Designing the menu for this year’s VD dinner for my wife (actually will be Sunday since she is off on a fiber day with her friends tomorrow - Kittycat would understand). She never knows what the menu would be so looking for feedback.
Cocktails - Chocolate Martini - Only cocktail she drinks so this is pretty much a given
Appetizer - smoked salmon cheesecake
Soup - Shrimp and garlic with mushroom caps and Pernod
Wine - prosecco
Main course
Poached Cornish game hen with tarragon
Portabello mushroom caps with Tuscan bean salad
Wine - torn here between a good white bordeaux or Pinot Grigio - leaning towards the Bordeaux
Dessert
Fresh cherries with late harvest Vidal Zabaglione
Coffee/Tea
I think I have a good balance, though the opening is a little fish heavy, but I haven 't come up with something for the apetizer that really appeals within the genres. all recipes are actaully low fat/low sodium etc, so thought it sounds heavy it really isn’t.
I have tomorrow to revise before shopping, so any input would be appreciated
anything else?? Because like any great romance venture - it is a long, slow progression, each step dependent and building on the prior, heading towards an ultimate cumulative experience.
Eeeesh - you really need to raise your standards (kidding - I have no idea what they are).
Not for this dinner, but if you are in VA in August I will be hosting a birthday party for her and doing the cooking and wine - that is a wide open event.
Don’t talk to me about hockey - - Carolina is the closest team to me that is any good and I cannot event get scores on a regular basis. Heathens down here !!
So do the Canucks have a prayer? I still follow Detroit since I grew up across the river from them, and they are solid as usual.
It appears as though you truly don’t need any help… I"m planning a semi-fab dinner for my beau as it is not only Valentine’s day but his birthday as well. I won’t publish my menu as it pales in comparison to yours…
We will start with Champagne cocktails or Kir Royales, have a nice red in the middle with steak topped with msuhroon ragout and end with and amazing ice Syrah. I’m looking forward to it!
Garlic is a bad idea IMO. The breath aftermath is pretty horrible. Also, is she a big mushroom fan? If not, having them in two dishes might overdo it.
How heavy is the appetizer of the salmon cakes? Heavy appetizer can take the fun out of the main course unless you serve it well before the meal starts.
Big wine fans? Can’t help you there but don’t make it more complex than it needs to be. She won’t want you hopping up and down and rushing around getting the food ready instead of sitting across the table, starting into her eyes.
You really need chocolate in the dessert. It is an aphrodisiac and traditional to the holiday.
Check this out… when I was in Kona, there was a Canucks game broadcast and I watched it there. Insane, right? Of course, I turn it on and we proceed to get clobbered so I ended up turning it off lol. I don’t even know what to say about the Nucks, but I am a TRUE fan: love em when they’re winning, and curse them when they are losing
Detroit, EH? Well, now I think your dinner is absolute garbage and you’re just asking for a split up! haha
Mushrooms - yes - but I get your point - I was looking for an alternate to a leafy salad, so maybe will look a bit - good point - I hadn’t thought of that.
Garlic - that is not a real problem - best shared and we are both fans.
Salmon is a chessecake - not a cake - so actually the recipe is pretty light - well frothed - not heavy.
Will look at chocolate for dessert - but it is difficult she likes lighter desserts and most chocolate is heavy - maybe a mousee would be more approriate.
I can symapthize - I an SUPPOSED to be a leafs fan being Canadian and all, and I did actually watch Keon and the 67 Leafs win the cup - but man - it has been a loooooong dry spell since then.
Similar to JenHS’s idea, grab some very high quality chocolate bars are varying cocoa levels, break them up and put them on the plate so that you can munch on cherries and small pieces of chocolate as well. Sorta fun to test-taste the various different levels. You can also get chocolates from different regions (more easily identified in stores like Whole Foods) so that you can taste the differences in the chocolates not unlike wine. Make it more romantic by closing your eyes while tasting the chocolate to help the flavors fully develop in your mouth. Lastly, if you can find it, add some candied orange zest to the plate. Not only is candied orange zest a great palate cleanser without being overly sweet, it - like cherries - is a wonderful compliment to chocolate.
****I"m planning a semi-fab dinner for my beau as it is not only Valentine’s day but his birthday as well. I won’t publish my menu as it pales in comparison to yours…
You **do **realize that all you need to do is show up naked, right?
If you had pizza and beer that would be great too, but that part isn’t necessary…
haha