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Homemade slice and bake heart sugar cookies with a nostalgic feel, featuring natural food coloring for pink heart shapes, soft and chewy texture, perfect for Valentine’s Day or any celebration.

  • Total Time: 1 hour 42 minutes
  • Yield: Makes about 24 cookies 1x

Ingredients

Scale
  • 3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • Red or pink natural food coloring

Instructions

  1. Add butter, sugar, and vanilla extract to a large mixing bowl or stand mixer. Beat on medium speed until the mixture is light, creamy, and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
  2. Add eggs one at a time, mixing just until combined after each addition.
  3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
  4. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in 3-4 batches, mixing just until dough comes together. If dough feels too soft or sticky, add 1-2 tablespoons more flour to achieve proper consistency.
  5. Remove about half to two-thirds of the plain dough and set aside for surrounding the hearts.
  6. Add several drops of natural food coloring to the remaining dough and mix well until desired pink shade is reached.
  7. Place the pink dough in the freezer for 5 minutes to firm up slightly.
  8. On a lightly floured surface, roll the pink dough into a rectangle about 1/2 inch thick. Return to freezer for 15-20 minutes to chill.
  9. Use a small heart cookie cutter (~1.5 inches) to cut out heart shapes from chilled pink dough.
  10. Lightly wet your finger and brush on the floured side of each heart before adhering another heart on top to create a heart log about 10 inches long.
  11. Freeze the heart log for at least 30 minutes until solid.
  12. Remove from freezer. Press the plain dough around the frozen heart log, ensuring there are no gaps. Roll carefully into a smooth log.
  13. Wrap the log tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
  14. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
  15. Slice the chilled dough log into 1/4-inch thick rounds and arrange on baking sheets about 2 inches apart.
  16. Bake for about 12 minutes or until bottoms are lightly golden brown.
  17. Remove from oven and let cookies cool before serving.

Notes

Use softened unsalted butter for best texture; if using salted butter, reduce added salt in recipe., Accurately measure flour by spooning into measuring cup and leveling off to avoid dry, crumbly dough., Chilling the colored dough and freezing the heart log are essential for crisp, well-defined heart shapes., Do not chill plain dough before assembly; it should be soft and pliable for easy wrapping around hearts., Dough can be frozen for months if tightly wrapped; thaw at room temperature about 15 minutes before slicing and baking., Heart cookie cutter used is approximately 1.5 inches across, ideal for this recipe., This slice and bake method can be adapted to other shapes for various holidays or celebrations.

  • Author: Laura
  • Prep Time: 90 minutes
  • Cook Time: 12 minutes
  • Category: Cookies
  • Cuisine: American

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 2 cookies
  • Calories: 275 calories per serving (2 cookies)
  • Fat: 12.6 g per serving
  • Carbohydrates: 37.1 g per serving
  • Protein: 3.9 g per serving