Virtual Valentine's Party

Happy Valentine's Day!  Although I don't need much of a reason to make sweet treats, holidays definitely do the trick (even the man made ones like V-Day).  My treats of choice for this Valentine's Day:

1. Chocolate Cake Mix Cookies from Sally's Baking Addiction (recipe)
2. Valentine Pretzel Buttons from g*rated (recipe)
3. Chocolate Valentine Cookies from Pioneer Woman (recipe)
4. Chocolate covered pretzels w/ sprinkles
5. A secret sweet treat for my husband that I can't reveal yet b/c it's a surprise! (*you'll get it sometime this weekend honey*)

Just like everyone else, I like to scavenge Pinterest for recipe ideas.  The pictures always look amazing, but I wonder...Can I make it look that good?  Does the recipe taste as good as it looks? I'm here to do the dirty work for you.  When I make a recipe from Pinterest I will give you all the details and let you know if it's worthy of making.

Before we jump into that, prepare to be amazed.  I'm linking up with my friend Hillary today from the blog All. The. Things..  She is an expert when it comes to table decorating and pulling all of the components together for a beautiful and inspired party setting.  If we lived closer we would probably be having a Valentine's party together, but since she's in Oklahoma and I'm in South Dakota, we're going to have a virtual party and you're all invited!  The picture below is how the table will be set at our party.  And of course we'll be having all the Valentine's treats that I've already shown you above, plus the ones that Hillary has made.

Pop on over to her blog to see more pictures of the party and find out exactly how she created these spectacular Valentine's decorations.  Now on to the dirty work...

Chocolate Cake Mix Cookies

Directions:  I followed Sally's directions here.

Things I learned: I was hesitant to not flatten the cookies before baking, but Sally was right, they flatten on their own so there is no need to squish them; baking & cooling times were perfect too.  Just make sure the cookies are all about the same size so they will cook in the same amount of time.

How did they taste?  The texture was perfect: chewy with an added crunch from the sprinkles.  I used the devil's food cake mix this time but the flavor wasn't as "chocolatey" as I was hoping.
Would I make them again?  They were very easy and simple; a no-fail recipe to follow.  I was not impressed with the taste but maybe that's because of the cake mix flavor.  Perhaps a regular chocolate cake mix would be better.  In conclusion, yes I would make them again, but more for presentation than flavor.

Valentine Pretzel Buttons

Directions:  I followed g*rated's directions here.

Things I learned:  They were out of Hershey Hugs at the store so I opted to use white chocolate melts instead (these are found in the craft area of the store, near the cake decorating supplies).  I would have used regular Hershey Kisses but I wanted the white color for contrast.  They worked great!  They were also out of regular chocolate M&Ms in the Valentine's colors so I chose Valentine peanut M&Ms and Valentine red velvet M&Ms.  Although I love red velvet cake, never again will I buy red velvet M&Ms.  They were disgusting, and rarely do I turn down chocolate.

How did they taste?  Very good, but only the ones topped with the peanut M&Ms.  If you love a dessert with a salty sweet combination then you'll love this one.  Just stick to regular or peanut M&Ms.
Would I make them again?  Yes!  By far this was the easiest and fastest recipe of them all.  I think its very appealing to look at too and can really add something to a party.  Next time I'd like to try the Hershey Hugs with regular M&Ms.

Chocolate Valentine Cookies

Directions:  I followed P-dub's directions here.

Things I learned:  This recipe is probably best for a baker with intermediate experience (that's somewhere between novice and experienced).  I say that because you need to be able to identify a fluffy texture when mixing the brown sugar & butter, as well as use a steady hand when applying the powdered sugar & removing the stencils.  I have four sifters of different sizes; I think it was easiest to use the smallest one.  

How did they taste?  They taste wonderful and are definitely worth a try.  I love the flavor that the powdered sugar adds to the chocolate cookie.  I was suspicious about adding cinnamon to the dough, but after tasting them I must say: well done P-dubs, I will not doubt you again.

Would I make them again?  Most definitely!  This is another one of P-dub's amazing recipes with a beautiful presentation.

Chocolate Covered Pretzels

 Directions: I used white almond bark as well as a mix of milk chocolate & semi-sweet chocolate chips for the dipping.  I melted them in a modified double boiler on the stove top (glass bowl over a pot of simmering water).  Holding the pretzel with my fingers, one at a time I dipped them in the chocolate, going about half way up the pretzel.  I applied the sprinkles then laid them on wax paper to solidify.

Things I learned:

• Chocolate chips coat the pretzel better than the white almond bark.
• Preferred method of applying sprinkles is to literally sprinkle them on the coated pretzels (vs dipping the coated pretzel into sprinkles).
• Almond bark solidifies faster than chocolate chips (put them in the fridge to speed up the process).

How did they taste?  Our favorites were the chocolate covered pretzels rather than the almond bark, but it's simply a matter of preference.  

Would I make them again?  Yes, keeping in mind the things I learned above and only using the chocolate chips since those were preferred (my husband and I might or might not have fought over the chocolate ones).

**Thanks to my friend Cassie for helping make these sweet Valentine treats.**