Thursday, February 16, 2012

A Love-ly Valentine's Dinner For Four

On Valentine's day, Nuno went to work in the morning and both my girls went to school.  Anita and Annabel had their valentine's dance and exchanged valentine cards with their friends.  I decided I would spend my day listening to the likes of  Michael Buble, Rod Stewart, and Louis Armstrong; preparing a delicious dinner and dessert to commemorate the occasion.   And because Valentine's day is so special, low carb would NOT be on the menu tonight, instead we would eat things like naan bread, basmati rice, and dessert! 


Indian Butter Chicken


Here, you can see, step by step, the making of the butter chicken - chopped tomatoes, fried in butter, garlic and spices.  The tomatoes are then pureed into a fine paste and strained.  More butter is added to the puree, along with ginger and kashmiri chili pepper. Next, I add the cooked, chopped chicken breast  and some whipping cream.  And the final touch - chopped cilantro.  In the last photo, is the Nann bread I warmed up in the oven, just before serving dinner. 


Our Valentine-inspired table








The girls were so excited when they came home from school and saw the special Valentine table set for four! 



Sticky Toffee Pudding


Above, you can see, some of the steps involved in preparing the sticky toffee pudding.  This was my first time making sticky toffee pudding in this manner.  I made it once before, but the toffee sauce was made separately.  The lovely thing about this recipe, is that the sauce is made simultaneously, along with the cake batter.  If you are interested in making this delicious pudding yourself, hop on over to my friend Rachel's blog - Baking Brownies for Mozart .  You can find the recipe there! 
Butter chicken and basmati rice with nann bread for dipping; washed down with  a glass of white wine (the girls had juice, of course).  It was absolutely delicious!  This is possibly our most favourite meal around here.  Nuno and the girls requested I make this for our special Valentine's dinner. 
And last, but certainly not least, freshly baked, sticky toffee pudding.  This was absolutely delicious!  My favourite part was the toffee sauce and the scattered bits of crisp, toasted edges.  Adding vanilla ice cream really makes this dessert over-the-top FABULOUS!  The cold of the ice cream marries the warm toffee sauce and it's magic in your mouth!  Thank you to Rachel for sharing the recipe. This one is definitely a keeper!
I hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's day and shared it with someone you love; whether it was a friend, husband, wife, boyfriend, girlfriend, son, daughter, mother, father, sister, brother, cat, or dog.  After all, Valentine's day is a celebration of love.  And love comes in many forms.  How did you spend your Valentine's day?  I would love to know!  Did you cook something special?  Did you go out for dinner?  Did you exchange valentines with friends?  Did you do something special for someone? 
Or will you be celebrating this weekend?


Happy Thursday!  Have a wonderful day! xo

18 comments:

  1. Hi Rosinda,

    I'm the first! I'm donig great today lol I'll have to check out Rachel's recipe. We love those puddings :)

    Love your dinner :) the kids helped me with supper.. chicken dinner and Susan Branch's Lemon Roll cake with White Mountain Frosting on top. I have a picture and will share it on twitter.

    dh and oldest son didn't make it, but the kids and I enjoyed it.

    We make each other valentines and open them after we eat ... it's a nice tradition.

    Have a wonderful day, Rosinda <3
    Love,
    Denise of Ingleside, PEI

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    1. Hi Denise! You dinner & dessert sound delicious! I'm glad you and the kids enjoyed your special dinner! What a great idea to exchange valentines after dinner...reminds me of Christmas! Have a wonderful day too! Thank you for your comment! xoxo

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    2. BTW.. forgot to say, I love the heart dishes! They aer Susan's, right?

      You should see my 14 yo son's valentines, Rosinda... argh... at least he tries lol!!

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    3. Thank you! The heart dish is actually from Emma Bridgewater. :o)

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  2. Everything looks so lovely! I definitely want to give it a whirl :)
    Thanks :) Jacqui G

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    1. Thank you for stopping by, Jacqui! I'm sure you would love the pudding!Have a wonderful day! :o)

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  3. Oh Rosinda,
    I just LOVE how you decorated your table so prettily for your family----what a sweetheart you are!!! The chicken looks incredible. We LOVE chicken tikka masala...looks just like this; incredible dish!!!

    I will have to try Rachel's recipe----you made it look easy girlfriend!!!

    I won't be able to have any, but I know lots of family members who would LOVE this!!!!

    I'm so happy you had such a wonderful Valentine's Day!!!

    xoxo
    Joann

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  4. Thanks so much, Joann! I also love chicken tikka masala! It's too bad you can't have the pudding, but I'm sure others will appreciate it! I hope you had a lovely day, too! Thanks for your comment, sweetie! xoxo

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  5. Doesn't that all look darling and yummy. I bet the girls were thrilled to see their placecards--very cute. I wish I could have that dessert right now!! ♥♥♥

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    1. Thank you, Nancy! I would love to share some of that dessert with you! Maybe one day?? xoxo

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  6. Hi from Australia sweetie!! Not able to visit many blogs but I had to make a special effort for this one of course!! All looks yummy...The table is so sweet, not surprised the girls were excited. And that Butter Chicken - divine. Not to mention the pudding...I never actually get to eat it as I'm lays baking it for customers so it is wonderful to see it being enjoyed by people I love for once!! Happy happy weekend xoxoxo

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    1. Hello sweetie! Thank you so much for stopping by and leaving a comment! The sticky toffee pudding was the perfect dessert for our special Valentine's dinner. Have a wonderful day and a fun, sunny weekend in the land of OZ!! xo

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  7. YUM. I love Indian dishes--of pretty much any sort. This looks fabulous. Wait til the girls realize none of their friends live like this! That they live in a special magic home, created by their magic mom. I found fresh cod (rather rare here) at the store and dug up a favorite old recipe for fish cakes. Pretty terrific, with stir-fried broccoli, and a cookie I left behind when I made my deliveries.

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    1. Thank you so much for your comment, JoEllen! You are so sweet! Your fresh cod fish cakes sound delicious!! I'm glad you enjoyed a yummy Valentine's dinner and saved room for a little dessert! xo

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  8. How beautiful and organized...Table and plates, the red hearts and the precious moments figurine...
    Butter chicken...Nans...Rice...Everything looks so delicious!!!
    I'm feeling ungry just looking at this food. I love Indian food:)
    Just loved it from the start to the end!!!

    Hugs and kisses from me to you, Nuno, Anita and Annabel. Love you all!

    Very proud Mom:)

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    1. Thank you, Mom! I will make the butter chicken one of these days for you! xoxo

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  9. Beautifully set table and delicious food is a wonderful way to make Valentine's Day really special. I'm going to surprise Rich next year with a great meal and pretty table as this year I was in an airplane and didn't arrive home til late. You make life a real celebration, just like it should be. Bless your heart. Love you xoxo

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    1. Thank you, Sandy! Sorry you didn't get to celebrate Valentine's Day the way you would have liked. At least, you spent the day together with your Valentine. Next year will be better, I'm sure! Love you, too, sweetie! xoxo

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