Love Day: Cookies For All

One of my all time favorite things to do is decorate sugar cookies (another shout-out to Mom for good childhood memories!).  And it doesn't hurt that they happen to be my favorite cookies to eat, too.  Mmmm.  So when Love Day rolls around, you better believe I pull out my heart-shaped cookie cutters and mix up a big batch of pink icing. 

Not wanting to leave Elliot out of the fun, this year's cookie-making also included heart-shaped teething cookies (recipe below).

We both LOVED our cookies --although he wanted to know why his wasn't covered in powdered sugar and sprinkles??  Totally not fair!

And Andrea's favorites, my family's traditional "scrap" cookies called Jam-in-the-Grooves (not to be confused with Jammin' the Grooves), made an appearance, too.  It is a special day, indeed, when Andrea gets a batch of Jam-in-the-Grooves.

I searched and searched for just the right teething cookie recipe.  I wanted it to be egg, dairy, and soy free and not be loaded with sugar.  Some recipes called for a cup of white sugar!  And one that kept popping up in my search called for shortening.  Not exactly what I was looking for.  So I was really happy to find this recipe, and even happier with the results.  The batter was beautiful and the cookie is wonderfully hard.  And as you can tell from the pictures above, Elliot loved them!

Elliot's Valentine Teething Cookies

Mix together with wooden spoon: 

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup molasses

1/4 cup maple syrup

3 T applesauce

When incorporated, turn out onto floured surface and knead for 3 minutes.

Roll to 1/4-1/2 inch thick and cut out shapes.

Place on greased cookie sheet.

Bake at 300 degrees for 30 minutes.

Cookies will harden as they cool.

I hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's Day.  A day dedicated to celebrating love is something special, for sure.  Here's to another year of finding a bit of Valentine in each and every day.  XOXO, Malia.