Simple Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies

Making Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies is a unique and versatile project for Valentine's Day. The Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies are part craft, part cooking, and all fun.

The Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies can be a family project, where the youngest kids help make the fortunes. Older children, including pre-teens and teenagers can help with the baking.

The Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies can also be made for any age group. Simply make the fortunes match the age group. Fortunes can be written out for elementary school students, middle schoolers or high schoolers. If handing out the Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies in school, don't forget to make fortunes for the teacher.

The fortunes in the Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies can also be of a more suggestive and adult nature, when giving them to a romantic partner.

Ingredients for Simple Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies

2 egg whites
1/2 cup white sugar
1/3 cup melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
2/3 cup all-purpose white flour
3 tbspns water
dash of salt

How to Make Simple Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies

1. Make the Fortunes

The fortunes can should be approximately three 3 inches long or shorter, and 1/2 inch wide. The fortune can always be folded, so an aproximate size will work. Use plain white paper to make the fortunes.

Depending on who is making the fortunes, the messages can either be written or typed. If typing the messages, which can be done using messages the kids would like to use in the Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies, or for an adult, be sure the message is the right size.

The other way to make fortunes for the Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies is to cut the strips first, and then write the messages on the paper.

2. Make the Cookies

The oven should be preheated to 375 degrees (F). Line a couple of large cookie sheets with parchment paper. These cookies can stick easily, so they are best baked on parchment paper. If you do not have parchment paper, liberally grease the cookie sheets.

Two or more cookie sheets are best to use because these cookies need ample room to spread out. By using multiple cookie sheets, your baking time will go faster, because you can put the next batch in as soon as you remove a cooked batch of Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies.

Mix the whipped egg whites and the white sugar either by hand or with an electric mixer. The mixture should be frothy. Next, add the cooled and melted butter. Stir.

Add the vanilla extract and the water, stirring again. Finally, pour in the flour and add the dash of salt. The Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies batter should look like watery pancake batter.

Using a spoon, pour the batter in approximately 3-inch circles onto the cookie sheets. Leave a lot of room between each cookie, because they will spread.

Set the oven timer or egg timer for six minutes. When the edges of the Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies have turned a light brown, remove the cookie sheet from the oven, and place another cookie sheet in the oven.

Place a fortune in the center of circle cookie. With a large spatula, remove the cookie before it cools and fold the Valentine's Day Fortune Cookie in half. Take the folded cookie and drape it over the edge of a bowl or a glass. If the cookie is not maintaining its fortune cookie shape, place each cookie in the bottom of a cupcake pan until they have shaped properly.

Repeat until all the batter is used up. Adjust the baking time based on your own oven.

3. Variations

It is possible to skip the fortunes altogether, although that may be a little disappointing for the recipient.

Recipe variations include: add other flavored extracts to the mix, including 1/2 teaspoon of Pure Almond Extract, 1/2 teaspoon of Lemon Extract, or 1/2 teaspoon of Rum extract.

One of the cookie's end could also be dipped in melted chocolate, once the cookies has cooled and formed.

Packaging Simple Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies

Materials Needed:

Small plastic bags with hearts OR
sandwich sized bags
heart or other Valentine's Day stickers
thin red ribbon

For children passing out the Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies in class, use some zipper sandwich bags and let the kids decorate the bags with stickers, before the cookies are in the bag.

Use a pre-decorated open plastic bag for a more sophisticated giving of the Valentine's Day Fortune Cookies. Tie the top of the bag with a red ribbon.