This Valentine’s Day care package was created for a service member I don’t know. I wanted to send a message of care and support through cookies. The Valentine Envelope Sugar Cookies are sealed with a red heart to show affection and a yellow ribbon piped on top of the heart to show support for our troops.
Care package decorating
To highlight both the caring hearts and the yellow support ribbons, I lined the inside of the packing box with hearts cut from rainbow-striped paper. Each paper heart was accented with a taped yellow ribbon, reinforcing the theme of support and warmth.
Care package contents
- The box was filled with as much chocolate candy as it could hold and required very little tissue filler. I used a “one of each” approach when selecting candy bars so the recipient would have a variety to choose from.
- I included a small stuffed Valentine gorilla purchased on impulse from the Dollar Store. Operation Gratitude often includes little mascots and stuffed toys in military care packages, so I followed that thoughtful example. This little gorilla was intended to offer a bit of comfort to a soldier overseas.
Circle Sugar Cookies
Yes, circles are often recommended because they have no corners and are less likely to break in transit, but this month I made rectangular cookies: Valentine Envelope Sugar Cookies. They are simple, reliable, and easy to decorate.
Cookie instructions
- I used one batch of the Cut Out Vanilla Sugar Cookies recipe and one batch of the Glaze Icing Recipe. These quantities yielded the 12 cookies included in this care package. Nearly all of the icing used was white.
- Reserve about 3/4 cup of icing at a thicker consistency suitable for outlining.
- Color one tablespoon of the thick icing yellow and place it in a piping bag fitted with a very small round tip for piping the ribbons.
- Place the remaining thick white icing in a separate piping bag fitted with a small round tip for outlining and detail work.
- Thin the leftover icing to a flooding consistency and place it in a piping bag with a slightly larger round tip for filling the surface of each cookie.
- Outline each cookie in the thicker white icing around the outer scalloped edge, then allow the outlines to set slightly for about 30 minutes before flooding the interior.
- Flood the outlined rectangles with the thinned white icing, and allow the flooded surface to set for about an hour.
- While the flooded icing is setting, pipe small yellow ribbons onto 12 red heart sprinkles so they are ready to press onto the cookies later.
- After the flooded surface has set, use the thicker white icing to pipe the envelope lines across each cookie to resemble the back of an envelope.
- Press the red heart sprinkles with yellow ribbons onto the tip of the envelope flap on each cookie, creating a sealed-heart detail.
Allow all iced sugar cookies to air dry overnight so the icing fully hardens before packing.
I wrapped the cookies in pairs, placing bottoms together, and sealed each pair in plastic wrap. Each wrapped bundle was placed snugly in a freezer-weight gallon Ziplock bag to provide extra protection during shipping.
New recipe
The new recipe included in this box was Kiss Cookies. Two dozen Kiss Cookies were baked, each filled with a mint truffle Kiss to match Soldier B.’s preference for chocolate-mint. After baking, every cookie was dipped in a generous chocolate coating and finished with festive sprinkles. They were rich, chocolatey, and celebratory.
Sending a Valentine to a stranger required some adaptation. Typically, Valentine cookies are made for loved ones and sealed with plain sprinkle hearts. For this care package, the envelopes carry an extra symbol: a yellow ribbon atop the heart to represent our gratitude and support for the troops.
These Valentine Envelope Sugar Cookies are straightforward to make, ship well when carefully wrapped, and offer both sweetness and a small, thoughtful reminder that someone is thinking of and supporting the service member who receives them.