Happy Valentines Day! When it comes to dinner, my beaut and I make really great reservations… at home ;) There is nothing like turning off all your electronics, blasting some tunes, popping open a bottle of wine & having a Iron Chef throwdown! I believe it is very important to know how to cook, if not for others, at least for yourself — So, I encourage you your partner to stay in, try a new recipe and learn something new together. Below you will find two dishes Ryan and I made last Valentines Day. The Beet Salad was so delicious, I am making it again for him tonight <3

1:  Food styling!  Definitely my favorite part of date night cooking, making everything look pretty on the plate.  After all, you eat with your eyes first!
2:  Our dishes ended up being very colorful and flavorful! A+ for beautifulness!
3: Nothing says romance like homemade pasta. Pasta Machine: $20 / Organic Eggs $4 / Flour $2.50 / Filling $2-10 / Wine (optional but so necessary $10-$$ = BEST date night ever!  We filled our pastas with Butternut Squash
4: If we ordered fresh organic takeout this is what it would look like from Maison Prive. Organic Chicken Pot Pie, Fresh Goat Cheese, Local Brooke Trout, Dates with Duck Procuitto, Ferro with Oranges and Parsley.  Ummmm Yum!

BEET SALAD RECIPE:

*How to achieve a vibrant brush stroke of red beet puree painted across any plate*

2 medium sized red beets (you can use golden beets too)
¼ cup sherry vinegar
½ cup of extra virgin olive oil.
1 teaspoon minced shallots
Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper
Preheat oven to 425 degrees
Paint Brush (use to paint beet juice puree across plate, have fun!)

DIRECTIONS:
1) Season each beet with olive oil, salt and pepper and then wrap with aluminum foil and place in the oven for roughly 45-60 min. Depending on the size of the beet you might want to check after 30 min if they are small. You can do this by sticking the beet with a toothpick and checking the firmness. If the tooth pick slides in easily then the beets are done.
2) After the beets have slightly cooled but are still warm to the touch, remove the aluminum foil and peel the skin from the beets using a sharp paring knife.
3) Cut the beets in large chucks and place in a blender or food processor. Add the vinegar and shallots then pulse on low until the beets looked “mashed” but not smooth.
4) Drizzle the olive oil in while the blender or food processor is on low-medium speed. Once all the oil has been added turn the speed up too high for about 1 minute to fully emulsify the mixture.
5) Turn the blender off and then pass the mixture through a fine mesh strainer to remove and impurities.
6) This Beet Puree can be used as a sauce with your favorite chicken dish or as a great salad dressing!!

CHICKEN AND QUINOA RECIPE:
2 chicken breasts skin on
1 pomegranate
¼ cup sherry vinegar
1 teaspoon minced shallots
1 cup Quinoa
1 cup chopped Portobello mushrooms
1 tablespoon roasted garlic,
1 tablespoon roasted shallots
1 teaspoon fresh Thyme
Preheat oven to 425 degrees
2 ½ cups of chicken Stock (water if no Chicken stock is available)
Fresh chives to garnish.

DIRECTIONS:
1)     Quinoa: sauté mushrooms with garlic and shallots in 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and season with kosher salt and pepper. Once the mushrooms have begun to let their juices out add 1 cup of dried Quinoa. Stir briefly until all the grains are coated in the mushroom mixture then add 2 ½ cups of chicken stock and cook for approximately 25-35 minutes on med-low heat.
2)     As the Quinoa is cooking simply season the Chicken breasts with kosher salt, pepper and fresh thyme and pan sear them skin side down over med-high heat until the skin is golden brown: Approximately 5. Then turn them over and place them in the oven to finish for roughly 10 min.
3)     Pomegranate Sauce: place ¼ cup of honey in a small sauce pan over low heat, once the honey is warm then add pomegranate seeds, ½ cup Sherry Vinegar, and 1 teaspoon of minced shallots. Season with salt and pepper and add fresh chives to garnish.
4)     To assemble: let chicken “rest” for 2-3 minutes before slicing. Place Quinoa is the middle of the plate and put the Sliced Chicken over the top and drizzle with pomegranate Vinaigrette.
5)     Add Kale chips or Arugula to garnish!!

What is your favorite healthy recipe, dish, website or cook book?

‘the people who give you their food give you their heart.’

with Love from our kitchen to yours ~ xx