Date night is a great opportunity for you to try something new in the kitchen. Spend some quality time with your partner going to the farmers market or grocery store and tackle one of these delicious recipes together. They will not disappoint!
Now, we didn't provide macros to these recipes for you because date night should be enjoyed guilt free! So leading up to these dinners, make sure you balance out your day with lots of veggies, lean meats and water. Give yourself some wiggle room in your day of eating to indulge a little bit!
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Date Night French Onion Soup
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup red wine
4 cups beef stock
4 slices thick crusty bread
2 cups gruyere, grated
Directions
1- In a large pot or dutch oven, melt butter over medium-high heat then add onions.
2- Sauté until onions are soft, golden brown and caramelized, approximately 20-30 minutes. Stir in garlic, thyme, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes. 3- Add white and red wines then bring to a boil. Reduce heat, remove thyme and bay leaf then add in beef stock. Bring to a simmer and cook for another 10 minutes. Re-season with salt and pepper, if necessary. 4- Preheat broiler. Place oven safe ramekins or cast iron cocottes in a baking tray. Divide soup into each one then top with a slice of thick crusty bread and grated cheese.
5- Place under broiler on high for about 2-3 mins until cheese is melted.
https://asassyspoon.com/french-onion-soup/
Zesty Beet Salad
Ingredients
1 large sweet potato peeled and dice
2 beets quartered salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
½ cup pomegranate molasses
½ cup pecans toasted 4 ounces goat cheese 8 cups kale
Dressing
¼ cup cider vinegar 3 tbsp maple syrup 2 tbsp dijon mustard ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
½ tsp each salt & pepper ½ cup vegetable oil
Directions
1- Preheat oven to 425°F. 2- Toss sweet potatoes with 1 tablespoon olive oil and place on baking sheet. Toss beets with remaining olive oil and place on pan. 3- Season sweet potatoes and beets with salt and pepper. Roast 35-40 minutes or until tender. Remove from the oven and cool. Rub the skin of the beets to remove. 4- Combine all dressing ingredients in a small jar and shake well. 5- Add salad ingredients to a large bowl, including cooled beets and sweet potatoes.Drizzle with dressing and serve.
https://www.spendwithpennies.com/winter-salad-with-maple-dijon-vinaigrette/
Steakhouse Sheet Dinner For 2
2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
3 small cloves garlic, minced
Kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
2/3 cup heavy cream
6 Yukon gold potatoes, sliced into 1/8-inch rounds
2 oz cream cheese
10-ounce spinach
2/3 cup shredded Gruyere
2x 8-ounce New York strip steaks )
Directions:
1-Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Lightly grease 1/3 of the sheet pan with butter.
2- Toss the shrimp with the melted butter, thyme, 1/3 of minced garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper; set aside.
3- Mix the Parmesan, heavy cream, 1 tsp thyme, half the remaining garlic, salt and pepper in a small bowl.
4- Arrange half of the potato slices in a single, overlapping layer on the buttered part of the sheet pan and pour the heavy cream mixture over the top. Top with the remaining potato slices. Cover the potatoes with foil and bake until tender when pierced with a fork, 15 to 17 minutes.
5- Whisk together the cream cheese, 1/3 cup heavy cream, remaining garlic and 1/4 tsp salt in a medium bowl until smooth. Fold in the spinach until well coated. Divide the mixture between two and press the spinach down so that it is flat .
6- Remove the pan from the oven, remove the foil and sprinkle the potatoes with the Gruyere. Put the steaks down the middle of the pan and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Put the ramekins on one end of the empty third of the pan so that they are side by side.
7- Bake for 12-15 minutes or until thermometer inserted into the middle of the steak registers 95 degrees F.
8- Broil until the steaks start to turn brown in some spots, an instant-read thermometer inserted into the middle of the steak reaches 125 degrees F (for medium-rare), and the cheese on the potatoes turns golden and starts to crisp, 3 to 4 minutes. Let rest 5 to 10 minutes. Slice and serve the steak on plates alongside the shrimp, potatoes and creamed spinach.
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/steakhouse-sheet-pan-dinner-for-two-4481581
Lemon Chicken with Asparagus and Potatoes for two
Ingredients:
5 small red potatoes, rinsed and cut into quarters
1 tbsp + 1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Salt and ground black pepper
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 large chicken breast, sliced in half horizontally to make 2 cutlets
2 tbsp unsalted butter
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 cup chicken stock
Zest of 1 lemon plus juice of 1/2 a lemon, plus more juice if desired
1/2 lbs asparagus, rinsed and cut into thirds
Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place the potatoes on a baking sheet and drizzle 1 tbsp olive oil all over the potatoes. Sprinkle the garlic powder and some salt and pepper on top. Toss with your hands to coat all sides of the potatoes with the oil and seasoning. Bake, rotating the pan and flipping the potatoes halfway through, until fork-tender, 20 to 25 minutes.
2- Meanwhile, add the remaining teaspoon olive oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the Italian seasoning, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper onto the chicken breasts and gently pat it down with your fingers. Add the chicken breasts to the hot skillet and brown on both sides, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Remove from the skillet and reduce the heat to low.
3- Melt the butter in the skillet then sprinkle flour on top of the butter. Whisk to cook off the raw flour taste, 1 minute, then carefully add the chicken stock, vigorously whisking. Add the lemon zest and juice. Let cook, whisking occasionally, until thickened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the asparagus to the pot and cook until the asparagus has softened but is still bright green, about 7 minutes.
4- Add the chicken back into the skillet and cook to ensure it's cooked thoroughly, another 3 minutes. Coat the chicken with sauce from the pan.
5- Place 1 piece of chicken on each of 2 plates, then divide the roasted potatoes between the plates next to the chicken. Place half of the asparagus on each plate and drizzle some sauce on top.
Chocolate Lava Cake
Baking spray
1 stick butter
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate
2 ounces semisweet chocolate
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
2 whole eggs
3 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Vanilla ice cream
Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Spray 4 ramekins or custard cups with baking spray and place on a baking sheet.
2- Microwave the butter, bittersweet chocolate and semisweet chocolate in a large bowl on high until the butter is melted, about 1 minute. Whisk until the chocolate is also melted. Stir in the sugar until well blended. Whisk in the eggs and egg yolks, then add the vanilla. Stir in the flour.
3- Divide the mixture among the custard cups. 4- Bake until the sides are firm and the centres are soft, about 13 minutes. Let stand 1 minute. Invert on individual plates while warm and serve with vanilla ice cream.
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/chocolate-lava-cakes-2312421
