Romantic Foods to Share With That Special Someone
"The Most Romantic kind of dinner is, in our opinion, one you cook at home. Even better if it's something you can share off the same big plate (or straight out of the pan) together.
Anna Stockwell, Epicurious, 02.03.15
Stone Crab Claws
Caught the day before it is shipped to you. Fully cooked and ready to eat. Comes with a wooden mallet and the most delicious mustard sauce. Shipping is included. Each order is enough for a romantic meal for two. Order Here
Caviar
Try the time test results of caviar.
Here are some of Anna's other recommendations:
Tuscan Porterhouse Steak with red Wine Peppercorn Jus
The porterhouse will be good for 2 with some leftovers. Epicurious recommends the aged steak which To-Table offers here. The tender and flavorful meat from aging will add to the eye-closing moments that require an "ummm!". You know where that leads...
INGREDIENTS
-
- 2 (2 pound) porterhouse steaks (2.5-inches thick) Find at To-Table. (Freeze one for round 2!)
- 2 teaspoons black peppercorns, coarsely crushed (see Cooks' Notes)
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon pieces, divided
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 (4-inch) sprigs fresh rosemary
- 5 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1/2 cup medium-bodied dry red wine (such as Chianti, Rioja, or merlot)
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
PREPARATION
-
- Let steak sit at room temperature 15 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 450°F.
- Pat steak dry and season both sides with peppercorns and kosher salt. Heat oil and 1 tablespoon of butter in skillet over medium heat until butter melts. Add rosemary, thyme, and garlic and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until herbs and garlic are fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Add steak and cook until nicely browned, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer skillet to oven and cook until an instant-read thermometer registers 110°F for medium-rare, about 5 minutes (or 120°F for medium, about 10 minutes).
- Transfer steak with tongs to a small platter, reserving skillet, and let rest 10 minutes.
- While steak rests, pour off oil from skillet, leaving garlic and herbs in skillet. Add wine and boil over medium-high heat, scraping up browned bits, until reduced by half, about 2 minutes. Add chicken broth and any meat juices from platter and boil until reduced by half, 5 to 6 minutes. Whisk in remaining 2 tablespoons butter until incorporated, then season with salt and keep warm.
- To carve: Transfer the steak to a cutting board and cut meat off both sides of the bone (you should have two solid pieces of steak). Thinly slice each piece, then rearrange the slices around the bone on a platter. Drizzle with the jus.
•When browning the steak, don't move it around. Let it cook undisturbed (only flip it once), so that a nice crust forms.
SPAGHETTI WITH MUSSELS AND WHITE BEANS
Twirling spaghetti from the same big plate? Scandalous.
INGREDIENTS
-
- 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter
- 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided, plus more for drizzling
- 4 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes
- 1 pound spaghetti
- Kosher salt
- 1 15-ounce can cannellini (white kidney) beans, rinsed
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 2 pounds mussels, scrubbed, debearded Find at To-Table
- 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
PREPARATION
-
- Heat butter and 2 tablespoons oil in a large heavy pot over medium-low heat. Add garlic and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring often, until beginning to brown, about 2 minutes. Add tomatoes with juices, crushing tomatoes lightly with your hands. Increase heat to medium-high. Cook, stirring often, until sauce thickens, 10-15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally, until al dente. Drain pasta, reserving 1 1/2 cups pasta cooking liquid.
- Add beans and wine to sauce. Cook, stirring often, until wine has almost evaporated, about 4 minutes. Add mussels and 1/4 cup pasta cooking liquid. Cover; cook, stirring occasionally, until mussels open, about 4 minutes (discard any that do not open).
- Add pasta and 1/4 cup pasta cooking liquid to mussels and stir to coat. Reduce heat to medium and continue stirring, adding more cooking liquid as needed, until sauce coats pasta. Divide among bowls. Drizzle with oil; garnish with parsley
SCALLOPS WITH HERBED BROWN BUTTER
When you are rushed by other activities of the day, this is elegant and very quick.
INGREDIENTS
-
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound Fresh sea scallops, From To-Table
- Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
- 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- 4 sprigs herbs (such as tarragon, lemon thyme, or sage)
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
PREPARATION
-
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season scallops with salt and pepper and cook until deep golden brown on 1 side, about 3 minutes. Turn scallops and add butter and herbs to pan. Continue cooking, spooning butter over scallops often, until scallops are cooked through and butter is brown and smells nutty, about 3 minutes longer. Add lemon juice. Serve scallops with brown butter pan sauce.
TOMALES BAY OYSTERS ROCKEFELLER
If you make the filling ahead of time, you will only bneed a few minutes after shucking to eating. What we have found is that the moment of truth is at the time of shucking. These oysters are so fresh that eating them raw on the half shell will be extremely tempting.
INGREDIENTS
-
- 1 small leek (white and pale-green parts only), coarsely chopped
- 1 large shallot, coarsely chopped
- 1 garlic clove, coarsely chopped
- 1 large bunch watercress, coarsely chopped (about 4 cups packed)
- 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup finely grated Gruyère
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/4 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 24 large oysters, freshly shucked, on the half shell, with juices To-Table link Here
PREPARATION
-
- Pulse leek, shallot, and garlic in a food processor until finely chopped. Transfer to a small bowl; set aside. Pulse watercress in processor until finely chopped but not a paste. Transfer to a medium bowl; set aside.
- Melt butter in a large heavy pot over medium-low heat. Add leek mixture; season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring often, until translucent, 7-8 minutes. Increase heat to medium. Add watercress; cook, stirring often, until watercress is wilted and tender, 8-10 minutes. Stir in cheese, cream, and parsley. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to a medium bowl; chill until cold. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; keep chilled.
- Preheat broiler. Arrange oysters on half shells on a rimmed baking sheet. Dividing equally, spoon watercress mixture over oysters, spreading to cover completely.
- Broil until cheese is melted, top of watercress mixture begins to brown in spots, and oysters are just cooked through, 3-4 minutes. Serve immediately.
Duck Breast with Pomegranate Citrus Glaze
Faith Durand, kitchn, 02.12.13
2 duck breasts, about 12 to 16 ounces total (split into two pieces if still joined by the skin) From To-Table
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons Pomegranate molasses (see below)
2 tablespoons white vermouth
1 large orange, juiced (about 1/4 cup)
1 tablespoon honey
1 cinnamon stick
4 whole cloves
1/8 teaspoon cardamom
For Molasses:
4 cups pomegranate juice
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
Heat the oven to 400°F. Place the duck breasts fat side up on a cutting board and use a small sharp knife to crosshatch them, cutting just through the layer of fat but not into the meat itself. Sprinkle thoroughly with salt and pepper.
Place them fat side down in a large skillet. Turn the heat on to low. Cook the duck breasts over very low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, letting the fat render out. The fat shouldn't spit or flare up; the heat should be low as possible. The goal here is to avoid cooking the duck breasts too much, and just to render off the fat.
While the fat is rendering, mix the pomegranate molasses, vermouth, orange juice, honey, cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 5 minutes or until it reaches a temperature of 210°F. Turn off the heat and set aside.
When the fat on the duck breasts looks cooked through and crisp , turn off the heat and remove the duck breasts. Carefully pour off all the liquid fat into a bowl. Cover and refrigerate, unless you plan to use some right away (as I did with the sautéed turnips ). Return the duck breasts to the pan, fat side up now, and brush lightly with the pomegranate syrup. Put the pan in the oven for 5 to 7 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches your goal.
Personally, I like to cook my duck breast to medium rare, so I shoot for about 130°F. This should give you duck breast that is dark pink or magenta inside.
If you prefer to cook to USDA standards, then cook for a few minutes longer, to 160°F. This will produce duck breasts that are brown throughout, with a hint of pink in the center. This is way too done for my personal taste, but it is still tasty.
Remove the duck breasts from the oven, place on a cutting board, and tent with foil to rest for a few minutes. Brush again with the glaze (rewarm the glaze if necessary) and slice very thinly. Serve immediately. I liked to serve thin slices of duck breast fanned out over wilted greens or radicchio, with sautéed turnips or root vegetables on the side.
I love leftover duck sliced very thin, served cold with a little mustard and a salad. It's almost better than it is hot out of the oven.
For Molasses: Place the pomegranate juice, sugar and lemon juice in a 4-quart saucepan set over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has completely dissolved. Once the sugar has dissolved, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the mixture has reduced to 1 cup, approximately 70 minutes. It should be the consistency of thick syrup. Remove from the heat and allow to cool in the saucepan for 30 minutes. Transfer to a glass jar and allow to cool completely before covering and storing in the refrigerator for up to 6 months.
Bixby Organic Award Winning Chocolates
From Maine's burgeoning culinary scene, one of the finest collections of chocolates both bean to bar ans well as flavored bars, nibs, drinking chocolates and the best chocolate covered caramels anywhere!
