Recipes For A Romantic Valentine's Day Dinner
Every Valentine's Day, people scramble for flowers, candy and restaurant reservations. It's so stressful, so annoying... so anti-Valentine's Day! In lieu of buying a bunch of love-themed stuff and shoving it in your sweetie's face, woo them with a romantic, home-cooked dinner. It's intimate and special. More than a phone call to a local restaurant, it shows that you care.
Cooking dinner at home can be stressful and time consuming. We've put together an impressive, but simple, menu for your romantic Valentine's Day dinner. These three delicious courses are each brimming with aphrodisiacs; they're guaranteed to put any couple in the mood. You've been warned!
Spinach And Arugula Salad With Goat Cheese And Figs
Arugula and Figs are the aphrodisiacs in this dish! It's easy to toss this salad together while the rest of your dinner is cooking away.
Ingredients:
* Large handful of spinach leaves
* Large handful of arugula leaves
* 1/3 cup chopped figs
* 1/3 cup crumbled goat cheese
* Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
* Drizzle of balsamic vinegar
* Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
1. Combine the spinach and arugula in a large bowl.
2. Drizzle lightly with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
3. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Add the chopped figs and crumbled goat cheese and toss to coat ingredients with dressing.
Saffron Couscous with Roasted Vegetables
Saffron is expensive, but a little bit goes a long way. This "vegetable gold" adds the romance to your main course!
Ingredients:
* 1/4 teaspoon (a small pinch) saffron threads
* 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth, use more if needed
* 1 cup pearl (Israeli) couscous
* 2 large carrots, peeled and diced
* 2 golden beets, peeled and diced
* 1 parsnip, peeled and diced
* 1 large shallot, cut into half-moon shapes
* Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
* Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Line a baking sheet with foil.
3. In a large bowl, toss the vegetables with about a tablespoon of olive oil and a sprinkling of salt and pepper.
4. Spread the vegetables on the baking sheet in an even layer.
5. Bake until softened and browned, about 35-40 minutes.
6. In a small saucepan, heat the vegetable broth with the saffron threads on medium low heat. Let the threads steep in the warm liquid for about 15 minutes.
7. In a larger saucepan, drizzle some extra virgin olive oil and add the couscous on medium heat. Toast until just browned.
8. Add the saffron liquid and cook couscous according to the directions on the package. Add more liquid if needed until the couscous is cooked.
9. Fluff with a fork. The saffron will give the couscous a lovely, yellow color.
10. Serve the couscous alongside the roasted vegetables and round off the meal with a piece of crusty bread.
11. Top with fresh parsley and a drizzle of olive oil if desired.
Chocolate Fondue
Chocolate is always a surefire winner. Extra points if you feed each other the dipped morsels.
Ingredients:
* 7 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
* 1 cup heavy cream
* Morsels for dipping (sliced banana, strawberries, raspberries, cubed poundcake, pretzel sticks, graham crackers, brownie bites... whatever your in-love heart desires)
Instructions:
1. In a double boiler over barely simmering water, melt together the chocolate and cream.
2. Once melted, serve with skewers and any your delicious accompaniments of choice.
Christine Hinrichs is a vegetarian who loves everything related to food. She daydreams about recipes, frequents the local farmers' markets and reads cookbooks before bed. When not preoccupied with food, she enjoys running the lakes and trails in the Twin Cities and helps rescue stray animals from local shelters. Read about her food adventures at ruminationsonfood.blogspot.com.
