Taunting you with pictures!
Well now kiddies, it’s Valentine’s Day. The last time that Sparks and I tried to go to dinner on Vday evening, we wound up getting mad because we couldn’t find a table anywhere. So, instead, we went out last night and stayed in tonight. I cooked dinner for him.
I feel like I did pretty well – it was right tasty start to finish.
Dinner was my infamous Shrimp ‘n’ Not Grits. This recipe came about after the Spoiled White Girl made us Shrimp and Grits and the boyfriend refused to eat the grits. Hates them, he does – it’s a texture thing. So, I set forth to adapt this recipe to suit him, it’s better than the original, I think. Plus, it’s rather forgiving. Put things in the pan out of order, add a little more or less of things, it’s all ok. Just don’t salt the risotto before adding the cheeses – makes it too salty.
I decided that it needed a side dish – so I dressed up some canned green beans with a little red pepper and toasted garlic. I also pulled garlic bread out of the freezer.
Remember kiddies, don’t fear the garlic for Valentine’s Day. As Rachel Ray says, “two garlics cancel each other out.” As long as you both eat it, it doesn’t matter.
For dessert, I turned to the Pioneer Woman. I made her Pots de Creme.
On the side there is a chocolate covered strawberry from Old Kentucky Chocolates. Completely unnecessary. The dessert was wonderful without it. This dessert will join my regular arsenal for dinner parties – super simple and amazingly decadent. Plus, the standard recipe made six generous servings. Not those restaurant sized portions where you are wondering if your significant other will be aghast if you put your face in the container, instead it was just enough. I could have even stopped a bit or two before the end. Not that I did! The whipped cream is needed, it helps to cut the richness of chocolate.