Menu: Fast, Fancy Dinner

Happy Valentine's Day!

If you happen to need a quick, easy, and impressive dinner menu, today or any other day, I put together a mix-and-match menu for you. The ones with asterisks are or can be made vegetarian/vegan.

You're welcome.

Appetizer: Artichoke and Green Olive Spread* or Cream Cheese and Salsa Spread*
Salad: White Bean and Spinach Salad* or Spicy Salad
Dinner: Chicken in Thyme Marsala Cream Sauce over rice or Cherry Tomato Spaghetti all'Amatriciana* w/ garlic bread or Avocado Pasta*
Dessert: One-Minute Mug Brownies* or Fresh Fruit with Fruit Dip*

Fancy Dinner Menu

It has been a long time since I have posted something.  I attribute this the the fact that work and life being crazy busy.  Good busy but still super busy.

I am not a huge Valentine's Day celebrator.  However, I had the day off work (to attempt to balance my many work hours from the week before) and put it to good use as an opportunity to surprise Jac with a nice dinner.  The meal turned out so well I even impressed myself! 

Here is what I cooked and links to recipes:

Appetizer
Crab cakes with lemon aioli

 




















Main Dish
Rosemary-crusted rack of lamb with balsamic reduction

Sides
Sour cream and onion smashed potatoes (Thanks to my friend Erin for sharing the recipe.)
Sauteed asparagus

Dessert
Dark chocolate covered strawberries: I cut up two bars of good dark chocolate, put them in a microwave safe bowl and heated it up at 50% power until the chocolate was just melted, stirring often.  I washed and dried the strawberries, dipped them into the chocolate, lined them up on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper, and refrigerated the berries until the chocolate hardened.  Yum.