Looking for Valentine desserts recipes to woo your other half this Valentine’s Day? From an easy vegan galette to cute meringue kisses made with wine and even pink pancakes, these ideas mean you won’t fall short when it comes to sweet nothings…

1. Chocolate and walnut cookie hearts filled with jam

Makes 20 cookies. Prep, bake and set time, 3 hours 40 mins.

Ingredients

• 250g plain flour plus extra for rolling
• 125g California Walnuts, toasted
• 145g caster sugar
• 40g cocoa powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• pinch of ground nutmeg
• 185g chilled butter, cubed
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 teaspoons water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• your preferred flavour of jam

Method

1. In a food processor fitted with the metal blade, combine the flour, California walnuts, sugar, cocoa powder, salt and nutmeg. Process until the walnuts are finely ground. Add the butter and pulse until blended into the dry ingredients and the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
2. In a small cup, whisk together the egg yolks, water and vanilla. Add to the flour mixture and process until the dough holds together in a stiff mass. Transfer the dough into a bowl and cover with clingfilm. Refrigerate for 30-60 minutes, until firm but not hard.
3. Preheat the oven to 180ᵒC/gas mark 4, and line baking sheets with parchment paper. Divide the chilled dough in half (return one half to the fridge). On a lightly floured surface, roll half the dough out to a thickness slightly less than 5mm. If the top of the dough is sticky, sprinkle it lightly with additional flour.
4. Using a 4-5cm heart-shaped cutter, cut cookies from the rolled-out dough. Gather the scraps together, re-roll them, and cut additional cookies. As cookies are cut, place them, about 1cm apart, on the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until the cookies look dry. Cool for about 2 minutes, then transfer to racks to cool completely before filling. Continue rolling, cutting and baking until all the dough is used.
5. To assemble and decorate the cookies, place half of them in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Spread each one with about ½ teaspoon of jam, then top with a second cookie. When all the cookies have been filled, top each with about ½ teaspoon melted chocolate, spreading the chocolate with the back of a spoon. Sprinkle the chocolate lightly with chopped walnuts. Let the cookies stand for 2-3 hours, or until the chocolate is firm, then store them in an airtight container.

Recipe adapted from California Walnuts’ recipe for Walnut Cookie Hearts Filled with Fig Jam

Photo: California Walnuts

2. Valentine’s Day pink pancakes

Serves two. Prep time 15 mins, cook time 10 mins.

Ingredients

For the compote:

• 150g frozen mixed berries
• 1½ tbsp icing sugar, plus extra for dusting
• ½ tsp vanilla bean paste
• ½ orange, zested and juiced

For the pancakes:

• 1 tsp baking powder
• 155g pancake shaker mix
• pink food colour gel
• 20g butter, cubed

Method

1. First, tip all the compote ingredients into a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 8-10 mins, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is syrupy but the berries are still holding their shape. Set aside.
2. Next, make the pancakes. Add the baking powder to the shaker, reseal and shake to combine. Pour 180ml of water and a generous squeeze of the pink food gel into the mix, reseal and shake for 2 mins until smooth. If you would like the batter to be a more vibrant pink, squeeze in an extra drop of food gel at this stage and shake to combine.
3. Add a cube of butter to a large, non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat and, working in batches, pour the batter into the pan to create roughly 8cm pancakes. Cook for 1-2 mins until bubbles appear in the batter. Flip and then cook for a further 1-2 mins until risen and fluffy. Repeat with the remaining mixture.
4. Cut the pancakes into hearts using an 8cm heart-shaped cookie cutter. Stack the pancakes on a plate, drizzle with the compote and dust with icing sugar to serve.

Recipe courtesy of Tesco Foods

Photo: Tesco Foods

3. Rose-infused meringue kisses

Ingredients

• 300g caster sugar
• 150g free range egg white
• Light pink food colouring
• 1 tsp freeze-dried strawberry powder
• ½ tsp raspberry powder
• ½ lemon – zested
• Slices of dried strawberry to garnish

For the caramel

• 100g sugar
• 1 tbsp i heart Rose

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 200ᵒC. Line a baking tray with baking parchment, pour in the caster sugar and heat in oven for 7 minutes
2. Pour egg whites into a mixer and whisk slowly, allowing small stabilising bubbles to form, then increase the speed until egg whites form stiff peaks. Take the sugar out of the oven, and turn oven down to 100ᵒC (leave door open to help speed this up). With your mixer on full speed, very slowly spoon the hot sugar into the beaten egg whites, making sure the mixture comes back up to stiff peaks after each addition of sugar.
3. Once you have added all the sugar, continue to whisk on full speed until you have a smooth, stiff and glossy mixture. You should continue to whisk for at least 5 minutes once sugar has incorporated. Feel the mixture between your fingers; if you can still feel the gritty sugar, keep whisking at full speed until it has dissolved and the mixture is smooth, stiff and glossy.
4. Gently fold in a teaspoon of freeze-dried strawberry powder, half a teaspoon of raspberry powder and then add lemon zest for freshness. Gently fold it through the meringue being careful not to deflate the mixture.
5. Paint inside of the piping bag with 4-5 spaced out stripes of light pink colour before adding the flavoured meringue mixture.
6. Spoon your meringue into your disposable piping bag and cut the tip off. Pipe out your kisses by keeping the bag tight, straight and directly above your baking tray. Squeeze from a 2cm height from the baking tray and then let go before pulling up to form peak.
7. Once piped add a slice of dried strawberry to the side of the meringue. Bake for 35-45 minutes or until the meringue bases come off the parchment paper clean. While the kisses are cooling make your caramel.
8. Heat the sugar and the i heart Rose in a saucepan over a medium heat until all sugar has dissolved and turns into a golden copper colour
9. Take off the heat and very carefully (while the caramel is still hot and runny) dip the bases of the kisses into the caramel. Place the kisses back on the parchment to cool. Repeat this for all kisses

Recipe courtesy of i heart wines

Photo: i heart wines

4. Champagne and raspberry truffles

Prep time around 15 minutes, cooling time two hours.

Ingredients

• 400g white chocolate
• 150ml double cream
• 75ml champagne (or prosecco)
• 5tsp raspberry powder
• 20g raspberry powder to roll the truffles

Method

1. Break up the chocolate and put the pieces in a large bowl.
2. Bring the double cream to the boil and pour the hot cream over the white chocolate.
3. Leave to stand for a minute then stir to combine.
4. Add the champagne/Prosecco and mix. Then add the raspberry powder and whisk until all combined.
5. Put cling film on top of the mix (touching it) and leave to cool for around 2 hours.
6. Cover a baking tray with cling film. Using a tea spoon, scoop out a heaped amount and form into a ball.

Roll the balls in the raspberry powder and serve alongside a glass of champagne!

Recipe courtesy of Carole Poirot for ao.com

Photo: Carole Poirot for ao.com

5. Vegan strawberry galette

Looking for a vegan Valentine dessert recipe? This is the one for you! Serves 6, takes around one hour.

Ingredients

• 1 sheet ready-to-use puff pastry
• 800g fresh strawberries, hulled
• 2 x 200ml tubs Oatly Creme Fraiche
• 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
• 6 tbsp icing sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• fresh mint sprigs, to decorate

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C/Fan 180°C/Gas Mark 4.
2. Place the puff pastry sheet on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper, prick with a fork and pop in the oven for 15 minutes, or until golden.
3. Remove the sheet from the oven, turn it over, gently press down and return to the oven for 5-10 minutes.
4. Leave to cool for a minimum of 15 minutes. Meanwhile, liquidise 100g of the hulled strawberries and push them through a sieve to create a smooth paste. Place in the fridge if needed.
5. In a medium sized bowl, mix the Oatly, lemon juice, icing sugar and vanilla extract, until smooth.
6. Spread the mixture evenly over the cooled puff pastry sheet, and place the remaining fresh strawberries evenly over the layer of cream.
7. Top off with the liquidised strawberry paste, a dusting of icing sugar and mint.

Recipe courtesy of Vegan Recipe Club

Photo: Vegan Recipe Club

6. Easy Prosecco strawberry meringue

Makes 6 meringues and takes 1 hour.

Ingredients

• 3 large egg whites, room temperature
• 150g caster sugar
• 100g 70% dark chocolate, broken into pieces
• 150ml double cream
• 1 punnet of strawberries
• 1 bottle of Prosecco

Method

1. In a large bowl, add the egg whites and whisk till they form stiff peaks, then gradually add the caster sugar while still whisking. You want the meringue to be glossy and smooth.
2. Get a larger baking tray and add a small dollop of meringue in each corner. Then cover with baking paper, pushing it down so the meringue holds it in place. Using a spoon, divide the mixture into 6 on the baking paper and make a small indent in the centre of each one.
3. Cook in a preheated oven at 120°C for 40 minutes or till the meringue has hardened and the baking paper peels away easily from the bottom. At this point turn off the oven and leave them in there for 30 minutes. Take out and place on a wire rack to cool.
4. Place all the strawberries in a bowl and cover with the Prosecco and leave for 15 minutes so that the strawberries take on the flavour.
5. In a sauce pan, over a low heat, add the cream and chocolate and stir constantly until the chocolate has melted and mixed with the cream.
6. To serve place a dollop of the chocolate sauce in the middle of each meringue, cut the strawberries in half and sit on top and drizzle with the chocolate sauce. Serve with a glass of Prosecco.

Recipe courtesy of former MasterChef contestant Richard Rodriguez

Photo: Richard Rodriguez

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