part. Well for Valentines day why not plan on breakfast for dinner (or just make these for breakfast, that works too!) And make heart shaped pancakes. You can either try to shape them with the batter in the pan which isn’t too hard, you just have to get the timing right. Or, you can make round pancakes and cut out hearts using a cookie cutter or knife. Either way your kids will think you’re the bomb.com
& last but certainly not least!
6. Heart shaped pizza
All the ingredients can be purchased at your local grocery store. Dont try to be a hero and make the dough because your kids will not notice the difference, I promise!! You’re going to need dough, marinara sauce, mozzarella cheese and whatever toppings your family enjoys (*optional - corn meal for the bottom)! If you want to make one a little fancier for mom and dad, I suggest burrata cheese or prosciutto or arugula or all 3! Now for the heart shape, you have options here--- You can make mini pizzas and cut them out with a cookie cutter or knife, you can hand shape a large pie (not as hard as it sounds) or you can get a heart shaped pan at your local craft store. Your kids and husband will be impressed and dinner will be a breeze because home made pizza is the best <3
Ahhh! I love love and I loved sharing it with you all! I hope you enjoyed all of my tips and tricks and are putting them to good use. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions don’t hesitate to leave a comment or reach out to me/us on Instagram. If you make any of these lovely treats please please tag us, we would love to see those special moments with your kiddos! You can find us (or me!) on instagram -- @lovelyanddapper or @vively_ Thank you so much for following along and reading what I have to say— It means so much to me! Until next time!
As always— Stay lovely & Stay dapper!
Xoxo,
Viv