Many deny Valentine’s Day but we must admit that we love to sign up for any celebration, especially if there is good food in the middle.
Leaving the more commercial -and cheesy- side of the holiday aside, it is a perfect occasion to show off preparing a romantic dinner at homewhether cooking as a couple or surprising someone special.
Valentine’s Day is an excuse like any other to enjoy a party menu to enjoy as a couple. For this reason we have selected 101 recipes to succeed, with options to suit everyone, from the aperitif to breakfast the next morning. Let it not be said that there is a lack of ideas to seduce at the table.
Appetizers and entrees
A celebration dinner has to start with an aperitif to start off little, a light starter that is fresh and tasty, but that does not fill us up too much. It can be a simple but original snack, such as goat cheese and caramelized sesame chocolates, colorful spirals of smoked salmon and cheese or some blinis to our liking from the basic dough, whose complete recipe we leave below:
It is preferable to remember to take all the ingredients out of the fridge a while before, to temper them. Combine the flours in a medium bowl, using a few fine rods to avoid lumps, add the baker’s yeast and a pinch of salt, and mix well. Separate the white from the egg yolk and reserve. Separate 60 ml of milk and mix with the squeeze of lemon apart, leaving it to cut. Heat the rest of the milk with the butter and honey in a saucepan over very low heat, without letting it boil. Remove from the heat, wait until it is warm and add the yolk, beating with the whisk. Add the reserved milk separately, continuing to beat gently. Add to the flour mixture and combine with the bars until you have a homogeneous mass without dry lumps. Cover with a clean cloth and leave to ferment for an hour. It should be grown and very fluffy, looking very wet. Then whip the reserved egg white with a pinch of salt, almost to the point of snow -which forms soft peaks-. Add to the dough with encircling movements. Grease a good nonstick skillet or griddle with butter and heat over medium heat. Form small discs using a spoon of about 15 ml volume, giving a rounded shape with the back. They can be made any size you want, but here we want them to be small, like a canapé. Cook about 2-3 minutes, until they are covered with bubbles, and turn with a thin spatula. Cook 1 more minute on the other side or until they are golden, and remove to a source, without piling them up. Continue until you finish with all the dough. It’s best not to overfill the pan at once.
More appetizer and entree recipes
Salads and vegetables as a first course or side dish
When thinking about a first course, accompaniment or garnish for a romantic dinner, I advise choosing a salad or vegetables as the protagonist. Recipes that are simple to make but look good on the tablelight and that do not add much work to the digestion of dinner.
We can prepare salads with seasonal products without having to resort to the more predictable tomato, such as escarole and caramelized pear salad or picás orange salad, both with winter fruit that always gives a more special touch and sweet. It is not necessary to fill the plate with thousands of ingredients, as these ideas demonstrate:
Fish and seafood, guaranteed success
I like the option of going for fish or shellfish as a main course, they are lighter and more appropriate for a dinner; also now we hope that prices have been controlled a bit after the Christmas madness. Since we are two we can afford some more special whim without having to spend your savings on a huge seafood platter.
Something as simple as Julia Child-style scallops au gratin or elegant salmon with old-fashioned mustard and cava will make us look luxurious with few complications. The skewer format It also looks great on the table, like these healthy and very tasty grilled monkfish skewers.
If we prefer to focus dinner on a meat dish, the only obvious thing is that we are not going to go just for a grilled steak or a regular chicken stew -unless we are scared-; being only two we have the option of preparing a recipe that gives us leftovers for another day, or simply use unique pieces per personsuch as Wellington sirloin in individual puff pastries.
The steak tartare can be used as a first course but it seems to me a great option as a main recipe in a special dinner to share. In hot recipes, it is advisable to choose dishes well accompanied by a sauce that enhances the wholelike the Iberian pork cheeks in chocolate sauce.
vegetarian recipes
We don’t always have to go for meat or fish to prepare a special and tasty menu, nor do we have to be vegetarians to enjoy these recipes. There are colorful and appetizing dishes like stuffed tomatoes with roasted vegetables and pine nuts that no one will wonder if they are or not vegetables.
Healthy, light but also striking and full of flavor is the quinoa, roasted pumpkin and pomegranate salad, which we can leave it ready in advance and serve cold or warmor bet on a sticky rice with aubergines, or surprise with a spiral quiche of zucchini and ricotta cheese.
Irresistible desserts to put the sweet touch
I hope the dinner menu wasn’t too heavy, always leave room for dessert! At least, on special occasions like a nice romantic dinner. Chocolate seems the most obvious choiceWhether or not it is an aphrodisiac, it cannot be denied that it is the quintessential romantic and passionate candy. We can bet on recipes eaten in portions to share, like this cheese and chocolate cake, not heavy at all.
The spoon desserts they are also my favorite option when it comes to putting the sweet touch to a celebration; the creamy, fluffy and mellow textures they have something special that makes them very tempting and seductive, like the elegant crème brûlée, their version of Catalan coffee cream or a classic chocolate mousse, which never fails. Better a lighter option? Nothing like a colorful winter fruit salad with pomegranate and orange.
And for the next morning… surprise breakfasts in bed
Who says the next morning can also choose to directly start Valentine’s Day that morning, and turn the whole day into a romantic day. Either way, I think true love is also shared in the morning, waking up next to that special person who makes early mornings something else. And we can start with a colorful bouquet of strawberries that will also decorate the tray or table.
To drink in bed or at a set table -the truth is that I prefer to sit far from the sheets to eat-, we can show off with some delicious French toast, which is the most chic of the French toast, or prepare a salty breakfast with some surprising heart-shaped eggs. If we have a sweet tooth, some easy chocolate and strawberry cookies will be perfect to dip in coffee.
Direct to the Palate | 21 Valentine’s Recipes for Vegans
Direct to the Palate | An original touch to your Valentine’s dinner: three flowers that will combine great with your dishes