There are so many wonderfully creative and cool Valentine’s Day cookie ideas we’ve featured over the years (we even have a whole new Pinterest board devoted to Valentine’s day treats and recipes) but honestly, I know my teens aren’t into the cutesie puns as much as they like pop culture references, humor and well, skulls.
So I’ve scoured the web for some cool Valentine cookies and found a few of varying levels of difficulty that I think teens will love baking. They’re a great weekend project for them to take on by themselves, or a fun thing to do during a Valentine’s gathering with friends. Just ask them to clean up when they’re done.
In collage: Vegan Dollhouse, Eugenie Kitchen, Sprinkle Bakes, Baker:Logy,
Related: 8 delicious last-minute Valentine’s Day treats you can eat all year long.
Not that teens won’t devour anything at all with flour and sugar and butter at its core but you know. These are just cooler Valentine’s cookies for teens than mere heart shapes decorated in pinks and reds. Of course you can always whip up conversation heart cookies then write FIRE or U EAT instead of QT-PIE,but here are some really creative ideas for teens and older kids.
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Anatomical Heart Valentine’s Cookies, Baker:Logy
I imagine there are plenty of edgy teens out there who would prefer their Valentines’ cookie hearts to be more realistic, thank you very much. Grab this totally cool cookie cutter from Baker:Logy, roll out your favorite cookie dough recipe, and get baking!
Related;40 creative heart-shaped foods you can make for Valentine’s Day with one set of cookie cutters
Valentine’s Day Voodoo Doll Cookies, Sprinkle Bakes
Want to go even more macabre? Heather Baird of Sprinkle Bakes (oof, I love her) put together this genius, step-by-step tutorial for a Voodoo Doll cookie (link to web archive) for the Etsy blog Valentine’s Day. I don’t think you have to go as detailed as she did — it’s mainly a gingerbread person cookie shape, then you’ll need:
– a black fine-tip food dye pen
– a small package of white fondant to make the button eyes
– red sanding sugar to make that heart (using a very clever trick she shares)
– red Mike & Ike candies on a toothpick for the pins
– optional: sweet black licorice strings for the hair. That part is kind of advanced.
I know you can do this! Or at least your intrepid teens.
Surprise Rainbow Heart Cookies, Eugenie Kitchen on YouTube
In looking for some rainbow heart cookies I know my kids would love making, I found this mind-blowing recipe from Eugenie years ago and since then it’s gone viral. No surprise! I mean, look at it!
It involves coloring 6 small portions of dough in the colors of the rainbow, refrigerating, then rolling each one out and stacking them until you cut through them sideways with a very small heart cookie cutter. You could probably bake as is, but her idea is to enrobe them in regular dough, then roll in sprinkles (I found an affordable container of those rainbow nonpareils in bulk here) — all before slicing. This way you get a “surprise heart” when you do finally slice them, and it’s pure genius.
Her video instructions are very clear, but I’m including a Wayback link to her Surprise Rainbow Heart Cookies recipe written out, since the link she shared isn’t working. If you’re inspired to give it a whirl tag her — and tag us! I want to see them!
Goth Core Spiderweb Heart Cookies, Vegan Dollhouse
This vegan Valentine cookie recipe makes use of margarine and non-dairy milk, and the color comes from natural black cocoa powder mixed in with the regular cocoa. Of course you can always use your own favorite (non-vegan) sugar cookie recipe and follow Robin’s decorating ideas for that genius heart-spiderweb design. But the site has SO many great tips, it’s really worth reading.
if you’re a visual learner, see her handy YouTube video with instructions — complete with Depeche Mode in the background. Tag @vegandollhouse if you make them!
Black Lace Valentine’s Cookies, Bake at 350
More goth? Okay! She has so many great Valentine’s cookie ideas on her site, but I love these black lace cookies for your goth-loving teen. While they were originally designed as Downton Abbey cookies (as you can see from the Mr. Bates/Anna script) feel free to substitute with any names at all.
Related: 5 ways to turn a pan of brownies into an easy Valentine’s Day dessert for the kids.
Star Wars Grogu Heart Cookies, Just Jenn Recipes
Leave it to my very favorite pop culture aficionado, Jenn f*ckikawa, to come up with a Star Wars meets Valentine’s Day cookie recipe that’s not only wonderful for “Baby Yoda” fans, but it’s a fundraiser supporting Cookies for Cancer. And yes, you can still donate.
You’ll need a Grogu cookie cutter with him holding the bowl (her reco is no longer available but I found this one with him holding a heart), high quality black food dye, some conversation heart candies (you can get blanks!), and above all, matcha powder to achieve that wonderful green dough. Visit her recipe — she’s so great at providing clear instructions and photos.
8-Bit Gamer Heart Valentine Cookies, Let’s Eat Cake
if your teen is a gamer (and is there one who isn’t?) they might love making these cool 8-Bit Pixel Heart Cookies, finished off with with their own name, their bestie, or their game main. Rebeca has easy instructions teens can follow. Just be sure you have an 8-bit heart cookie cutter on hand (Wilton makes a good one in collab with Rosanna Pansino) — there’s no way you want to be hand cutting all those edges.
Like Bubble Valentine’s Cookies, The Sprinkle Factory
Toni Miller’s treats are always so creative and fun, and her site is a helpful source for holiday treats like Valentine’s Day. Emoji cookies feel a little dated these days, so try these “like bubble” cookies straight off of instagram. Toni has great instructions on her site, but use a shortcut if you want to skip the fondant work — ice the cookies then use a red food-safe edible food writing pens to draw some hearts yourself.
Easy Tie-Dye Heart Cookies Recipe, Baked by Melissa
The creator of the wildly popular tie-dye mini cupcakes kids love has generously offered up her own recipe for cool Valentine cookies with tie-dye vibes, and they’re easy! It’s a very basic cookie recipe; assembling is more about smushing different colored balls of dough together than having a steady hand at decorating. Very cool Valentine cookie for teens who want a fun kitchen project — but would really like to get right to the eating.
Tags: baking, cookies, cooking with kids, dessert, humor, party ideas, pop culture, valentine's day
Tags: baking, cookies, cooking with kids, dessert, humor, party ideas, pop culture, valentine's day
