Valentine’s Day Recipes to Fall For
German Chocolate Lace Cookies
Courtesy of The Silver Palate Good Times Cookbook
Ingredients:
½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup brown sugar, packed
2 tbsp. dark rum
¼ cup heavy cream
4 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped
¼ cup unbleached all purpose flour
⅛ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
1 cup quick-cooking oats
½ cup shredded coconut
½ cup pecans, chopped
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease cookie sheets.
- Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, approx. 5 minutes.
- Beat in 1 tbsp. of rum
- Heat cream in a small saucepan until it boils. Reduce heat and stir in remaining rum.
- Simmer 2-3 minutes, then remove from heat and stir in chocolate until blended.
- Beat ⅓ cup of chocolate mixture into butter mixture.
- Sift together flour, baking soda and salt and stir into butter mixture.
- Fold in oats, coconut and pecans.
- Drop rounded teaspoons of batter 2” apart onto a floured cookie sheet.
- Bake 8 minutes. Remove and cool for 5 minutes before transferring to wire racks.
- Drizzle remaining chocolate mixture over cookies in a lace pattern.
Truffles
Courtesy of Love from the Heart of the Home, by Susan Branch
Ingredients:
Yields 40 Truffles
6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate
2 egg yolks
2/3 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/3 cup powdered sugar, sifted
2 tsp. vanilla
½ cup walnuts, chopped
2 tsp. Crème de Menthe or Grand Marnier (optional)
Directions:
- Over very low heat, slowly melt chocolate in a small saucepan, stirring often.
- Remove from heat and cool.
- Cream egg yolks and butter together. Add sugar slowly and blend well.
- Pour the cooled chocolate into the sugar mixture and add vanilla and nuts and stir. If using liqueur, omit the vanilla and substitute the liqueur.
- Refrigerate until firm enough to handle.
- Shape into 1-inch balls and roll into cocoa. When finished, chill.
- Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.
Chocolate Mousse
Courtesy of Love from the Heart of the Home, by Susan Branch
Ingredients:
8 oz. semi-sweet chocolate
¼ cup dark rum
½ cup sugar
2-3 tbsp. lukewarm water
2 egg whites
2 cups heavy cream
Directions:
- Milk chocolate in top of double boiler. While chocolate is melting, cook rum and sugar over very low heat until sugar melts, do not let it brown.
- Add sugar syrup to chocolate. Beat in 2 tbsp. of lukewarm water and set aside.
- Beat egg whites until stiff, then whip the cream and fold together with the egg whites.
- Beat chocolate again and add 1 tbsp. lukewarm water, then fold chocolate into cream.
- Spoon into individual serving dishes or wine glasses and chill.