Valentine's Day

by Alexandra Trenary July 27, 20210 comments

One of my favorite days of the year was the day I would finally get to pick out Valentine cards to share with my class. Disney Princess cards or cards that you could attach a lollypop to were my go-to favorites, but no matter what card I picked, I loved to sign my name and seal each Valentine with a tiny heart sticker. My school days may be gone, but I’m still a sucker for wide-eyed teddy bears and conversation hearts for one simple reason – Valentine’s Day is a chance to openly embrace and express the love we feel for our family, friends and those dearest to us.

This Valentine’s Day, we want to help you share the love! We are giving you a set of our limited-edition Valentine cards (with envelopes!) with any purchase made now through Valentine’s Day! We used our popular tic-tac-toe board design and sealed it with a kiss for a special limited-edition design to help you celebrate all the love in your life. We left plenty of room on the inside of each card for you to celebrate your love and tell your love story!

My favorite love story has to do with a fortune cookie. Once upon a time (that’s how all the best love stories start), my parents had their first date at a Chinese restaurant. A couple of years later, they were celebrating their love at the same Chinese restaurant. When the meal ended and the fortune cookies came out, my Dad opened his first. His fortune said, “You have a chance to become the happiest man in the world very soon.” Mom laughed and teased him that he had probably written that himself (little did she know!) When Mom opened her fortune cookie she found her engagement ring with a fortune wrapped it that read “Will you marry me?”

35 years later, fortune cookies are still treasured treats in our home and my parents are still serious relationship goals! I still get chills when I think about my Dad and his future mother-in-law spending hours and hours carefully steaming open every single fortune cookie they could find to hide the ring inside. It was a sweet act of love to spend so much time (and so many fortune cookies) to make a memorable moment!

In honor of my favorite love story this Valentine’s Day, I’ve teamed up with Mel from “Baking with Mel” to bring you an easy fortune cookie recipe with a special Valentine touch! Mel is a French-trained pastry chef who owned and operated a successful bakery in Paris, is a two-time Food Network “Chopped” champion, and the current owner of the only chef-curated baking kit called Baking with Mel! Just like our June St. George designs, Mel brings her global perspective and training to her craft!

Happy Valentine’s Day from all of us at June St. George. Enjoy celebrating your bespoke life and your bespoke love!

1 cup of all purpose flour

¾ cup of sugar

½ cup of melted butter

3 Large egg whites (at room temperature)

¼ tsp. vanilla extract

¼ tsp. almond extract

3 Tbsp. water

Cupcake Pan (for cooling cookie)

Parchment Paper (to line baking sheet)

Glass or mug (for shaping cookie)

Food coloring/Toothpick (optional to add hearts)

Have all your ingredients gathered first.

Preheat oven to 350

In a small mixing bowl, combine sugar and flour and combine with a wooden spoon

Pour melted butter over mixture and mix. Add in egg whites slowly and mix to combine. Lastly, pour in almond extract and vanilla extract. It should pour like batter, if it is too thick, add the 3 tbsp. of water. Your batter is ready.

If you want to add the heart details, separate a few spoonfuls of batter into a small bowl. Add red food coloring and mix until batter is the desired color.

Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

With a tea spoon, pour a small amount of batter on to baking sheet then flatten it out with the back of the spoon (should look like a thin, flat pancake). Start by making 2-3 at a time, they will harden fast and you will need time to shape them when they come out of the oven.

For heart details, using a toothpick, dab a drop of the red batter on to fortune cookie forming a circle of drops around the edge of the cookie. Wipe toothpick clean. Starting slightly above the circle, drag toothpick down to pull through red drop to form a heart. Clean toothpick between each drop.

Bake flat cookie for 6-7 minutes, until very lightly golden. Remove immediately from the oven. Place fortune paper in the center. Working quickly, fold disk in half, then bend the center of fold over the edge of a glass or mug to create fortune cookie shape by pulling two corners together. Place shaped cookie down into the cupcake tin until it cools and sets.

They will be very HOT at this point but working while they are warm is important. If they start cracking or ripping, your batter may be too thick. Add some water before the next batch.

I am very visual, so I’ve included step by step photos below!