Valentine’s Day Cupcakes and Cookies to Make with Your Kids

This Valentine’s Day, spend time with your kids in the kitchen, making delicious sweet treats together. Whether you are preparing Valentine’s Day snack for your kids to share at school or a special treat to enjoy with the family, baking a batch of Valentine’s Day goodies is the perfect opportunity for you and your kids to spend time together in the kitchen.

When you bake together, not only do your kids learn a valuable skill, you are also able to strengthen your bond as you share the experience of creating a delicious treat together. Keep reading for tips on how to bake with your kids and delicious Valentine’s Day treat recipes.

Tips for baking with your kids:

Allow your child to choose the recipe you will follow or the special ingredients you will use.

Prepare enough to share with the kids at school or the family and to have a special snack together when you are done baking.

If it is safe, allow your child to taste as they go, so that they become familiar with the ingredients.

Prepare the snack when both of you are well-rested.

Remember that things do not have to be perfect.

Wear clothes that can get messy. If necessary, wear an apron or smock.

Buy enough ingredients so that you can remake the snacks if there is some sort of disaster.

Prepare a recipe that you are familiar with. This is probably not the best time to experiment.

Try to have ingredients and equipment organized before you start.

Make sure that your kids can reach the preparation surface and ingredients safely.

Encourage your child to be safe in the kitchen, using potholders and washing hands frequently.

Kids only know what they have been taught. Don’t assume that they have certain cooking skills or knowledge.

Give your child a task appropriate to her attention span. Younger children may only be able to bake or frost a batch of cookies or brownies instead of both.

Work on building math and reading skills while following the recipe, as long as it is still fun.

Remember that one of the best parts of making snacks together is licking the spoon!

For easy decorating, roll balls of sugar cookie dough in red or pink sprinkles and then bake.

If you are pressed for time, prepare a box mix recipe of brownies, sprinkling on your child’s favorite chocolate or peanut butter candy, chopped candy bar pieces, or baking chips before baking the brownies.

You could also save time by preparing a batch of cookies using a prepared cookie dough from the refrigerator case of your grocery store.

Don’t send your kids to school with uber-healthy Valentine’s snacks. You want to prepare something that the kids in their class will enjoy.

Be sure to find out if any of the kids at school have a food allergy and avoid using those ingredients.

Plan to use cute packaging for your snacks, from paper sacks decorate with stickers or markers to specially bought cellophane snack bags.

For a quick and easy Valentine’s Day Snack, make up a batch of cereal treats. Simply:

Melt 3 tbsp of butter, 3 Tbsp of brown sugar, and 1 tsp of vanilla in a saucepan over low heat in a large saucepan.

Add 4 cups or 1 10-ounce pkg of miniature marshmallows to the butter and stir until they are melted. Remove the saucepan from heat.

Stir in 6 cups of crisp rice cereal.

Once the cereal is fully coated, turn out the mixture into a greased 9x13 baking dish.

Top your cereal treats with your child’s favorite chocolate or peanut butter candies, chopped up pieces of candy bars, or Valentine’s themed sprinkles.

Use waxed or parchment paper to gently press the mixture down into the pan.

Once the treats have cooled, cut them into squares or use a heart shaped cookie cutter to make individual portions.

You could also spread the treats with your child’s favorite flavor of icing before cutting them.

For a fun gluten-free variation, exclude the brown sugar and vanilla and use a gluten-free chocolate crisp rice cereal, such a Cocoa Pebbles.

Sweet Treat Recipes:

Cupcakes:

Chocolate Cupcakes With Peanut Butter Frosting

Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes

Hostess-Style Cupcake

Filled Chocolate Cupcakes

Homemade Buttercream Cupcakes

Buttery and Moist White Cupcakes