35 Easy Valentine's Day Chocolate Recipes To Try This February

Believe it or not, February is just around the corner — and that means Valentine's Day is almost here, too. Perhaps you're a hopeless romantic who loves handing out Valentine's Day chocolates to everyone in class or at the office. Or maybe you'd rather channel Jennifer Garner in "Valentine's Day" and smash a heart-shaped pinata. Whichever camp you fall into, there's one thing nearly all of us agree on: This holiday a great time to celebrate all things chocolate. After all, February is National Chocolate Lover's Month, as Foodimentary shares.

Head to practically any store between now and mid-February, and you'll see no shortage of chocolate goodness in decorative bags and boxes. This year, however, we think you should take a pass on the store-bought chocolate and give your true love, your family, or yourself some delectable, homemade chocolate treats. Now's the perfect time to try our most indulgent chocolaty recipes, like fudgy brownies, chocolate-dipped fruit, and rich cakes. Fall in love with these Valentine's Day desserts — there are enough ideas to test out for every day of the month and beyond!

Lava cakes come with a built-in surprise, which is what makes them so exciting to eat. Cutting into a petite, unassuming dark chocolate cake to find a center of flowing, molten chocolate is pretty much the best thing on Earth for a true chocolate lover. This recipe is easy and sure to impress dinner guests. A quick batter of chocolate, butter, eggs, and flour is poured into ramekins, then baked just long enough to set the outside of the cakes and leave their centers ultra gooey. 

Recipe: Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes

Chocolate and cherries are one of the best flavor pairings out there — and a perfect combination for your Valentine's Day treat. Though these pink-frosted goodies are made from scratch, they only require simple pantry staples, like cocoa powder, eggs, and sugar. While the rich chocolate cupcakes bake, the frosting comes together quickly with maraschino cherry juice for a fruity flavor and lovely pink color. Top each treat with a cherry and a few chocolate sprinkles for the sweetest little cupcakes ever. 

Recipe: Chocolate Cherry Cupcakes

If your particular chocolate obsession happens to be Nutella-flavored, than this is the recipe for you. To make a dozen of these three-ingredient cookies, you'll need Nutella, of course, plus a little flour and one egg. Feel free to customize these adaptable cookies with additional ingredients, like chopped nuts, a sprinkle of sea salt, or chocolate chips. Want a gluten-free version? Just use a GF flour that can be swapped one-to-one for regular flour.

Recipe: 3-Ingredient Nutella Cookies

OK, so you want to start your Valentine's Day with a chocolaty breakfast that tastes indulgent but is still packed with nutrients. We have just the thing: this recipe for overnight oats with whole-grain oats, chia seeds, chopped almonds, and almond milk (for health). This brekkie also has pure maple syrup, a generous spoonful of cocoa powder, and a topping of strawberries and chocolate chips (for fun). Assemble this quick, no-bake recipe the night before, and you'll wake up to one of the best morning meals ever. 

Recipe: No-Bake Chocolate Oatmeal

Flourless chocolate cake is a restaurant favorite, but this recipe means you can have a slice with your Valentine whether or not you're going out for dinner. The batter is much like that of your favorite brownie recipe: with cocoa, chunks of chocolate, sugar, eggs, and butter — but no flour! The cake comes out of the oven when it's set but still has a little wobble in the middle, which is what gives it that dense and sumptuous texture once cooled. For the best-tasting cake, use the highest quality chocolate you can get.

Recipe: Flourless Chocolate Cake

Need a Valentine's Day dessert worthy of a "Great British Baking Show" showstopper challenge? This cheesecake — with a base made of crushed Oreo cookies, a double-chocolate filling, and lots of cherries on top — certainly fits the bill. The best part: Nestled in the center is a layer of cherry pie filling infused with Kirsch cherry liqueur, making this lightly boozy treat even more swoon-worthy for cherry fans.

Recipe: Black Forest Cheesecake

Woo your Valentine with a dish of this rich and creamy chocolate mousse. Traditionally, chocolate mousse is made by slowly whipping egg whites and sugar into stiff peaks, then folding the mixture into melted chocolate. Plus, it requires heavy cream and egg yolks. Our recipe gets the job done with a much simpler process and only two ingredients — and it's ready to serve in 10 minutes. Top this easy mousse with whipped cream, heart-shaped sprinkles, fresh fruit, or a drizzle of salted caramel. 

Recipe: Easy Two-Ingredient Chocolate Mousse

Whether your Valentine's Day is warm and sun-soaked or snowy and cold, a rich chocolate milkshake is always a welcome treat. The core ingredients are vanilla ice cream, chocolate syrup, and milk, but these can easily be customized. Use chocolate ice cream instead of vanilla, shake in some cinnamon, or throw in a spoonful of peanut butter for a nutty flavor. Some of our favorite toppings include maraschino cherries, whipped cream, Valentine's sprinkles, and an extra drizzle of chocolate sauce. 

Recipe: Classic Chocolate Milkshakes

Your Instant Pot isn't just for soups and stews. Put your favorite appliance to work on Valentine's Day with this perfectly moist, shareable chocolate cake. Set a round cake pan containing the easy-to-prepare batter inside your Instant Pot, which you'll fill with a little bit of water to create steam that keeps the cake tender as it bakes. Once the cake is cool, you can frost it with chocolate buttercream — or use a stencil and confectioners' sugar to dust a pretty design over the top. Serve sliced with fresh fruit, whipped cream, or ice cream. 

Recipe: Instant Pot Chocolate Cake

While you can definitely make these nostalgic dirt cups for kids on Valentine's Day, don't make the mistake of thinking they're only for kids! These treats consist of alternating layers of crushed Oreo cookies and creamy, cheesecake-y chocolate pudding. They're quick to put together and the perfect make-ahead dessert to keep in the fridge until party time. To really lean into the Valentine's theme, use pink and white gummy worms or gummy hearts.

Recipe: Easy Dirt Cake Cups

Have you and your love been known to bond over the big-as-a-baby's-head chocolate muffins from Costco? Believe it or not, you can make them at home — perhaps for a Valentine's Day breakfast in bed. The muffin batter comes together in just 10 minutes and is rich and chocolaty thanks to cocoa powder and chocolate chips. To replicate the original treats' giant size, you'll need a jumbo muffin pan. Otherwise, just use a regular muffin pan, and you'll get twice as many muffins to share.

Recipe: Costco Copycat Chocolate Muffins 

If you're thinking of baking a batch of cookies for Valentine's Day, may we suggest these ooey gooey chocolate marshmallow goodies? The chocolate cookie dough is loaded with dark chocolate chips and mini marshmallows, which get a beautifully golden, toasted-over-the-fire hue when baked. Enjoy them warm for the meltiest, fudgiest cookie experience, or let them cool first — they'll still be super soft and delicious. If you can find them, use pink and white mini marshmallows in your holiday batch.

Recipe: Chocolate Marshmallow Cookies

They may look like your typical brownies on the outside, but running through the middle of these special treats is a surprising layer of sweetness. To make them, scoop half of the brownie batter into a baking pan, layer in lots of Hershey's cookies and cream white chocolate bars, and cover the candy with the rest of the batter. Wait for them to bake and cool, then enjoy your friends' delighted expressions when you slice these up to reveal Hershey's in every square.

Recipe: Cookies 'N' Creme Stuffed Brownies

There's no need to save the Irish cream for St. Patrick's Day, as it makes a wonderfully decadent brownie to give your Valentine. Conveniently, these brownies come together in a flash with your favorite boxed brownie mix, elevated with the Irish cream of your choosing. While they bake, whip up an easy buttercream frosting with even more Irish cream. Maintain these brownies' sophisticated black and white color scheme, or add red and pink sprinkles for a hint of romance.

Recipe: Frosted Irish Cream Brownies

Mint chocolate chip may be a divisive flavor combination, but for those who love it, these cookies make a mighty thoughtful Valentine's Day present. They get their flavor from Andes chocolate mints, which are cut into chunks that lend a tingly taste and gooey texture to each bite. These cookies take less than an hour to complete; the most time-consuming part is unwrapping the candies — and, honestly, that's a meditative process.

Recipe: Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies

Once again, your Instant Pot comes to the rescue — this time for an easy batch of rich and fudgy brownies. This quick brownie batter gets a little extra thickness and complexity from Greek yogurt. Since it "bakes" in the Instant Pot in a round pan, you can slice it up into single-serving wedges or present it as one giant brownie cake. Either way, these moist treats are done in about 45 minutes, and they'll be begging to be served with chocolate sauce, pink whipped cream, or a scoop of ice cream. 

Recipe: Instant Pot Brownies

Put that can of store-bought icing back on the shelf: It's easy to make your own chocolate buttercream that tastes unbelievably rich and delicious. Pure butter and cocoa powder are the key ingredients in this thick frosting, along with cream for a smooth texture and confectioners' sugar for sweetness. Now, what to use it for? You could give your Valentine a Swiss roll cake generously slathered with chocolate buttercream — or use the frosting to make sandwich cookies rolled in sprinkles. 

Recipe: Chocolate Buttercream Icing