Just over one month to go until Valentine’s Day. And, with our current COVID lockdown and raising cases, I can’t imagine that many people will be able/want to spend a date night out this year. Why not take the time to stay in and do some baking!? I’ve got a great recipe for Valentine’s scoop cookies to share, but it can totally be adapted for multiple flavours/occasions.
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A few months ago, I started making ice cream scoop cookies once a week. I wanted to find the best recipes in all the usual flavours. You know, peanut butter, chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin. The cookies had to be soft but firm, perfectly cooked. Some recipes turned out better than others, but I made it my mission to find the best ones.
Then I took a little break to focus on baking cakes, but I’ll get to that in a later post :)
Anyways, before Christmas, I did a lot of baking and sent out kits to a few people. I was on a roll, and I wanted to try my hand at making my own recipe for ice cream scoop cookies! With Valentine’s Day coming up as the next holiday, why not make some red-themed cookies?
Similar Recipes/Inspiration
When I tried making normal-sized ice-cream scoop cookies using those recipes, I had WAY too many. Not that 4 dozen cookies are a bad thing, but when you’re trying to develop a recipe, you don’t need that many. Plus, anytime that I can bake a batch of cookies once (aka with just one or two pans in the oven), it’s a lot easier.
Oh, and another thing I wanted? I had to be able to use the batter as soon as I mixed it. No putting it back in the fridge, aka no chilling! Isn’t it annoying to start making a batch of cookies then find out that you have to chill them for an hour first?
Baking Notes
The full recipe is below, but here are some process photos and additional details if you need.
For my recipe, you’ll notice that the batter is really crumbly. The photo on the left is the red velvet version (before adding the mix-ins), and the right is the regular version, with the mix-ins. You’ll know the batter is perfect if you can squish it into a ball and it keeps a shape.
Essentially, once you grab the batter with the ice cream scoop, it will all come together.
For my cookies, I used a regular ice cream scoop BUT one that has a trigger would have been much easier. (I bought one after Christmas, but am still waiting for it to come in).
If you have a regular scoop and have difficulties getting the dough out without it breaking, you can just form it/squish it together with your hand after.
For my final batch, I also compared putting my cookies on the baking sheet as-is, one lined with foil, and one with parchment.
The tin foil cookies browned much more, and I think I’ll bake with parchment from now on. (The Husband hates brown crispy cookie bottoms… who knew it was the foil!). By comparison, the “just the pan” cookies were a mix between the two. I should note that I have dark pans, so that will also make a difference in baking compared to others.
I made a red velvet version of the cookie (with white chocolate chips, raisins and chopped walnuts). The regular version had red candy-coated peanuts, craisins and chocolate chips.
I also baked the red velvet ones at 350º and found that they held their scoop shape better. Other than having the additional cocoa powder and food colouring, there wasn’t much else different.
WAIT! I just remembered that I added too much baking soda. Well, I should say my “helper” was a little overzealous.
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If you don’t have an ice cream scoop, you could certainly use a regular spoon (just heap it on). Or, you could roll them into ball shapes. I’d just squish them down a bit to get a flatter shape. The cookie on the left in the photo above was from my first batch. I just left it as a ball when I baked it, and I felt like it wasn’t a natural cookie shape that way.
Ready for the recipe(s)? Remember, you can add in your own mix-ins. I’m sure Reeses Pieces/peanut butter M&Ms would be fun for Halloween. Or, just stick with the regular chocolate chips for any day of the year :)
Valentine's Scoop Cookies
Red velvet Valentines' scoop cookies, an easy to follow recipe that can be adapted for different occasions.
Ingredients
- Smaller Bowl
- 1 tbsp Cornstarch
- 1-1/2 Cups Flour
- 1/4 tsp Baking Soda
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- 3 tbsp Cocoa Powder (* if making chocolate/red velvet)
- Big Bowl
- 1/2 cup Butter (one stick)
- 1 Egg
- 1/2 cup Brown Sugar
- 1/2 cup White Sugar
- 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 tbsp Liquid Red Food Colouring (**see notes)
- 1-1/2 cups of Mix-Ins (ex: chocolate chips, raisins, chopped nuts, etc.)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 325°F
Line baking sheet(s) with parchment (see notes in post)
Mix first 4-5 ingredients in a small bowl and set aside
In a large bowl, cut up and cream cold butter with an electric mixer
Add sugars and egg and mix on medium until well combined
Mix in vanilla extract (and food colouring if using)
Add dry ingredients and mix on low speed until combined (will be crumbly!)
Hand mix the mix-ins with the batter
Use an ice cream scoop to grab the batter
Place on baking sheet(s) with some space between each cookie
Bake for 11-14 minutes, or until edges are slightly brown and tops are fully cooked
Remove from tray and place on a wire rack to cool
Notes
If using gel food colouring, only use 1 tsp. Feel free to omit the cocoa powder/colour if wanted - and read the full blog post for more baking tips.
I personally like to add in a combination of chocolate chips, a nut/crunchy element, and a chewy element (raisins or craisins). It has a good bite/chew that way, but of course, do whatever you like best.
I’m definitely going to use this recipe again for different occasions/holidays! (Oh, and I was hoping the craisins would be redder for the photos, but apparently, they were not, oh well).
Stay tuned for a future baking post with a roundup of the best ice cream scoop cookie recipes. I’m still trying to find a good peanut butter one, so please send them my way!
Or, do you have another ice cream scoop recipe that I should try? Let me know!
Looking for other Valentine’s Day treats? Check out my popular brownie bars, these fun lip and mustache cookies, or this round-up with a BUNCH of Valentine dessert ideas.
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