Recipes

Red Velvet Muddy Buddies and Red Velvet Sugar Cookie Bars {recipe}

Happy Valentine’s Day! If you are looking for a last minute treat for tonight..or fun for any other day as well, you are in the right place! For whatever reason, red velvet has been deemed as a Valentines Day treat. I’m guessing it is the wonderfully red color that it brings, but maybe there is a much more meaningful story behind it all 😉 In any case, I LOVE it! I wanted to share 2 recipes we’ve recently tried that are tasty and will make your loved ones feel special!


These Muddy Buddies are a fun change from the chocolate/peanut butter variety (although that will always be my favorite kind). They are festive and fun, and I’m sure you won’t have trouble finding someone to help you gobble these on down!

Valentines is such a fun holiday. I love spoiling the hubs, but love that the kids can get so into things as well. My Kindergartener is extremely excited to give Valentines to all his buddies in class.

These muddy buddies are a perfect snack for this month. Red Velvet is one of my favorite cakes, and so I knew I’d like this recipe. It did not disappoint. Make yourself up a batch…it only takes 10 minutes and well worth the effort!

Red Velvet Muddy Buddies

5 C. Rice Chex cereal
¾ C. white chocolate melts or chips
¼ C. chocolate melts or chips
2 oz cream cheese, room temp
1½ Tbsp. milk
1 C. Red Velvet Cake mix
½ C. powdered sugar
Valentines colored M&M’s or other candies
Heart sprinkles for extra decoration and cute-ness

Measure out Rice Chex cereal and place into a large bowl. Place cake mix and powdered sugar into a large plastic bag or tupperware with a lid.

Melt chocolates together in the microwave or on the stove top. Careful not to burn and stir until smooth. Stir in cream cheese and milk (the chocolate will get thicker, but it’s okay) Pour chocolate over Rice Chex cereal and stir until coated.

Dump cereal into the bag or tupperware with powdered sugar and cake mix. Shake, shake, shake until coated. Dump onto a cookie sheet and let cool. Mix with extra colorful candies and serve!

NOTE: Because of the cream cheese, keep in the fridge if you won’t be eating them that day. You can also omit the cream cheese all together if you wish…if you do that, you don’t need the milk either!

Recipe Source: Key Ingredient

Next up, some yummy sugar cookie bars.  They are GREAT!  They match the classic pairing of red velvet with a cream cheese frosting that is just perfect!




Red Velvet Sugar Cookie Bars

3â…“ cups flour
¼ cup unsweet­ened cocoa
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon bak­ing pow­der
1 cup but­ter, softened
1½ cups sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 Tablespoons (one 1-ounce bottle) red food coloring
Cream Cheese Frosting:
2 8 Oz cream cheese, softened
½ cup butter, softened
2 cups sifted powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Have a 9×13 inch pan ready. I like to line mine with aluminum foil and spray it with cooking spray so that the bars easily lift out and are easy to cut.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, salt, and baking powder. Set aside.
In a mixing bowl, cream together 1 cup butter softened and sugar until light and creamy. About 2-3 minutes. Beat in the eggs, vanilla, and food coloring until combined.
Add the flour mixture until a soft dough forms. Press into the bottom of the 9×13 inch pan. Bake for about 20 minutes until the edges start to pull away from the sides and a toothpick entered into the center comes out clean. Allow to completely cool before frosting.
To make the cream cheese frosting, Beat together the cream cheese and butter. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat together until smooth. Frost the top of the bars and enjoy!

Recipe Source:  The Recipe Critic

 


Happy Day ‘o Love to you all!

britni