Red Velvet Whoopie Pies

Earlier this week I think I forgot to mention on of my husband's "gifts" in my Valentine's recap post.  Red Velvet Whoopie Pies.

This is one of my most favorite super easy recipes that I make almost every year on Valentine's Day.  You only need 4 ingredients to complete the dessert.  Even my husband who claims he "isn't really into sweets" always requests theses and ends up eating most of them!

Ingredients:
1 box Red Velvet Cake Mix
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs (as always, I use Egg Beaters)
1 container whipped white frosting

How to Make:
-Preheat your oven to 375°.
-Combine cake mix, oil, and eggs in a large bowl.  I used my hand mixer for this but beware, the batter gets really thick...almost a dough like consistency!  My 7-speed kitchen-aid almost couldn't handle it!

-Once your mixture is thoroughly moistened and combined, use a cookie scoop to shape dough into balls.  Place the cookie dough about 2" apart on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.

-Next, use a glass dipped in flour to flatten your cookies.  They should be about 1/4" thick.

-Throw your cookies in the oven for 6-8 minutes.
-Allow to cool for a few minutes before removing from cookie sheets.

-Once your cookies are completely cool, you can frost the bottom of one cookie and then add another to create the sandwich whoopie pie!  Add as little or as much frosting as you like.

-I like to store my cookies in an airtight container in the fridge.  They're delicious right out of the fridge, or if you prefer softer frosting, you can let them set out for just a few minutes!

**This recipe made about 26 whoopie pies for me and I used a 1.5" cookie scoop.  I had plenty of leftover frosting as well!

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Valentine's Recap

We had a fairly uneventful Valentine's Day this year, but it was still full of love!  I tell my husband and Carson every day just how much I love them, but I like to do something a little more on special days like Valentine's Day.  It's fun!  

Here's a look at what Nick walked in the door to see.  Carson picked out the balloon for him at the grocery store and was SO excited about it!  :)

I borrowed this cute and corny idea for Valentine treats from eighteen25 and Nick loved it!  For some reason I couldn't get their labels to print so I just created my own on Word.  The labels say "DONUT what I'd do without a HUNK like you", "You are all that and a can of CHIPS" (I had to modify that one since he likes Pringles, haha!), "So Glad You're My STUD MUFFIN", and "I'm NUTS about you".  Like I said, corny but cute!

Carson got a fun heart shaped lunch that day...flatbread with hummus, cheese, and grapes.  Too bad we didn't open the cute Valentine's plate from his Memaw before lunch!  :)

When Nick got home that evening we opened gifts.  Carson had one from his Memaw and one from us.  He loves opening presents and cards!

He found the most challenging way to open the envelope: rip it to shreds!  Haha!

This is the backpack he got from us.  As soon as he figured out where the zipper was he loaded it up with balls and trucks.  Such a boy.  :)

Nick brought me home some of my favorite flowers, a pack of Reese's Valentine hearts (YUM!), and a super sweet card.  He said he felt bad that I went all out but I don't think he realizes how much I appreciate the thought he put into my gifts!  :)

I also did a little mini photo shoot with Carson on Valentine's Day just for fun.  He's a tough model these days but we got a few cute shots!

outtakes!

Sweets for your Sweetie!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Here's a little flashback from last year:

Today I'm sharing 5 fun and easy Valentine's treat ideas.  These treats are super simple and easy to make for your sweetie!

{one} Red Velvet Puppy Chow.  Need I say more?!  Find the recipe here.

{two} Valentine pretzel "buttons" with Hershey Hugs or Dove chocolates.  YUM!
**To make: Preheat oven to 175 degrees.  Arrange pretzels on baking sheet.  Add a Hug or Dove chocolate to the top of each pretzel.  Pop in the oven for 2-3 minutes until candy is shiny.  Remove from oven and press an M&M on top of each pretzel "button".  Allow to cool.

{three} Valentine M&M cookie bars.  Use my favorite recipe and add in some Valentine colored M&M's.  Festive and delicious!

{four} Whoopie Pies!  I love making these because they are so simple and SO delicious.  I love red velvet with a fluffy white filling.  Another idea is to do chocolate with a pink filling (could be strawberry or just white icing with food coloring).
**To make: Use this simple recipe for cake mix cookies.  Allow cookies to completely cool.  Frost the bottom of one cookie and add another cookie to create the sandwich.  Easy peasy!

{five} Valentine Rice Krispie Treats.  So easy and so addicting.  Find the process here.

What is your favorite dessert to make for your sweetie?  

I'm planning on making something red velvet!

Toddler Valentine Crafts

Recently Carson and I worked on some crafts for Valentine's Day.  You know I love a good keepsake and it was also a great opportunity to make some cards for our loved ones!

Carson was also pretty excited.  He loves painting!

For this first project, I cut out a heart template and used painter's tape to secure it to a piece of red paper.  Then I let Carson go to town with white paint and a little sponge roller!  [Scroll down to see pictures of the process.]

Carson used a custom heart stamper to create this masterpiece.  We used these instructions to make our super fancy heart stamp from a recycled toilet paper roll!  :)

Here are some pictures of Carson creating his masterpieces.  (We used scrap paper to cut out the brown hearts which he decorated with Bingo markers for his grandmas!)

I'm linking up with Kristin today!