Valentines Recipes

When it comes to Valentine’s Day, most people go out for dinner. If you have a family this can get expensive. Try a few easy recipes to prepare a nice dinner for your loving family in no time.

Crock Pot

Get those slow cookers working. We often use it when we know we’ll be late getting home so dinner will be ready. The slow cooker is an asset on Valentine’s Day also. Most of the crock pots on the market today have a removable inner pot that is fashionable enough to serve at the table.

Cooking with a crock pot will free you up to do other fun Valentine’s Day things instead of standing in the kitchen. Some meal ideas for the slow cooker: beef roast with vegetables, chicken cacciatore, roasted chicken with vegetables, Swedish meatballs. The crock pot can be set to cook slowly (ten hours) or a bit faster (4 hours).

Cook-ahead meals

Dinner can be harried even on Valentine’s Day. Watching boiling pots and hot skillets not to mention something in the oven can absolutely fry your brain. Free your mind to enjoy this day of love by trying a dish that is easy to prepare ahead of time and just needs to be baked on Valentine’s Day.

Casseroles are the easiest make-ahead dishes. They can feature beef, chicken, or pork. Even fish like salmon or tilapia can be marinated and dressed the day before and wrapped in foil to bake on Valentine’s Day. Avoid adding milk or eggs before you are ready to cook the meal. If the dish calls for cooked meat, cook and cube the meat the day before and combine all ingredients in the casserole dish when you are ready to pop it in the oven.

Five or Fewer Ingredients

Another alternative to the slow cooker or cooking ahead is using a recipe that has five or fewer ingredients. When you have fewer ingredients, prep time is cut dramatically. While the food is baking you can occupy yourself with spending time with the family.

With so few ingredients, kids can even help with dinner. To further cut preparation time, if anything such as vegetables need to be cubed, diced, or sliced so that the day before and refrigerate them.

Pasta dishes fall into this category. Besides the pasta, you usually have sauce and some sort of meat or seafood. The pasta, sauce, and meat can all cook at the same time which saves time.

On Valentine’s Day, you want to be occupied with family and/or your sweetie. Slaving in the kitchen is not in the game plan. With a little pre-planning, you’ll spend less time in the kitchen and more time having fun.
Family Valentine’s Dinner Ideas

Kids like to celebrate Valentine’s Day just like adults. Even if you have ideas about romantic plans for the evening, consider having dinner with the kids. Here are some ideas for a great dinner with the entire family.

Kids love to cook. It is an opportunity for them to make a mess and not get in trouble for it. Let them help with the dinner on Valentine’s Day. They probably have a few ideas for the meal.

Don’t expect a full seven course meal. Besides the fact that it takes too long to prepare, kids have simpler tastes than that. And, if you want to get them to bed at a decent hour so you still have time to spend together, choose a dish with minimal preparation.

Italians are known for love. Try an Italian dish for Valentine’s Day. Instead of ordering from Domino’s, create a pizza at home. Using a store-bought crust, roll it out and cut it into the shape of a heart. The heart will have to be exaggerated because once the dough rises the pizza will spread out and not look like a heart anymore.

Italians are also big on spaghetti. It takes about thirty minutes at the most to put together a spaghetti dinner. Add a salad for a filling meal to celebrate the holiday.

Burgers and fries are a simple meal but one that kids and the entire family can enjoy. Get the grill going or a grill pan. After the burgers are done, place them on a bun and use a heart shaped cookie cutter to turn those ordinary burgers into lovin’ from the grill.

When it comes to family, the meal will be special because it involves everyone celebrating their love together. For parents, a dinner complete with some of your child’s favorite dishes will make them smile. Family dinners on Valentine’s Day can be eclectic-the meal doesn’t have to have one theme but can be a combination.

Allow each person in the family to make a dish for the dinner. They can come up with their own idea of what to surprise everyone with for dinner. The kids will need your help shopping for what they need and using the stove, but you can still act surprised when they bring their finished creation to the table.

Valentine’s Day dinner for the family offers an opportunity to express sentiments of love to each member of your family. With busy schedules, making time to celebrate love together is a rare treat.

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This entry was posted on Saturday, January 17th, 2009 at 5:30 pm and is filed under Valentine Dinner Ideas. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.