Valentine Shortbread Cookies

Valentine Shortbread Cookies are not only delicious, but fast and easy too, so that you can have more time to spend with your special valentine!

Lord Byron’s Kitchen is no stranger to shortbread cookies.  In fact, this past Christmas, my Whipped Christmas Shortbread was one of my most viewed recipes for the entire month of December.  That cookie is absolutely delicious and one of my personal favouites.  (But, just between you and me, I say that about all of the recipes here at Lord Byron’s Kitchen!)

I think it’s a shame rather, how the deliciousness that is shortbread is only celebrated at Christmastime.  Why is that?  Why do we “save” some of our favourite dishes and treats for special occasions?  Isn’t life way too short and just too precious to deny ourselves of simple pleasures?

In protest, I am reinventing my Whipped Christmas Shortbread and making a Valentine Shortbread Cookie in its place.  Now, just so you know, I’m not changing the recipe at all. And, why should I?  It’s absolutely perfect just the way it is and every time I make a batch, I’m completely satisfied each and every time.

These cookies are fast and easy.  And, some things in life should be fast and easy.  That’s just the way its got to be sometimes.  You can slow down and enjoy the cookie with a hot tea or coffee once you’ve cleaned up the kitchen.  Shortbread cookies are great for gift-giving and who wouldn’t want to receive a little bag of these beauties for Valentine’s Day?

For this particular cookie, I used about 2 teaspoons of cookie dough for each cookie.  In the Christmas version, I used about a tablespoon.  The reason for this is two-fold.  First, I could make the cookies smaller for Valentine’s Day, because I wasn’t using M&Ms which take up a large surface area. 

And, secondly, everyone is trying to be a little more conscious of what they’re eating right after Christmas, so a smaller cookie was the way to go.  Moderation is key, right, Dear Reader?

Valentine Shortbread Cookies would not be complete without valentine-themed sprinkles.  I’m addicted to sprinkles; I swear!  I have so many jars, and for every occasion you can possibly think of.  In fact, some of them are not for occasions, but rather themes. 

Now, you can use pink, red, and white jimmies for these cookies – even a light purple will do, but I wanted to do a mix of pink, silver, white, and black.  I think it makes the delicate cookie look a little edgier.

Let’s talk a bit more about sprinkles.  Where do you buy your sprinkles?  Do you have a favourite vendor or brand?  Just about six months ago, I changed my sprinkle game.  I would always buy sprinkles from the baking supply section at Bulk Barn, but not any more – no way!  Let me tell you how this all went down.

Back in November, I was baking a few Christmas goodies so that I could get them published for my Christmas cookie series – Lord Byron’s 24 Cookies of Christmas. 

Well, it was John.e who was on the sprinkle hunt.  He works in close proximity to Michael’s, HomeSense, Winners, and Marshall’s.  He purchased at least ten different sprinkle colours, shapes, and brands.  But, I wasn’t impressed with any of them as much as I was with Sweetapolita.

After Christmas, I needed Valentine sprinkles, so I tracked down the brand and found their online store.  Let’s just say, I ordered enough sprinkles to last a lifetime! 

Sweetapolita is in Canada, and I’m not sure if they deliver to the United States, but it looks like state-side, Fancy Sprinkles stocks very similar mixes and themes.  Listen, I know that shopping for sprinkles online might seem a little over the top, but I’ve never once pretended to shy away from pretty things.

Besides, sprinkles are not just for the five-year-old kid in you who wanted rainbow jimmies on your ice cream cone.  Sprinkles makes everyone happy – kid and adult alike!  And, I’m all for being happy and eating something pretty.  Who can deny me that?

At the end of the day, you can use whatever sprinkles you already have on hand.  You can also opt to use a gentle sprinkling of that coloured coarse sugars you can find in the cake decorating section of your favourite grocery store. 

Another option would be to add a few valentine-themed M&Ms like I did with the Christmas version.  Or, you know, you can skip the sprinkles completely!  This cookie surely doesn’t need to be pretty to taste good!

For this particular cookie, I used Sweetapolita’s Minutes to Midnight sprinkle medley, but I removed the large white, black, and pink balls.  (I didn’t remove them for the first batch, and let’s just say that the black balls don’t take well to high heat.  The kinda melted, which prompted John.e to name them Crying Drag Queen Cookies!)

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

•