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FOT Community => General Discussion => Topic started by: Emily on February 14, 2008, 01:35:51 PM

Title: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Emily on February 14, 2008, 01:35:51 PM
Hi Everybody,

Happy Valentine's Day!

I made these Linzer Hearts for my co-workers, 'cause it's my last day here (starting a new job tomorrow) and 'cause it's Valentine's Day (duh). Anywho, I'm just so excited that I actually went through with this incredibly involved recipe & that the linzer tarts came out really great, so I wanted to share it with you all as a virtual valentine, even though this is kind of dorky ;-)


(http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m47/hippocatgeek/IMG_3643.jpg)
(http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m47/hippocatgeek/IMG_3637.jpg)

They're SO YUMMY!
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Dorvid Barnas on February 14, 2008, 03:02:36 PM
Awww!

Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Andy on February 14, 2008, 03:32:17 PM
are those anything like Polish Thumbprint cookies?  They're like little balls of shortbread heaven topped with jam.
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Sarah on February 14, 2008, 03:37:13 PM
I assume they're related to linzertorte, which is a kind of sandwich cookie:  a bottom crust of spiced dough made with flour and ground almonds is spread with raspberry preserves and topped with a lattice made of the same spiced dough.  I've made 'em; they're scrumptious. 
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: erika on February 14, 2008, 04:30:01 PM
Those cookies look absolutely delicious! Alas, my aforementioned lack of baking skills would keep me from such a feat.

But I did make this Valentine's robot for Greg. He made me a collage-type valentine and a pice of cheese-toast. (the cheese on the toast was in the shape of a heart)

(http://i26.tinypic.com/2sa1a3a.jpg)

Yay for stupid holidays!
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: iAmBaronVonTito on February 14, 2008, 04:53:08 PM
what desserts are planned for president's day
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Sarah on February 14, 2008, 05:25:10 PM
I'm considering baking a cake sometime soon--maybe I should make it a George Washington cake.
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Susannah on February 14, 2008, 06:02:23 PM
I plied my students with Hershey kisses and now they love me.

Tomorrow when I chaperone their school dance and enforce the "There must be four inches between students and dance partners at all times," they won't love me.  Time to break out the yardstick!

Happy Valentine's Day to everyone :)
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: dania on February 14, 2008, 06:15:31 PM
Valentine's Day is too many syllables, so I'm stealing my father's idea and I'm going to call it "Date Night". 
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Beth on February 14, 2008, 06:37:28 PM
I've never had such a nice Valentines day. All the kids in my fifth/sixth grade got me cards, which gives me warm fuzzies. I'm really new to the classroom, and my first experience with this has turned out to be so rewarding. I think  Valentines day is kind of a made up day, but the cookies, and cards, and extra love sure are nice!

 Emily, those cookies look delicious.
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: buffcoat on February 14, 2008, 07:18:23 PM
Beth,

You're an amazingly good writer (and very experienced in life) for someone in 5th/6th grade - good job!

buffcoat
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Gilly on February 14, 2008, 08:29:02 PM

(http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m47/hippocatgeek/IMG_3637.jpg)


I scrolled up to read this thread and I thought this was placed on somebodys back. I had to scroll up to see if Spike has started posting in the forums and then I was disappointed when it was a table.
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: <<<<< on February 15, 2008, 02:16:39 AM
Happy Valentine's Day!

(http://img162.echo.cx/img162/4550/explosion3rg.gif)
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Josh on February 15, 2008, 10:57:36 AM
(http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/images/200802/20080215rr_zoo_2_330.jpg)
happy valentine's day from the pittsburgh zoo!
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Dan B on February 15, 2008, 02:46:02 PM
Happy Valentimes Day!
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Beth on February 15, 2008, 05:25:18 PM
Beth,

You're an amazingly good writer (and very experienced in life) for someone in 5th/6th grade - good job!

buffcoat

Thanks. It's been a little awkward, since i'm nearly 3 times the age of everyone else, but I aced the spelling test last week!
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Emily on February 17, 2008, 08:07:26 PM
Thanks, they were pretty good!

Sarah I used hazelnuts, actually. i had to blanch them, (acc. to the directions) so they wouldn't be so red, i think (since their skins are red). but that made them (obviously) wet & annoying to mix with the flour mixture. oh and if a recipe ever instructs you to grind hazelnuts in a food processor, use chopped nuts, whole nuts don't really work well (though it might depend on your food processor blades).  then there was a lot of freezing and re-freezing of the dough (so you can use the cookie cutter without the dough gooifying), which was a pain in the buttocks, esp. since i have a very narrow freezer & couldn't fit a baking sheet in there. so that was a bit clumsy, since i was using parchment paper in lieu of the cookie sheet, and i quickly ran out of paper. and then it seemed to take forever to re-roll and then re-freeze my dough. people have been like "i don't re-roll my dough more than twice" and i'm all, "i don't waste food, so there" none of them turned out nasty or anything. i guess you're not suppose to re-roll some doughs.

i might make them again for all the poor souls who didn't get to eat them. they were bigger than Polish thumb prints though, or so I assume, since thumb prints are small, in general. and i dont think poles have freakishly big fingers (since my great-grandmama was polish and i don't remember anything out of the ordinary).

anyway, for president's day i may not actually bake anything, though i am intrigued by the prospect of carving a block of cheese into the likeness of Abraham Lincoln. but i might not actually do that, since i don't have the proper tools. but ! if i pursue it, i will post of photo. (i'll also get my own blog so i can post my own crap there).

anyway, happy president's day eve!
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Sarah on February 18, 2008, 07:55:27 AM
I think your food processor must be wonky, emily.  My workhorse of a Cuisinart--almost thirty years old--has no problem with nuts, even the harder ones.

You didn't have to peel the hazelnuts?  You're lucky.  Every now and then my sister will get it into her head to peel a quantity of them, and she always curses herself for it.  And if you ever make this recipe again, may I recommend toasting after blanching to make the nuts grind and mix more easily?

Did you use raspberry jam/preserves?  Or something else?  I have some lovely cherry preserves in my fridge right now that I bet would be tasty in a cookie, and I'm also intrigued at the notion of using marmalade (I'm a citrus lover).

I think I'm baking vicariously through you, emily.  Years ago, I used to be an avid and, if I say so myself, rather good baker; now I barely make anything except bread. 

P.S.  Perhaps Poles just have freakishly large thumbs, like what's-her-name in Even Cowgirls Get the Blues{/i]?
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Emily on February 18, 2008, 10:11:57 AM
toasting makes sense, will do. thanks for the tip. they didn't say anything about peeling them. some of the peels fell off in the blanching stage, but nothing significant. and i did use raspberry preserves. you could probably use marmalade though, why not?

i haven't see that movie.. (i'll put it in my queueueueueuueueuee)

you should bake some cookies! they'll taste so yum and your house will smell scrum-diddily-umptious!
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Sarah on February 18, 2008, 10:21:52 AM
You'd be better off reading the book.  I didn't like it all that much--I find Tom Robbins too cutesy--but the movie was worse.  In fact, don't bother with either.
Title: Re: Happy Valentine's Day!
Post by: Emily on February 18, 2008, 11:05:22 PM
ok, i won't.

:-)