I Heart Valentine's Day

For what other occasion could I make such a girly Valentine's Day meal, than for a ladies luncheon?  It was fun to flip through all of Martha Stewart's books and February issues of Living for inspiration, and then to do my own takes on pink and heart shaped food.  The salad of artichoke hearts, hearts of palm, heart shaped beets & croutons with a pink peppercorn champagne vinaigrette was especially fun to prepare (maybe tied with the crudites!).  And, of course, the whole meal was even better served at Amy's pretty table, a white take on Valentine's Day with cut out hearts and classic roses.  Hope that everyone had a sweet Valentine's day; if Instagram is any indication, it looked like a good one! xoxo

The Menu

sips

pink champagne

snacks

pink & red crudités: radishes, currants, goji berries, red peppers, sweet peppers, cherry tomatoes, dried cherries, red delicious apples, red carrots & radicchio 

savory coeur a la creme with cucumber hearts

pink radish tea sandwiches with french butter

to start

salad of artichoke hearts, hearts of palm, heart beets, heart croutons and baby kale with a pink peppercorn champagne vinaigrette

savory

lobster risotto with tarragon & fennel

sweet

strawberry shortcake

Breakfast in Bed. For Dinner.

This year I partnered up with The Chalkboard to create a new way to celebrate Valentine's Day: breakfast in bed, for dinner.  While Valentine's Day is all about the sexy lingerie, it's also a fun excuse to wear pj's to dinner and stay cozy under the sheets.  Greg is normally the breakfast maker in our house, so I needed a new menu item to impress him.  Crepes were a fun solution and really couldn't be simpler (I learned how to make them in my seventh grade home-ec class!).  In order to avoid any up and down between the bedroom and kitchen, I served an assortment of chocolates for dessert.  After all, when else are you going to treat yourself to such a pretty treat?  Amy made me a very sweet menu that also served as my valentine to Greg (check our her pretty valentines at The Chalkboard).  You can also get my how-to's and recipes for ham & gruyere crepes and the frisee, bacon & egg salad at The Chalkboard.  Wishing everyone a Happy Valentine's Day filled with love, hearts and romance!

 

 

 

 The Menu

sips

champagne cocktails

savory

ham & gruyere crepes

frisee salad with bacon lardons & egg

sweet

assorted ococoa chocolates

photos by Yayo Ahumada 

champagne cocktail recipe

place a sugar cube in champagne flute.  

splash the cube with a few dashes of bitters.  let soak a moment.

add a lemon twist.

top with bubbly.

Happy Valentine's Day

Holidays just aren't holidays in my book without the appropriate sugar cookies. They have become my signature treat, my go-to party favor. It's the hint of almond in the frosting that makes everyone wonder 'why is this the best sugar cookie ever?!' This year I did classic hearts as favors for Valentine's Day shoppers at my friend Amy's store Apartment Number 9. It happens to be my high school sweetheart's mom's recipe and somehow all of my girlfriends around the country make them. It makes me so happy that each holiday, I have a new friend requesting the recipe. Courtney A. made them for the first time this week, impressing her 'Valentine' Meg in NYC and realized cookies truly are the key to the heart.