Scones, Brownies, and Whoopie Pies

I am feeling the love just a week before Valentine’s day via baked goods. In years past, I could be found eating bon-bon after bon-bon for the month of February – but with a nut allergy now, I have to steer clear of my beloved Whitman’s sampler.

Instead of chocolates, I might go for a slice of rich chocolate cake or chocolate covered strawberries on Valentine’s day.

Scones could be romantic, if they are made fresh in the morning for breakfast in bed. I made carrot cake scones three times to get them right for the high bidder of Amanda’s online bake sale. (Recipe here.)

The final batch of scones was mailed this morning to California, to a home just a few minutes away from where I stayed last month in San Diego.

I fell in love all over again with my best ever brownies. (Recipe here.) I made a test batch before baking the real thing for Elizabeth of On Tap For Today. She won these brownies and got to choose her own mix-in for the recipe. Nut butter swirl was her choice, is there anything better?

The test batch came out just as good as I remembered. I absolutely love the consistently of these brownies: soft, cakey, and deeply chocolate.

The only problem with shipping brownies is that they are prone to sticking to plastic wrap and fingers. I will try wrapping each brownies in parchment paper. Elizabeth can pull a Joey Tribiani and suck the brownie residue off the parchment when she gets home from a night of fine dining.

I also shared these lovely pink cream whoopie pies at work last week. I wanted to test a recipe for whoopie pie cakes because I haven’t had luck with them in the past.

The recipe for whoopie pies with mint filling that I used to make the cakes came from bon appetit. I chose it because it called for butter or shortening, whereas most recipes I found use shortening in the cake and the filling.

Much to my delight, the cakes were soft but sturdy. I piped a ton of buttercream frosting in between two chocolate cakes and sprinkled them red and pink sugar.

What kind of sweet goods do you think best express your love?