Valentines Day meal ideas...

[Craig]

Well its that time of year again, and I have no idea what to cook for my missus tomorrow I thought this thread would come in handy for people in the same boat as me. So then... what would you all suggest for a Valentines meal? I know champagne is on the list but food wise... I have no idea!

Cheers

Craig

[IBM]

How about roast chicken, pine nuts, sultanas and rosemary with tagliatelli.....Soak the sultanas in warm water for 30 mins, liberally rub the chicken with salt and pepper to make the skin crispy (use plenty), then roast the chicken, toast the pinenuts in a dry pan until brown, chop a handfull of rosemary very fine, then mix the juice from the cooked chicken with the pinenuts and rosemary and sultanas until warm while you tear up the chicken (literally tear it up, should look rough, you'll need asbestos hands for this).

Boil up a lot of water for the tagliatelli (about 3 liters) and cook about 250g of the pasta (get some good stuff like De Cecco) for a couple of minutes less than the recommended time for an a dente (firm) effect, then drain and mix it all together in a serving dish. Throw a handfull of parsley over the top and hey presto you're done. Serve up with a good red wine and some quality bread and you're done.

It's very quick, pretty easy, no mixing or preparing complex ingrediants, and yet it's a wonderful dish....it's a nigella lawson dish I think, and everyone I know who's tried it thinks it's great. The pinenuts and the sultanas just provide the most amazing texture to the food....

[herulach]

I quite like roast pork tenderloin.

Cut slits inpork, put a bit of garlic in and some rosemary.
Cut up a couple of medium onions and spread on bottom of baking tray.
Put pork on onions.
Surround with chopped up apples on a baking tray.
Heat up some butter, cider vinegar, half tin of cider and a bit more rosemary, pour over top (half to one side)
Roast till cooked.
Take everything out, chuck rest of butter +vinegar etc into pan, boil with a couple of tablespoons of creme fraiche.

As far as quantities go, i tend to subscribe to the 'enough' method of cooking, but thats only really useful if youve made it before, its in delias how to cook though.

[Grey M@a]

Goes down a treat this one, well for those that like lobster


Prep Time:
20 Minutes
Cook Time:
20 Minutes


INGREDIENTS:

* 2 small (1 pound) fresh lobsters
* 1/3 cup peanut oil, divided
* 1 clove garlic, crushed
* 1 slice fresh ginger root, minced
* 6 ounces lean ground pork
* 1 cup chicken broth
* 1 tablespoon cooking sherry
* 1 tablespoon soy sauce
* 1 tablespoon cornstarch
* 1 teaspoon brown sugar
* 2 eggs, beaten
* 3 green onions, chopped

1. Rinse the lobster, and hold it belly up. At the bottom of the tail, there is a small opening, stick a long skewer in it to drain any urine left in its' body, then crack the tail off, chop the tail into small pieces, and crack the claws in half as well. If you know how to eat the body of the lobster, cut it up and throw it on the pile too.

2. Heat half of the peanut oil in a deep heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the crushed garlic, and fry for about 1 minute. Throw in the lobster pieces, and fry until they are cooked through, about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the lobster and garlic mixture to a dish and keep warm.

3. Heat the remaining oil in the skillet. Add the minced ginger and pork, and fry until the pork is no longer pink. Pour in the chicken broth, and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. In a small bowl, mix together the sherry, soy sauce, cornstarch and brown sugar until well blended. Add the sherry mixture to the pan, and stir-fry for a minute or two, until the sauce becomes thick and somewhat clear.

4. Stir in the green onions, and turn the heat off. Drizzle the beaten eggs over the mixture in the pan, and stir until the eggs are in little pieces. Finally, return the lobster to the pan, and cook over low heat for a few minutes to blend the flavors. Transfer to a serving dish, and let stand, covered, for a few minutes before serving. Eat with steamed rice and enjoy.

[herulach]

..tasty recipe..

That does sound pretty tasty. For tearing it up you could do what they do at the chinese, ie lop it in half and then use two forks to pull it apart.

[Craig]

Thanks for the replys I am thinking that I will go with what ibm suggested, just one thing - what quantity of pine nuts and sultanas do I need?
Cheers,

Craig

[IBM]

100g of pinenuts and between 50-100g of sultanas...if you do go for it let me know, always glad to hear if someone enjoyed the recipie.

[Craig]

Top marks to ibm That was a great meal, me and the missus really enjoyed it Its going on my "to make again..." list, thanks

Craig

[IBM]

Cool, glad to hear you enjoyed it. I've got a few others that are really quick and yet really delicious....I'll try to dig them out if you want to hear them. Quite a few pasta dishes....the italians really know how to cook. Screw all this heavy meat sauce cr@p...a little sauce, a little cheese, maybe some chili...voila, beautiful food