So, you're left alone, and it doesn't matter if it's your first date at home or if you've been together forever and your parents just took the kids. The main thing is that now you can truly relax and prepare something tasty and unusual, for example, a salad for a romantic dinner. You may not need hot food, but a light and pleasant dish will come in very handy in any case - let's look at some interesting recipes!
Of course, everyone has different tastes and it’s good if you already know exactly what your other half likes. In this case, it is enough to prepare your favorite dish a little differently: flavor it with new spices or replace one of the ingredients. It is enough, for example, to put smoked chicken or ham instead of the usual sausages, and the taste will immediately sparkle in a new way.
But what to do if you have not yet had time to study your taste preferences and are lost in the variety of options? The main thing is not to panic! In the end, there are universal salad recipes that can please lovers of oriental cuisine, adherents of European cuisine and fans of traditional Slavic cuisine.
We’ll start with these win-win options!
Caesar salad"
Ingredients
- Chicken fillet – 250 – 300 g;
- Romaine lettuce leaves - 1 bunch;
- Tomatoes – 1 pc.;
- Loaf – 6 slices;
- Garlic – 2 cloves;
- Parmesan (other hard cheese) – 75 g.
For the sauce:
- Egg – 1 pc.;
- Mustard beans – ½ tsp;
- Olive oil – 75 ml;
- Wine vinegar – 1 tbsp;
- Ground black pepper - to taste.
Preparation
- We wash the salad well, let it drain and dry on a towel. Tear into large pieces with your hands immediately in a bowl.
- Cut the loaf slices into 1cm x 1cm cubes and place them in a hot frying pan. Spray with olive oil and add halved garlic cloves for flavor.
- Fry the bread until golden, turning occasionally to brown all sides.
- Add some salt to the chicken fillet, sprinkle with basil and white pepper, and place in whole pieces on a hot frying pan. Fry over low heat, but do not keep for long so as not to dry it out.
- Let it cool and cut it into slices 3–4 mm thick.
- Let's start the sauce: beat the egg, mustard, oil and vinegar with a blender or mixer. Salt and pepper everything, mix again.
- Place the cooled chicken on top of the lettuce leaves and immediately pour the sauce over it. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs and place parmesan slices on top. We cut them with a cheese slicer or, in extreme cases, slice them very thinly with a knife - no need to grate them.
Serve immediately to prevent the bread from getting soggy. Our first salad for a romantic dinner is ready!
Variations on a theme...
There are many Caesar recipes, and you can vary any ingredients. For example, instead of homemade dressing, use ready-made Caesar dressing or use regular mustard instead of grain mustard.
And, of course, shrimp are considered a classic replacement - for this amount we will need 200 g of boiled peeled seafood.
But if you don’t want to choose, we’ll make Caesar with both chicken and shrimp! In this recipe, the fillet can be baked in foil - this will make it more juicy and tender. The main thing is that before baking, rub it with spices, raw ginger root and make several shallow transverse cuts so that the meat is well soaked.
It's also good to mix chicken breast and bacon. In a 3:1 ratio, cut them into wide strips and place them on the grill along with white bread cut into cubes. Spray everything with olive oil, sprinkle with spices and bake at 200°C until golden brown.
Egg sauce
A sauce made from slightly poached eggs is suitable for this option.
- To do this, put 1 egg in boiling water for a couple of minutes and, after pouring it with cold water, separate the yolk.
- In a bowl, beat it with 1 tbsp mustard, add 1.5 tsp. balsamic vinegar and 1 tsp. sugar (!).
Mix everything and gradually add 150 ml of olive oil, whisking continuously at low speed.
Pour the prepared sauce over the bacon and chicken. Arrange the crackers and cheese as usual.
Salad with cheese and tomatoes
In addition to Caesar, you can prepare a very light salad with cheese and tomatoes for a romantic dinner.
- Take 80 g of blue cheese, if not, then 100 g of feta cheese or 6 - 7 mozzarella balls. Cut into small cubes 0.5 by 0.5 cm, since Dor Blue has a very intense taste. Feta can be cut larger.
- Wash and cut a large tomato into slices.
- Drain the liquid from 100 g of canned olives and let them dry in a separate bowl.
- Then mix everything and season with 3 tbsp. olive oil mixed with salt and basil. Ready!
Sweets for a romantic dinner on Valentine's Day
Sweets play a very important role for the “holiday of all lovers”. They set a good mood , delight with their taste, and complement a romantic dinner. It is not at all necessary to prepare sweets yourself, because any confectionery store certainly offers a huge number of desserts and delicacies for the holiday.
You can choose a sweet for every taste : chocolates, heart-shaped cakes, glazed cookies, gingerbread cookies with artistic painting, cakes, truffles, marmalade, jelly and much more. By purchasing dessert, you will, of course, save your personal time preparing for the holiday.
IMPORTANT: Modern housewives often offer homemade baked goods for sale. Handmade cakes, cupcakes, muffins and gingerbreads decorated with icing, marzipan and sugar figures are extremely popular.
Sweets for February 14:
Muffins for the holiday
Cupcakes with marzipan and fondant
Cookies with icing
Caramel lollipops in the shape of hearts
Gingerbread cookies with painted glaze
Cakes for February 14
Heart-shaped macarons
Homemade cookies for February 14
If you are watching your figure or just don’t want to buy sweets for the holiday in the store, you can make fruit slices with berries. You can decorate this cut with fresh mint leaves, powdered sugar, cinnamon and melted chocolate.
Chocolate fondue is very popular as a dessert on February 14th . You can dip banana, orange, strawberry, kiwi, pineapple in it. If you don't want hot fondue, you can prepare the chocolate-covered strawberries in advance.
Chocolate fondue
Strawberries in chocolate
Chocolate covered strawberries with chocolate and nut crumbs
Cheese salad with pear
If you want to make a more interesting option with blue cheese, we suggest making a cheese salad with pear.
- To do this, peel and cut 200 g of pear into slices (first cut into quarters, and then cut each crosswise to a thickness of 3 - 4 mm).
- Cut 50 g of Dor Blue cheese into small cubes, chop 40 g of walnuts with a knife. We cut 3 – 4 lettuce leaves into strips and proceed to the sauce.
- For it, mix 1 tsp. liquid or warmed honey, 1 tbsp. vegetable oil, ½ tsp. lemon juice, a pinch of salt and a little black pepper.
Add all the ingredients to the sauce and mix well. It is better to serve the salad after 15 - 20 minutes, allowing it to brew.
Green salad with smoked meats
If time allows you to do some magic in the kitchen, we’ll make a very tasty green salad with smoked meat, omelet and mushrooms.
- Cut the smoked meat (meat or chicken fillet) into thin strips and set aside.
- In a frying pan, fry a beaten salted egg on both sides.
- Wash 4 lettuce leaves, dry and cut into strips.
- Mix all the ingredients, add 50 - 60 g of pickled mushrooms and start dressing.
Mix with 1 tbsp. vegetable oil 1 tsp. table vinegar and stir vigorously.
Season the salad with the mixture and mix gently again. Ready! Can be served immediately.
Baking for a romantic dinner on Valentine's Day
It’s quite possible to make sweet pastries for Valentine’s Day with your own hands. You can make delicious pastries and cakes from sponge cakes and cream. Making a delicious and fluffy sponge cake is very simple.
You will need:
- Sugar - 1 cup (measured). If you're watching your weight, use less sugar.
- Flour - 1 cup (coarse and premium, replace with any other if desired).
- Eggs - 4 pcs. large chicken
- Salt - a pinch
Preparation:
- Egg whites should be separated from the yolks. Pour the whites into a separate bowl and beat with a mixer (blender) with a small pinch of salt for 5-10 minutes. You should get a fluffy foam - this is the key to a good sponge cake.
- After this, gradually add sugar and continue beating until you have an elastic protein mass .
- Without stopping beating, add the yolks and gradually stir in the flour.
- Grease a baking tray or deco with oil and pour out the dough. Bake the biscuit for about 25 minutes at a temperature of 180-200 degrees. Check readiness with a toothpick.
IMPORTANT: You can make cakes or cakes from the cooled sponge cake by greasing the cakes with any cream (purchased or prepared yourself). If you want to bake a chocolate sponge cake, just add a little cocoa to the dough.
Cake for February 14
You can also please your “other half” with homemade panna cotta (creamy or chocolate). It’s not difficult to make using sugar, gelatin and cream.
Panna cotta on February 14
Sponge cake cut out with hearts in chocolate glaze
IMPORTANT: If you have a special waffle iron, on February 14 you can bake delicious waffle hearts and add any sauce to them.
Waffle hearts for February 14
Salad “Tenderness”
Ingredients
- Chicken fillet – 300 g;
- Egg – 2 pcs.;
- Canned corn or beans – 150 g;
- Pineapple (canned) – 150 g;
- Fresh cucumbers – 2 pcs.;
- Salt, pepper, mayonnaise - to taste.
Preparation
- Boil or bake the fillet as desired. Cool and cut into cubes or strips. Boil the eggs hard and chop with a fork. Cut the cucumbers into strips.
- We lay out the ingredients in layers, coating each with a small amount of mayonnaise for juiciness. First chicken, then pineapples and cucumbers.
If you don’t like store-bought mayonnaise, replace it with homemade mayonnaise or just make do with natural yogurt. You just need to season it with salt, spices and a little vinegar to enhance the taste. Before serving, add the egg layer and corn.
An excellent addition to a romantic dinner – aesthetically pleasing and delicious!
What to cook for Valentine's Day: dish ideas
It is customary to celebrate the holiday of “all lovers” not only with gifts, valentines, congratulations and declarations of love, but also with delicious treats , sweets, beautiful breakfasts and romantic dinners. The symbol of the holiday is the heart , which is present in literally everything: cards, gift wrapping, balloons, decorations and, of course, food!
You can prepare any dish for your “other half” and place it on a plate aesthetically (in the shape of a heart) . However, resourceful chefs came up with not only beautiful presentation of dishes, but also their original preparation . So, with the help of simple tips, you can serve an unusual breakfast that will surprise and delight your loved one.
Ideas for unusual dishes and treats:
The simplest recipe is “hearty” toast with jam or nut butter . It’s very simple to prepare them: first cut the heart out of a slice of bread with a knife, and then fry it in a toaster or in a frying pan without oil. Spread the finished toast with your chosen jam and place beautifully on a plate. definitely add a cup of coffee to this dish .
Toasts for Valentine's Day
If you are not good at cooking or you simply do not have time to prepare unusual dishes, you can go the simple route - just purchase heart-shaped serving dishes in advance . You can fill it with sweets, fruits or berries. This will not only please the eye, but will also give your loved one pleasant emotions.
Moreover, such dishes can serve as a gift and be used in the future in everyday life.
Fruit salad Unusual presentation
You can give a heart shape to almost any dish. The most popular: spaghetti with sauce, pizza, sandwiches, a variety of cereals and salads, snacks.
Heart shaped spaghetti and sauce
Salad with heart-shaped vegetables
Mini pizza with different toppings
Toast with scrambled eggs for the holiday
Not only dishes, but also special kitchen utensils can help you. In modern stores you can find unusual molds for boiling and frying eggs, which, instead of the usual one, will give the egg a heart shape.
Heart shaped egg salad
Making pizza for Valentine's Day is very easy. You don’t have to look for any special recipe; you can use any one: the usual one, simple without yeast or yeast. Puff pastry is also suitable as a base ; cut it out in advance so that the base takes the shape of a heart.
DIY heart-shaped pizza
Easy homemade sausage pizza
If you're good at baking, this might work to your advantage, as they say. You can congratulate your loved one with sweet cookies , delicious buns, sweets, marmalade and chocolates. A person can eat such treats all day, thereby lifting his mood and receiving pleasant emotions.
Delicious baked goods in the shape of a heart
Simple shortbread cookies with heart-shaped sprinkles
Heart shaped buns
Salad with baked tomatoes
A salad with baked tomatoes would be a very unusual option. We choose cherry or regular tomatoes, but not less than 350 g.
- We cut large fruits into circles 1 cm thick, cut the cherry in half.
- Fry in a hot frying pan with a little olive oil until golden brown.
- Mix ½ cup of natural yogurt without additives with 20 ml of olive oil, add white pepper, basil and thyme to taste, and salt.
- Tear the mix of lettuce leaves (arugula, iceberg, chicory, romaine) into a bowl with your hands, season and mix well. Place fried tomatoes on top.
The salad can be served warm or allowed to cool, if desired.
Salad with tuna
Salads with fish and seafood are no less tasty, and according to many theories, they are perfect for a romantic dinner.
Let's prepare an express salad with tuna in just 15 minutes!
- Boil a couple of eggs, tear 150 g of salad mix with your hands and season it with olive oil. Sprinkle with lemon juice and add 100 g of canned tuna.
- Chop the eggs, add 5 - 6 cherry tomatoes, salt, pepper, mix and place on top of 6 - 7 slices of Parmesan.
Ready! A quick and tasty salad is ready!
Breakfast ideas for February 14 – Valentine's Day
You can surprise your loved one in the morning by preparing him a delicious and unusual breakfast. It will be unusual only because you decorate it in an original way, adding the symbols of the holiday - a heart .
Ideas for unusual breakfasts on February 14:
Toast with scrambled eggs for a holiday breakfast
Scrambled eggs and sausages for breakfast for your loved one
Breakfast ideas for February 14th for your loved one
Heart shaped pancakes
Toast with jam
Boiled eggs “hearts” Unusual pancakes
Original breakfast
Crab meat and cheese balls
However, you shouldn’t forget about romance in favor of speed. Those who want to amaze their loved one with a culinary delight can try preparing a spicy “Raffaello”.
Ingredients
- Hard cheese – 100 g;
- Crab meat – 200 g;
- Egg – 2 pcs.;
- Black pepper, nutmeg, mayonnaise - to taste.
Preparation
- Boil the eggs hard - keep on the fire for at least 10 minutes after boiling, drain and cool.
- Grind the crab meat in a blender. Grate the cheese and eggs on a fine grater.
- Leave 2 tbsp of grated cheese for sprinkling, mix the rest with other ingredients with the addition of mayonnaise and spices.
- We form balls slightly larger than a walnut from the resulting mass, roll them in cheese shavings and immediately place them on a plate.
Serve chilled.
Such “rafael” designs look elegant on any table, not only on a romantic one.
Hot dishes for a romantic dinner on Valentine's Day
IMPORTANT: A romantic dinner requires that you prepare original and unusual dishes with which you can surprise and delight your “other half.”
Duck breast in caramel sauce:
You will need:
- Large chicken breast – 2 pcs. (for two servings)
- Soy sauce – 1 bottle of 250 ml.
- Natural honey – 2 tbsp.
- Garlic – 3 cloves
- Lemon - half a citrus
- Spices for pickling to taste
- To decorate the finished dish, you can use black olives, grapes or capers (whatever you like best), as well as fresh herbs.
Preparation:
- The breast is cleaned of excess films and fat; part of the skin should be left so that when frying, a beautiful crispy crust appears on it.
- Prepare the sauce for marinating the breast: in a bowl, mix soy sauce with the juice of half a lemon, add pepper to taste (ground or mixture), squeeze out the garlic and add liquid honey. Stir the sauce and place the duck, cut into large cubes, into it.
- The breast should be marinated for at least an hour.
- After this, split the pan. Meat should be fried without oil. The remaining fat layer on the duck will release the necessary lard for frying.
- Fry the pieces of meat for about 5 minutes, but do not forget to shake the pan or use a spoon to turn the pieces on the other side.
- Once cooked, place the meat pieces on serving plates. Add a small amount of marinade to the remaining fat in the pan, melt it and wait until it thickens. Cook the sauce for no more than three minutes.
- Pour the prepared sauce over the meat
- Garnish the dish with berries or olives, and decorate with herbs before serving.
Caramel duck breast
Dorada in the oven with vegetables:
You will need:
- Fish – 2 pcs. (dorada or any other not too large fish, for example carp).
- Tomato – 2 pcs. (medium size)
- Onion – 1 pc. large onion
- Pepper – 1 pc. sweet (any)
- Olive oil or any vegetable oil (several tablespoons).
- Sea salt (to taste)
- Garlic – 1 clove
Preparation:
- The onion should be cut into neat and not thick half rings.
- After this, start cooking the fish. Remove the fish's eyes and entrails, and thoroughly wash the carcass with the cut belly.
- Place a tomato cut into slices, half a piece of fried onion and a few pepper rings into the cut belly. Add garlic.
- The fish is poured with a small amount of oil, it should be peppered and salt should be added (in a small amount, to taste).
- Place the fish on a baking sheet and place in the oven.
- The fish is baked for half an hour, and the oven temperature should be about 200 degrees.
Baked sea bream
Salad “Pearl”
Finally, we also offer an easy-to-prepare, but impressive-to-serve salad of salted red fish.
- If desired, take salmon, trout or pink salmon, cut 300 g into small cubes and place in bowls - you get the first layer.
- Scald 200 g of fresh tomatoes, remove the skin and also cut into cubes. Add a little salt, pepper, sprinkle with olive oil and place on top of the fish - this is the second one.
- Place the avocado pulp cut into cubes as a third layer. We don’t salt it, don’t pepper it, and don’t touch it at all in order to maintain its aesthetic appearance.
Place 3-4 capers on top in each bowl, sprinkle everything with oil, lemon juice and serve.
In this salad, the main thing is to keep the chopped ingredients to the same size. This way he will be even more beautiful.
So our prelude salad to a romantic dinner is ready. As you can see, it doesn’t always take a lot of time to impress your loved one with the sophistication of the menu and serving. The only thing that really matters is your desire and confidence in your abilities!
