14 Heart-Shaped Foods for Kids on Valentine's Day

Make Valentine's Day a special holiday for your kids. Like the man in your life, the way to a kid's heart is also through the stomach. Of course, you can create traditional favorites like heart-shaped sugar cookies, chocolates and cakes, but don't stop there. Arm yourself with the heart-shaped cookie cutter and go a little wild. Here are 14 heart-shaped foods for a Valentine's Day breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner or dessert:

Valentine's Day Hearts for Breakfast

1. Pancakes
Set your metal heart-shaped cookie cutter on the griddle and pour your pancake batter inside. When the batter begins to set, lift up the cookie cutter and flip the pancake. For added holiday flair, add red food coloring to the pancake batter before cooking. Better yet, follow the advice of Jessica Seinfeld in her book Deceptively Delicious. She adds pureed beets to pancake batter to create healthy, naturally pink pancakes.

2. French Toast
Prepare French Toast as usual, but press heart shapes out of the finished product. Kids will enjoy both the hearts and the heart-shaped holes in the French toast. Serve it with something red, like raspberries or strawberries, and a sprinkling of powdered sugar.

3. Eggs and Toast (aka "Egg-in-the-Hole")
Butter a slice of bread on both sides, and then press out a heart shape. Place both the heart and the bread-with-a-hole on a medium-hot griddle. Place a little dab of butter in the bread's heart-shaped hole, then crack an egg in it. You can break the yoke, and then flip the whole thing when it's ready. Remember to flip the little heart, too, which should be toasting up nicely. This was a favorite of mine when I was a kid.

Valentine's Day Hearts for Lunch

4. Sandwiches
Prepare your kids' favorite sandwich, and then cut out a heart shape. Kids are notorious for turning their noses up at crusts, so they'll enjoy their special tea party finger sandwich. Moms are notorious for eating said crusts (at least I am), so help yourself or toss them outside for the birds.