Valentine’s Day Dinner At Home

For the longest time Ryan and I were unable to celebrate Valentine’s Day on Valentine’s Day because I always had to work.  Once we were finally able to dine out for Valentine’s day I was a little disappointed. The menus are limited and way over priced. The restaurants crowded. The servers rushed and overwhelmed. It really was not that fun. After a few years of dining out we decided to start celebrating at home and I am so glad we did.  So today I’ve decided to put together a few menus fit for the day just in case you might want to celebrate at home too.

I decided I’d do three menus based on the three types of restaurants Ryan and I would often choose to celebrate at: a steakhouse, an Italian restaurant and a seafood restaurant.

Let’s start with a Steakhouse:

A steakhouse is the quintessential Valentine’s Day celebration place. They are the places you go to knock your loved one’s socks off. With this menu you can do it at home.

First Course: Spinach Salad with Bacon Dressing

Second Course: Steak with Bourbon Caramelized Onions and Horseradish and Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes

Dessert:  Rocky Road Ice Cream Pie

 

Next up Italian.

Ryan and I will always associate Italian food with romance since we were lucky enough to spend our honeymoon there. Spaghetti carbonara is the first meal that Ryan had when we were in Rome and one I will never forget.

First Course: Mozzarella and Prosciutto Salad with Tomato Vinaigrette

Second Course: Spaghetti Carbonara

Third Course: Chocolate Mascarpone Stuffed Strawberries

 

Finally, a Seafood dinner for two.

Seafood dinners are always nice because they tend to be a little bit on the lighter side. I did however, skip the salad course in this menu and instead included a calamari recipe because I cannot go to a seafood restaurant and not order it as an appetizer. It is my favorite way to start a meal. This calamari recipe has a bit of an Italian twist but since you’re using capers already for the salmon you might as well get some use out of them!

First Course: Calamari Puttanesca

Second Course: Baked Salmon with Lemon Caper Butter , Herb Roasted Fingerling Potatoes and Baked Asparagus with Parmesan

Third Course: Chocolate Pudding with Raspberries and Gingersnaps

Hope you all have a happy Valentine’s day! And check back next week as I do have another Valentine’s dessert recipe to share because we can always use more chocolate right?