Making Valentine’s Day dinner at home may seem like a daunting task, but it’s well worth the effort. To get you a head start, I’ve put together a preset V-day menu to guide you through the process. The individual touches will put any restaurant experience to shame. Bonus: you don’t even have to leave the house (because who wants to do that in February)?
Appetizer: Cranberry-Walnut Baked Brie
This quick and beautiful recipe is an excellent start to any Valentine’s Day dinner, and really elevates the classic ‘crackers and cheese.’ The dish is warm and melty – which is a big positive since Valentine’s day is inevitably freezing here in Canada.
Ingredients:
1 wheel of brie.
½ cup of cranberry sauce
3 tbsp crushed walnuts
Assorted crackers
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Place the brie on a piece of parchment paper over a cookie sheet.
- Bake the brie for 15 minutes (it should be a little giggly when it comes out of the oven).
- Allow the brie to cool for 10 minutes. During this time, warm the cranberry sauce in a small saucepan over low heat. If you are using store-bought, consider adding some fresh orange or lemon juice to brighten the flavour. If you want to get really fancy, you can toast the walnuts too.
- Transfer the brie to its serving plate, pour the sauce over the top, then sprinkle on your walnuts.
- Serve on your favorite crackers and enjoy!
Drink: Cherry Sangria
No Valentine’s Day dinner is truly complete without a serving of fruit. It totally counts even if that fruit happens to be soaked in alcohol. It’s called balance. Look it up. This cherry sangria is not only beautiful on the table, but also bright and refreshing. If you aren’t a fan of sangria, feel free to skip this step in favour of your favourite wine or champagne. No matter what you choose, use a pairing guide to ensure it’s a suitable accompaniment.
Ingredients:
1 bottle of red wine
1 ½ cups sweet cherry juice
½ cup orange liqueur
½ cup cherries
1 navel orange – sliced
1 apple – sliced
Instructions:
- Combine all ingredients in a pitcher and chill for a few hours before serving (this will allow the flavors to combine correctly).
- Add any additional fruits you want to use for decoration.
- Serve over ice.
Main: Beef Tenderloin with Warm Sweet Potato and Pomegranate Salad
Beef tenderloin can be an intimidating dish. With its hefty price tag, the last thing you want to do is make a mistake, but follow these simple instructions, and you’ll be sure to end up with a dish that will impress just about anyone.
Ingredients:
1 beef tenderloin – 1.5- 2 pounds
4 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp coarse salt
2 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
1 large red onion – cut julienne style
1 large sweet-potatoes – cubed
Juice of 1 lemon
2 tsp Dijon mustard
4 cups raw spinach – rinsed
Seeds from 1 pomegranate
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 425F.
- Allow the tenderloin to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes, then rub it with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and apply 1 tsp of each salt and pepper.
- Toss the sweet potato and onion with 2 tbsp of oil and the remaining salt and pepper – set aside.
- Heat a large cast-iron pan on medium-high heat and sear the meat on all sides (about 30 seconds per side).
- Add the sweet potato mixture to the pan and place in the preheated oven.
- Cook for about 30 minutes stirring the potatoes occasionally. The beef is done when it reaches 125F as the temperature will continue to rise by 5-10 degrees while resting to achieve a medium-rare result.
- Remove the tenderloin from the pan and allow it to rest on a cutting board for 15 minutes under tinfoil.
- In the meantime, mix 1 tbsp of olive oil, lemon juice, and mustard together to make a dressing.
- While the pan is still hot, fold the spinach in with the potatoes. Drizzle with your dressing, and add the pomegranate seeds over the top.
- Slice the beef into four rounds and serve over your warm salad.
Dessert: Cloud Nine Brownies
Chocolate covered strawberries have become the go-to Valentine’s Day dessert. Still, nothing beats a warm brownie on a chilly day. Especially not when that brownie is nested on a cloud of thick whipped cream. Since brownie lovers fall into two (very distinct) camps – team fudgy and team cakey – I’ll leave that part up to you. If you don’t have a favourite recipe try this one by Mel’s Kitchen Café (it’s a keeper). See the recipe below for how to make the delicious whipped cream cloud.
Ingredients:
237ml whipping cream
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp lemon extract
*note – the omission of sugar in this recipe is intentional as it will help to offset the sweetness of the brownies – feel free to add a few tablespoons of confectioners sugar if this is not to your taste*
Instructions:
- Using your preferred recipe, bake brownies, and remove from the oven to cool slightly.
- While the brownies are cooling, whip the cream, salt, and lemon extract at high speed until stiff peaks form.
- Scoop the cream onto your serving dish and nestle two warm brownies on top.
- Add fruit, chocolate sauce, or any other topping your heart desires.
- Enjoy!
Valentine’s Day Dinner – Recap
Overall, try not to place too much pressure on yourself. Valentine’s day isn’t about showing off your skills in the kitchen, but about showing your love the best way you can. Even if the smoke detectors are going off, and you manage to burn everything in sight, there’s always takeout!
Staying in not your thing? Check out Taylor’s post for more Valentine’s date ideas!
