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Relationships can be complicated, and so can Valentine’s Day, if you let it. Fancy dinner, expensive wine, roses …
Or you could make a heart out of a hot dog and call it a day. Chances are, you’ll get a smile out of your intended with either approach, but my way’s cheaper.
The heart shape lends itself to many edible presentations. Create a crudite plate overflowing with hearts, making up in quantity what they lack in sophistication. Or just make a few of one type and tuck them into your child’s lunch as a Valentine’s Day surprise.
Some of the suggestions here were pilfered from bento ideas; most can be figured out just by looking at the pictures. The only tools you’ll need are a paring knife and a box of toothpicks.
The trickiest — but also the most magical — is the heart-shaped hard-boiled egg. For this one you’ll need to create a mold out of a milk carton, cutting it down so that you can wedge a just-cooked egg into a corner to form the tip of the heart. A chopstick shapes the top of the heart (directions at right). The waxed inner surface of the carton keeps the egg from sticking.
The pizzas take actual baking, but using refrigerated dough they are not a difficult project. You can make one big one or lots of small ones, depending on the number of valentines in your life.
Valentine’s pizzas
Use heart-shaped cake pans, or make pizzas of any shape and decorate them with hearts. You can also make tiny pizzas using heart-shaped cookie cutters.
Use refrigerated pizza dough (easiest), make your own (hardest) or use the no-yeast quickie dough below (moderate). Top with a prepared spaghetti sauce or go gourmet and make a sauce from scratch.
Some decorating ideas:
>> Form your pizza and top with sauce. Place a heart-shaped cookie cutter in the center. Surround the cutter with cheese, then bake with the cutter in place. When you remove it from the baked pizza, you’ll have a heart-shaped cutout.
>> Cut hearts out of sausage or bell peppers.
>> Take a thin slice of tomato and cut away the pulp to leave a circle of skin and flesh. Make one cut in the circle and form it into a heart.
No-Yeast Pizza Dough: Combine 2 cups flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder and 1 teaspoon salt.
Pour 1 tablespoon olive oil into 3/4 cup water. Slowly stir liquid into dry ingredients to make a soft dough. You might not need all the water; dough should not be sticky.
Knead lightly, then roll out to make a thin pizza of any shape. Pre-bake 8 minutes in a 400-degree oven, then top with sauce, cheese and toppings. Return to oven for a few minutes until cheese is melted and pizza is light brown.
More easy ideas
Slit a hot dog lengthwise, leaving one end intact. Curve the sides over and around; secure with a toothpick.
Most round or oval fruits and vegetables can be sliced and trimmed into hearts, as long as they’re firm enough. These are watermelon radishes. Strawberries are great, too.
Cut refrigerated crescent bun dough into strips, then roll the ends toward the center, fold and pinch the tip. Bake as directed. For a sweet version use cinnamon roll dough.
Make a mold out of a milk carton, removing the top and bottom and cutting it in half lengthwise to leave two sides and a corner. Hard-boil an egg and peel it. While it’s still hot, place it in your mold, hold it firmly and press on the egg with a chopstick until a depression holds, about 5 minutes. Slice the egg.
Choose two grape tomatoes that are close in size and shape. Slice off the stem ends, cutting at a 45-degree angle to remove about one-quarter of each tomato. Turn one piece over and secure the pieces to make a heart. This also works with grapes. Small sausages can just be cut diagonally in half to make the heart halves.
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