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The Daily Utah Chronicle

The University of Utah's Independent Student Voice

The Daily Utah Chronicle

The University of Utah's Independent Student Voice

The Daily Utah Chronicle

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Write for Us
Want your voice to be heard? Submit a letter to the editor, send us an op-ed pitch or check out our open positions for the chance to be published by the Daily Utah Chronicle.
@TheChrony
Print Issues

Ohana means Valentine’s Day

Ohana+means+Valentines+Day

— Anna Drysdale

Confession: I think Single’s Awareness Day is the worst day of the year. It’s worse than Friday the 13th (by the way, watch yourself, it’s the 13th) and even worse than the middle of finals week. Even it’s initials are sad (literally, S.A.D.). But the real reason it’s a bummer is because it threatens to supplant Valentine’s Day, which is just not okay. Valentine’s Day is the best day of the year.

RELATED: 3 TIPS FOR A BEAUTIFUL VALENTINE’S DAY

Valentine’s is the best day, even if you’re single, even if your significant other never brings you flowers or chocolate.

The truth is, none of those things have anything to do with the real meaning of Valentine’s Day. This day isn’t just about romance, and it shouldn’t even be about feeling loved or special. What if we thought of this day as a chance to make other people happy?

Once upon a time, this day you now dread meant craft time and cookies. It meant a whole day off of school to play musical chairs and frost (more) cookies and eat pink and red M&Ms, which are, incidentally, the best flavor. On top of that, there was making your own little mailbox (ummm, have you guys been on Pinterest lately? People take this seriously). But best of all, you spent the night before Valentine’s writing out notes on construction paper hearts or Winnie the Pooh envelopes for every single one of your classmates.

Wait, what was that last part? Every single one. Once, Valentine’s Day meant no one got left behind, or forgotten. And yes, that was a “Lilo and Stitch” reference.

Growing up can be rough. But at what point do we stop thinking about what valentines we’re going to give our friends and start wallowing in our loneliness? Isn’t it funny, that in worrying about being alone, we become more lonely, by forgetting to tell our friends how much we love them?

What if this year, we make cookies instead? Better yet, what if we made cookies and brought them to all of our friends? Cookies fix anything, and these cookies, especially, can transform even the most die-hard February Scrooge into a bubbly cupid. Or, if that’s still too Valentine-y for you, just think of it this way: Butter and cream cheese never made anyone sad. It’s bound to be a good day, especially if you share these with all your friends.

These are the perfect sugar cookie — the salted butter, cream of tartar, soda and salt lend a nice delicate edge to this cookie, which once paired with the almond cheesecake glory of a pink cream cheese icing, creates a sweet-salt balance that is nothing short of dangerous. Sharing is encouraged. But if you want to hoard them yourself, they’re even better the next day, once the frosting sinks into the cookie, making it even softer.

Valentine’s Sugar Cookies

1 1/2 cup sugar, salted
1 cup butter
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

Cream Cheese Icing

1/2 cup butter
8 ounces cream cheese
4 cups powdered sugar

1 tablespoon almond extract

A few drops of red food coloring, until you hit the perfect pink

milk as needed

Mix until smooth.

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