Valentine's day supper!

Mark and I started out our recipe quest today, by choosing 3 recipes from the cookbooks we had gotten from the library last week. I must say, this meal turned out very good! Only one mishap with dessert, but I'll post that later.
The menu we decided on was caesar salad, ricotta & spinach stuffed shells and molten chocolate cakes. It took us about an hour, hour & a half or so to complete it, but it was so worth every minute.

First with the caesar salad, I started with my croutons.
I used :
2 tbsp olive oil
2 grated cloves of garlic
salt and pepper
2 slices homemade whole wheat bread

I mixed the oil, garlic and salt and pepper. I cut up the pieces of bread into small pieces, placed them on a baking sheet and drizzled the oil mixture on top; stirred it around quick to coat and baked it for about 5-7 minutes at 350, and let them cool in a bowl after. I used a mixture of Nigella Lawson's and Michael Smith's recipe for the dressing.

Dressing-
4 tbsp olive oil
1 grated clove of garlic
splash lea & perrins
2 tbsp Parmesan cheese
1/2 lemons worth juice

mix all together or shake in bottle. Chill in fridge until needed.

I used spinach for my caesar salad, I know its a little strange but we like spinach better than lettuce. When I put the salad together, I just put the spinach in serving bowls, topped it with some parm and croutons and the dressing. Delish!

Ricotta & spinach baked shells-
1 box large shells
bottle strained tomatoes
water
onion
2 cloves garlic
tub ricotta
1 egg
3tbsp parmesan
1 cup spinach
salt and pepper
nutmeg
extra parmesan

finely chop onion, mince garlic. Cook until soft in large pot with olive oil, 5 minutes or so. Add bottle strained tomatoes & 3/4 worth water, season with s+p. Simmer 20 minutes.
In pot start a little water, like an inch or so on the bottom, to a boil. Add spinach and wilt. Drain and rinse with cold water. Squeeze out the water and put in bowl. Add ricotta and egg, stir well. Add salt and pepper and 1/2 tsp to tsp nutmeg and 3 tbsp parmesan, stir together. set aside.
Boil salted water for pasta, cook pasta for 5 minutes. Strain and rinse with cold water.
Stuff shells with ricotta mixture, place in baking pan. After all shells are stuffed, laddle hot sauce over shells. Bake for 20-30 minutes at 400. This recipe is based from a Nigella Lawson recipe, in her book Forever Summer.

Molten cakes-
250g dark chocolate
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1/4 cup sugar
4 eggs
tbsp vanilla

Melt chocolate and butter in bowl over simmering water. When melted and smooth, sift in cocoa powder.
Blend sugar, eggs and vanilla. Pour chocolate mixture into egg mixture. Mix well. Pour mixture into 6 ramekins or muffin tins that have been greased with butter and coated with powdered sugar. Bake 10 minutes or less at 400. The cakes are supposed to be cracked on top when they're ready, mine just puffed like crazy, and looked super gooey the whole time. I used Michael Smith's recipe. 

The center was still moist, but not lava like. It was still fantastic, but next time I'll know to put less in each muffin tin, and make smaller lava cakes, or just cook it less.

Mark also bought me a beautiful necklace and now we're ready to go watch a movie and celebrate the rest of our romantic evening.

Until next time, 

Jacqueline 

Happy Valentine's day! :)