What is a nice romantic dinner a beginner cook can prepare?!
What is a nice romantic dinner a beginner cook can prepare?
Answers:
Fresh Tomato and Basil Sauce with Whole Wheat Pasta
1 lb. Fresh plum tomatoes (blanch them...that means drop them in boiling water for about 1 minute, that run them under cold water...this way the skin peels right off
4 Tbls Extra Virgin Olive Oil
4 Cloves of Garlic (whole)
Salt and pepper to taste.
handful of fresh basil
Crushed Red pepper (optional)
This recipe is so easy...start by boiling water for pasta, put oil and salt in the pot
Over medium heat cook oil and garlic until garlic is brown, Chop peeled tomatoes and throw in with garlic and oil....Cook for 15 minutes
About halfway through the 15 minutes toss the pasta in the boiling water.
Take the garlic out and throw a handful of fresh basil leaves
Strain the pasta and toss well with the sauce
Season with Salt and Pepper and Crushed Red Pepper if desired.
Serve on a plate with a few fresh basil leaves (uncooked) as a garnish to the side.
spaghetti bolognese
Check out your local fresh market for pre-prepared meats like stuffed pork chops that you can just throw in the oven. But whatever you do, never, ever make a girl pasts for a romantic dinner. I don't know why guys do that. No woman can look hot while having a mouth full of pasta hanging out of your mouth. Think neat.
hmm.
fettuccine alfredo with shrimp or crab...
and for desert, either ice cream sunday or coconut cream pie
good luck
any type Of pasta dish
Pasta is always nice...I would recommend a nice alfredo or fresh tomato and basil sauce...serve it with a salad made up of arugula or baby greens, and a loaf of crusty Italian bread. A nice bottle of wine is always good too! Perfect!
I will pass on some links to the recipes that I have used...
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/...
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/...
Enjoy!!
I would suggest going to the food network website and looking up Rachel Ray's 30 minute meals:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/show_tm/...
Her recipes are good, easy to follow, and you are bound to find something on there that will give you inspiration.
Enjoy!
Strawberries and chocolate syrup. I can't think of anything more romantic than that.
Lasagna is simple to assemble. easy to bake and allows prep in advance so you can spend time with your sweetie. Serve with a nice salad and garlic bread. Perhaps a nice red wine.
I use a doctored up jar of sauce, Barilla no boil noodles (actually the recipe on the back of the no boil noodles) to keep it simple.
Recipes and Cooking
Lasagne with Meat Sauce (Lasagne con Ragu`di Carne)
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 60 minutes
Servings: 7-9
Wine pairing: Red
Ingredients
1 box (9 ounces) BARILLA Oven Ready Lasagne
2eggs
1 container (15 ounces)ricotta cheese
4 cups (18 ounces)mozarella cheese, shredded and divided
1/2 cup (2 ounces)Parmesan cheese, grated
1 pound mild Italian sausage (casings removed) or ground beef
2 jars BARILLA Italian Baking Sauce (0r your choice sauce)
PREHEAT oven to 375 degrees.
SPRAY 9x13x2 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
BROWN the meat in a skillet over medium heat, drain.
BEAT eggs in a medium bowl; stir in ricotta and Parmesan cheeses plus 2 cups of mozzarella cheese.
To Assemble:
Slightly overlap lasagne sheets in pan. Spread fillings to the edge of each sheet. Layer in the following order:
SPREAD 1 cup sauce to cover bottom of baking pan
LAYER 4 lasagne sheets
SPREAD half the ricotta mixture
SPOON half the browned meat
SPRINKLE 1 cup mozzarella cheese
SPOON 1 ? cups lasagne sauce
REPEAT layering lasagne sheets, ricotta cheese mixture, meat, mozarella cheese and 1-1/2 cups sauce. Final layer will be 4 lasagne sheets, remaining browned meat, sauce and 1 cup mozzarella cheese
COVER pan with foil
BAKE until bubbly, approximately 50-60 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.
UNCOVER and continue cooking until cheese is melted, about 5 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before cutting.
Here is a link if you want this brand of no boil noodle:
http://www.barillaus.com/
just put in your zip code and product and it will give a list of stores in your area that carry it.
If you prefer beef try this one. I have made it many times for my DH It is easy and elegant!
Filet Mignon with Rich Balsamic Glaze
This is an elegant and quick romantic dinner for two. Wonderful served with steamed asparagus and baby red potatoes
2 (4 ounce) filet mignon steaks
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper to taste
salt to taste
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup dry red wine
1 Sprinkle freshly ground pepper over both sides of each steak, and sprinkle with salt to taste.
2 Heat a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Place steaks in hot pan, and cook for 1 minute on each side, or until browned. Reduce heat to medium-low, and add balsamic vinegar and red wine. Cover, and cook for 4 minutes on each side, basting with sauce when you turn the meat over.
3 Remove steaks to two warmed plates, spoon one tablespoon of glaze over each, and serve immediately.
Servings: 2
This is a personal recipe...it's DELICIOUS...easy (but impressive)and pretty cost effective. Serve it with crusty bread and butter and a tossed greens salad.
DELICIOUS Crab Cakes
? -1 cup saltine cracker crumbs (just enough to bind everything)
1 large egg, lightly beaten
4 tablespoons butter
? cup finely diced onion
? of bell pepper finely diced
1 cup finely diced mushrooms
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon prepared mustard
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon seafood seasoning
? teaspoon ground mustard
? teaspoon hot sauce
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 cup shredded cheese (jack, cheddar or parmigiano reggiano)
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 pound fresh lump crabmeat, drained
Chipotlé Pepper Remoulade
Tomato Basil Bruschetta
Sauté onion, bell pepper, and mushrooms in 4 tablespoons of butter until slightly caramelized and tender (about 5 minutes.) Set aside.
Whisk egg, mayonnaise, mustard, lemon juice, seafood seasoning, mustard, hot sauce, 2 tablespoons melted butter and shredded cheese together. Stir in sautéed veggies and cracker crumbs. Fold in crabmeat. Shape into 8 (3-inch) patties; bake at 375 for 15 minutes (until browned and bubbling.)
Serve with Tomato Basil Bruschetta & Chipotlé Pepper Remoulade.
Tomato Basil Bruschetta
Package of grape tomatoes cut into halves or thirds
2-4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
? teaspoon kosher salt
? teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
? cup fresh basil, stems removed, chopped
1/3 cup finely grated parmigiano reggiano
? cup good quality olive oil
Combine all ingredients, cover and leave at room temperature until serving.
Chipotlé Pepper Remoulade
1 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon of adobo sauce (out of chipotlé peppers in adobo sauce) **
Whisk all ingredients together.
**Adjust the amount of adobo sauce to adjust the heat of this sauce. You can also add some of the FINELY chopped chipotlé’s-but use sparingly, these are HOT!
spaghetti w/ garlic bread and salad
grilled chicken (or shrimp) over angel hair pasta
fillet mignot w/ baked potatoes
have some candles and soft music playing, for dessert have some chocolate covered strawberries.
Pasta w/marinara sauce and grilled vegetables
Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
10 large fresh tomatoes, peeled and diced
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons chopped onion
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil or 1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 red peppers, sliced into chunks
1 yellow summer squash, sliced lengthwise
1 zucchini, sliced lengthwise
1 sweet onion, sliced into 1/4-inch-wide rounds
8 ounces whole-wheat spaghetti
Directions
To make the marinara sauce, in a heavy skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add tomatoes, salt, garlic, chopped onions, basil, sugar, oregano and black pepper. Simmer uncovered until the sauce thickens, about 30 minutes.
Prepare a hot fire in a charcoal grill or heat a gas grill or broiler (grill). Away from the heat source, lightly coat the grill rack or broiler pan with cooking spray. Position the cooking rack 4 to 6 inches from the heat source.
Brush the red peppers, squash, zucchini and sweet onion with the remaining olive oil. Place the vegetables on the grill rack or broiler pan. Grill or broil, turning as needed, until the vegetables are tender, about 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer the vegetables to a bowl and set aside.
Fill a large pot 3/4 full with water and bring to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente (tender), about 10 to 12 minutes, or according to package directions. Drain the pasta thoroughly.
Divide the pasta evenly among individual plates. Top with the marinara sauce and grilled vegetables. Serve immediately.
spagetti and meatballs
boil spagetti set aside
but a clove of garlic (chopped)
a few sprigs of basil
2 cans of crushed tutarosa tomato sauce
1 lb of chopped meat
bread crumbs
1 egg
parmesaign cheese
in a pot spritz some oil on the bottom lightoly soften the garlic, once its soften add the can of sauce reduce to low heat, add bail, a handful of parmesaign season with salt and pepper to taste
mush meatballs with 2 cups of bread crumbs 1 cup of parmesian and 1 egg, roll in to balls, browin in pan with oil, let all side of the meatballs get brown (they dont have to be cooked all the way through) drop meatballs into sauce and let cook for about 1 hr.
prepare fresh beread on the side, enjoy! ur first easy home cooked meal! (dont buy jarred sauce the two cans will add a nice homemade taste)
Caesar salad, a nice pasta main course, spumoni or tiramisu for dessert
Spaghetting or some sort of pasta is always easy. Also, if you live by a Wegmans or another store that has pre-packaged meals those are great. Some places have pre-marinated or breaded poultry and fish with instructions on how to cook it. Any type of stir fry is also a fairly easy meal to prepare.
Im pretty bad when it comes to cooking so anything already prepared for you, that only needs to be cooked makes you look like a super duper chef. Good luck!
Well I am a pasta lover myself and would be very impressed if someone made me pasta. It is very romantic, may I also add that some garlic bread and salad goes very well with pasta. And u can make the garlic bread yourself. Just butter and sprinkle garlic salt on it.
Steak, baked potatoes and a nice salad.
Just marinate the steak in Dale's seasoning you don't have to do anything else to it and just throw it on the grill or in the oven. You can buy baked potatoes in the produce section that you can just pop in the microwave and it's done in like 7 minutes and you can buy a bag salad and just add more ingredients that you would like to it. Oh and last thing buy a nice wine and for dessert pick up one of those Mrs. Smith's pies- they are REALLY good!!
GOOD LUCK!!!!
order chinese and put it on plates when it gets there
I have to agree with the simple steak menu.
1. Just marinate the steak in instant seasoning (you can use whatever brand you can find but for me, I said KRAFT is the best).
2. Grill it for a while or you just can fry it on a pan with butter for some mins.
3. Put some frozen vegetables (fresh would be better but it's up to you).
4. Fried / baked some potatoes. (For me, I guess baked potato seemed more ellegant! hehe).
5. The last, just make your own blackpepper sauce. Stir-fry chopped onion in butter then add blackpepper, salt, a bit of sugar, one or two tablespoon of barbeque sauce. Add a glass of water and boiled that for a while. You can also put corn flour to thickened it. Voila! You just made your own thick blackpepper sauce.
Easy and ellegant isn't it? But the most important thing is... how romantic it will be depends the way you garnish it =)