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FAMILY FEATURES -- If the way to your loved one's heart is through the stomach, there's no better way to start off this Valentine's Day than with a homemade breakfast prepared with love.
Whether you're whipping up a breakfast for a spouse with a sophisticated palate or trying to tempt the taste buds of your littlest loves, explore these ideas to get inspired.
• Red is the color of love, so build your menu around fresh strawberries or raspberries, which pair perfectly with French toast or crepes, and can even dress up a simple cereal.
• For a more sensible menu, opt for a fruity berry smoothie or a parfait layered with fresh fruit, low-fat yogurt and granola. Add a hint of loving indulgence by sprinkling dark chocolate shavings on top.
• Show your affection with a plate of these colorful Cocoa-Kissed Red Velvet Pancakes featuring rich 100 percent cocoa, buttermilk and fresh berries. Heart-shaped cookie cutters lend a special touch to these fluffy, flavorful pancakes. Add sweet garnishes like powdered sugar and berries for a sensational way to say "I love you."
Find more recipes you'll love to share with your nearest and dearest this Valentine's Day at Culinary.net.
Cocoa-Kissed
Red Velvet Pancakes
Recipe courtesy of Nestle
Servings: 10 pancakes
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons Nestle Toll House Baking Cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1 cup reduced-fat buttermilk or low-fat milk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon red food coloring
heart-shaped pancake cutters or cookie cutters (optional)
butter, for garnish (optional)
powdered sugar, for garnish (optional)
maple syrup, for garnish (optional)
fresh berries, for garnish (optional)
In large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt; stir well.
In separate large bowl, whisk together egg, buttermilk, unsalted butter, vanilla extract and food coloring. Add to flour mixture; stir to combine. Allow mixture to sit 5 minutes.
Heat nonstick skillet or griddle over medium heat. Brush with oil or butter. Add about 1/4 cup batter to skillet. Cook about 2 minutes, or until bubbles start to form on top. Flip and cook 1-2 minutes, or until bottom is lightly browned. Serve immediately with butter, powdered sugar, syrup and berries, if desired.
Tip: If using pancake or cookie cutters, be sure to coat with oil so pancakes don't stick. Place cutters in skillet and pour batter into cutters. Remove cutters before flipping.
Cherries are the star
Tart, red cherries and Valentine's Day seem to be the perfect pair. Not only do cherries align with a Valentine's Day color scheme, they even resemble little hearts when hanging from their stems.
Celebrating Valentine's Day involves many different traditions, and enjoying decadent desserts is among them. Purchasing ready-made treats from a local bakery is one way to indulge in a sugary confection, but crafting a recipe at home is another way to show that special someone how much you care.
"Cherry Pie Bars" are not exactly a pie, but a pound cake with a cherry pie filling swirl. They can be made for many different occasions, but make for something sweet on Valentine's Day. Whip up this recipe from "Butter, Flour, Sugar, Joy" (Sourcebooks) by Danielle Kartes.
Cherry Pie Bars
Yield: One 9-by-13-inch pan
2 cups sugar
1 cup butter, softened
4 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
1 21-ounce can cherry pie filling
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a 9-by-13-inch pan with parchment paper.
In a stand mixer, or with a hand mixer, cream sugar and butter on low. Add the eggs one at a time. Beat until just combined.
Add the flour, baking powder and salt. Spread a little over half the cake batter into the pan. Evenly spread the pie filling over the top, and spoon the rest of the cake batter over the pie filling. It's fine if the cherries show through.
Bake 35 minutes or until the top has turned slightly golden. Do not overbake. Allow to cool and slice into squares.
Make it fancy
Each year, Valentine's Day presents many opportunities for couples to show one another just how much they care. One of the ways they often do so is through homemade dinners and desserts in which love and affection are two of the most vital ingredients.
Few people will turn away a bite of something sweet come Feb. 14, but some may have a hankering for something other than chocolate or strawberries. Atholl Brose is a fifteenth-century Scottish drink that is similar to the popular Irish cream liqueurs. When mixed into a no-bake cheesecake batter, it can be the perfect flavoring for a creamy dessert few can resist.
Enjoy "Atholl Brose Cheesecake" from "The Hebridean Baker at Home" (Sourcebooks) courtesy of Conneach Macleod.
Atholl Brose Cheesecake
Serves 4 to 6
For the Atholl Brose
1 cup whiskey
2 1⁄2 ounces oats
3 teaspoons honey
2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons double cream
For the cheesecake
3 1⁄2 ounces butter
9 ounces digestive biscuits, crushed
1 pound, 5 ounces cream cheese
2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon Atholl Brose
3 1⁄2 ounces icing sugar
1 1⁄4 cupdouble cream
3 1⁄2 ounces dark chocolate, grated
To make the Atholl Brose: Pour the whiskey over the oats in a bowl and rest under a clean dish towel for 24 hours.
The next day, use a muslin (or cotton dish towel) to squeeze out the whiskey into a fresh bowl. Be sure to get every last drop! You can discard the oats.
Warm up your honey for 10 seconds in the microwave, or over a low heat in a small pan, and whisk into the Brose mix.
Add your cream and whisk again. Now let it rest in the fridge for at least 4 hours.
To make the cheesecake: First, melt the butter in a pan, remove the heat and add the crushed digestive biscuits. Mix well until the biscuits have absorbed all the butter.
Press into the bottom of a lined 7-inch springform tin. Place in the fridge and allow to set for an hour.
Meanwhile, prepare the filling. Lightly whip the cream cheese, then beat in the Atholl Brose and icing sugar. Whip the cream and fold in along with the grated chocolate. When smooth, spoon evenly onto the biscuit base.
Refrigerate and allow to set for a further 2 hours, then serve with a dram of Atholl Brose.
Note: Double cream is challenging to find outside of the United Kingdom. Therefore, an approximate substitution can me made my mixing 1 cup of heavy cream with 1 tablespoon of buttermilk in a lidded jar. Shake for 1 minute. Then wrap the jar in a towel and allow to sit at room temperature for 12 hours until thickened.; otherwise, use heavy cream, which has a slightly lower fat content, in the recipe.