Dos Croquetas' Heart-Shaped Croquetas Are What Your Sweetheart Wants for Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is a mere two weeks away, and if you're looking for the most Miami gift, look no further than Dos Croquetas.

The croqueta company, founded in 2015 by Alec Fernandez and chef Vicky Carballo, is known for its unique creations, which go far beyond the typical ham, chicken, and cod flavors.

For Valentine's Day, the croqueta shop is offering two edible gifts that puts the stereotypical chocolates and supermarket roses to shame: heart-shaped croquetas and pastelitos.

A dozen heart-shaped ham croquetas cost $24, while two heart-shaped guava pastelitos come in at $10. The limited-edition treats can be ordered online now for pickup February 11-14 (you pick the date). Delivery is only available for same-day orders.  A limited number of croquetas will also be for sale in the shop on February 14 for last-minute orders. "It's Miami and everyone here orders last-minute," Dos Croquetas' Alex Fernandez imparts.

The croquetas and pastelitos are also available for shipping throughout the United States, in case you want to send some Miami love to someone out of reach.

Fernandez says the heart-shaped croquetas are made individually, by hand. And shaping the croquetas into hearts isn't as easy as it may seem. "Vicky and I must have been drinking when we decided to do this. The heart-shaped croquetas took forever to figure out."

Regular molds and cookie cutters simply didn't work, she explains. "The masa would just come off." Instead, they had to design custom molds. "It's croqueta innovation. Someone has to do it."

The hard work paid off. Last year, they made about 6,000 heart-shaped croquetas. This year the plan is to make 8,000. "They're a fun project and they're a labor of love," says Fernandez.

Fernandez and Carballo say that the croqueta business is great and they're looking to expand to a second shop — possibly in Pembroke Pines (although no lease has been signed). Says Fernandez, "We have a lot of fans there that drive to see us."

To pre-order your Valentines' Day croquetas and pastelitos, visit doscroquetas.com. While you're there, don't forget to pick up some to eat right now. As Fernandez says, "There is no such thing as a day without a croqueta."

Dos Croquetas. 10505 SW 40th St., Miami.; 305-912-3672; doscroquetas.com.