ECLECTIC WRITER

Dinner for Two?

Here's a simple yet elegant way to say 'I love you'

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner and romance in the air, are you ready to dazzle your sweetheart with an elegant meal just for the two of you? A romantic evening doesn’t always have to be a candle-lit dinner at an expensive restaurant. With a little planning and some personal touches, you can create a memorable event in the intimate comfort of your own home.

To quote the modern French playwright Jean Anouilh (1910-1987), "Love is, above all, the gift of oneself."

So, go all out and give of yourself. Things that come from you, or are made by you, will mean more than store-bought cards and boxed commercial chocolates.

What could be more personal than a hand-written invitation for a cosy dinner, tucked under the pillow, or a blank card, scribbled with your favourite love poem and decorated with pictures, placed next to the dinner plate?

Regardless of how long you’ve been together with your sweetheart, a perfect way to show how much you care is by planning a special dinner you can share with each other.

But you don’t want to kill yourself in the process. A menu that looks scrumptious and tastes great can be easy and prepared at least partially ahead of time so that you can spend most of your time tete-a-tete, sipping wine, listening to your favourite music or conversing leisurely.

In Rome, St. Valentine’s Day was known as Lupercalia — a romantic and pleasure-loving occasion. You can create the ambience by serving your dinner in a room with a romantic setting. A glowing fireplace, soft music, fresh flowers, scented candles and a special table cloth will all help to create an ambiance.

Don’t forget to turn off your cell phones and unplug the phone.

You need to do some planning and preparation ahead of time so that on this special evening everything will work out smoothly.

I have prepared a menu to give you ideas and show you that taking some shortcuts doesn’t necessarily take away from the results, or the spirit of the occasion.

Orange and Fennel Salad

1 small fennel bulb, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 medium orange, peeled and sliced into rounds
1 Tbsp. olive oil
juice of 1 lime
Salt and pepper
1 tsp. finely chopped fresh parsley
1 Tbsp. sweetened dried cranberries

In a small mixing bowl, combine olive oil, lime juice, salt and pepper. Whisk to emulsify. Add fennel and toss to coat. Transfer fennel to a serving plate. Arrange orange slices. Sprinkle chopped parsley. Top with sweetened cranberries and serve.

Poached Salmon in Puff Pastry with Hollandaise Sauce

2 (4-oz.) salmon fillets, skin removed
2 shallots, sliced
fennel fonds (trimmings from the salad)
3 sprigs fresh dill
6 sprigs fresh parsley
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
3/4 cup white wine
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 package frozen puff pastry, thawed in the refrigerator
1 package Hollandaise sauce mix (I used Knorr mix)

In a saute pan, add the white wine, olive oil, shallots, parsley and dill sprigs, and salt and pepper. Bring to a boil; reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer gently for 5 minutes

Add the fish to the pan and spoon the poaching liquid over the fillets. Cook uncovered until the salmon is firm and cooked through, about 8 minutes. If the poaching liquid doesn’t cover the fish, spoon the liquid over the fillets as they cook. Allow the fillets to cool in the pan liquid, covered to prevent drying.

Meanwhile, roll out the refrigerated puff pastry to a 12-inch by 1/4-inch thick square. Cut the square into two equal triangles.

Pat a salmon fillet with paper towel and place on the pastry from the middle to one corner. Fold over the remaining part to form a smaller triangle. Press the edges with a fork. Do the same with the other. Brush tops with a beaten egg. Set on a parchment paper-lined tray.

You can prepare everything up to this point earlier in the day and refrigerate. Bake in a preheated 375 F oven for 20-25 minutes. (Use a toaster oven if you wish).

Prepare the Hollandaise sauce just before serving, according to package directions. Serve over salmon in puff pastry with steamed asparagus or snow peas.

What is a Valentine’s dinner without chocolate? These chocolate cakes, with warm, molten chocolate inside, can be prepared a day ahead, poured into custard cups, covered with plastic film and refrigerated until 20 minutes before you are ready to bake them.

Chocolate Lava Cakes

1/2 cup unsalted butter
4 (1-oz.) squares semi-sweet chocolate
1 cup confectionery sugar
2 eggs, plus 2 egg yolks
6 Tbsp. flour
pinch of salt
1 tsp. vanilla essence

Butter four 3/4-cup custard cups and place them on a baking tray.

In a bowl over a pot of simmering water, melt butter with chocolate, making sure the bowl does not touch the water. Stir in sugar and whisk until butter and chocolate are melted, and sugar is blended. Whisk in the eggs, the yolks and the vanilla. Stir in flour until the mixture is smooth. Divide batter among prepared cups. (Can be prepared ahead up to this point.)

Bake in preheated 425 F oven for 12-14 minutes or until the sides are firm but the centres are still soft. Allow to stand for a minute before running a small knife around the cakes to loosen and invert onto dessert plates.