Need some inspiration for a romantic meal this Valentine’s Day (or any old day)?  Here are four, simple-to-make dishes along with wine pairings that are sure to show your loved one(s) how much you care.

• Savory Cheese Tartlets with Blackberries paired with  La Marca Di Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco ($12)
• Cream of Asparagus and Vermont Sharp Cheddar Cheese Soup  paired with  2007 Hirsch Vineyards San Andreas Pinot Noir ($65)
• Boeuf en Croûte (Beef Wellington)  paired with  2006 Stag’s Leap Artemis Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($40)
• Simple Greek Yogurt and Berry Tart  paired with  2008 Heron Hill Late Harvest Vidal Blanc ($18)

BONUS – breakfast:  Strawberry and Nutella-Stuffed Crepes

Whichever dish you decide to prepare for your loved one(s) this Valentine’s Day, I hope your meal is paired with love.

Cheers,

Veronique

Traditional Bean Pot

When I was growing up in Quebec, the family would gather at Grandma’s house for baked beans breakfast several times a year.  She’d bake fresh loaves of bread and the aromas would be divine.

Grandma would soak her dry beans overnight then cook them slow and low overnight, with Grandpa adding a little water throughout the night.  The beans were prepared simply: salt pork, a whole onion (that uncle Dan would always get to have) and some molasses.  Grandma would serve the beans on mismatched plates, no two alike, and I’d pour Quebec maple syrup on them and scarf then down – bliss.  I’ve eaten my way around a bunch of cities and this meal is still my favorite breakfast.

This year, with Grandma’s passing, my mom, Diane, decided to fix this dish for us as a sort of an ode to Grandma.  She’d even bought a handsome bean pot for them to simmer in!  I’m providing the recipe below, but it’s not really about making this dish, it’s about the story behind it.  Way to go mom for keeping this tradition alive and the family well-fed!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups dried white beans
• 1/2 pound salt pork, cut into 1″ cubes
• 1 medium onion, peeled
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1 tsp. dry mustard
• 1 tsp. each salt and pepper

Directions:

1. 

   Place the beans in a medium saucepan and cover with cold water then cover with foil.  Place the saucepan in the refrigerator at least 12 hours.

2. Preheat oven to 250 degrees.  Take the beans out of the refrigerator and put on the stovetop on high heat.  Boil the beans for 30 minutes, then, using a colander, drain the water.
3. Place half of the cubed salt pork in the bottom of a heavy, oven-proof pot or Dutch oven (if you have a traditional bean pot, even better).  Add the beans and top with the remaining salt pork.  Tuck the onion in.  Combine the rest of the ingredients and pour over the beans and pork.
4. Cover the beans with hot water, place in the oven, covered, and cook for 7-8 hours.  Halfway through the cooking process, add more hot water to once again cover the beans.

Makes 6-8 servings.

My grandma used to make my sister and me peanut butter and banana grilled sandwiches in a cast iron contraption when we were kids.  This contraption, an early version of a Panini press, had long handles that could be flipped on the stovetop until the bread was perfectly browned and gorgeous.  I miss those days and decided to sort of recreate the sandwich using my modern day Panini press and a little twist – Nutella!

Ingredients:

• 2 tsp. softened butter
• 2 slices whole wheat bread (I like oatmeal and whole wheat for this)
• 2 Tbsp. chunky peanut butter
• 1 Tbsp. Nutella
• ½ ripe banana, sliced

Directions:

1. Heat up Panini press or a grill pan over high heat.
2. Spread 1 teaspoon of butter on one side of each bread slice.
3. Spread the peanut butter on the unbuttered side of one bread slice.
4. Spread Nutella on the unbuttered side of the second bread slice then arrange the banana slices over Nutella.
5. Top the Nutella/banana slice with the peanut butter slice so that the buttered side of each bread slice is on the outside and the goodies are on the inside.
6. Place the sandwich in the Panini press and grill for 3 minutes.  Alternatively, place the sandwich on the grill pan (still on high heat) and top with the weight of multiple pans or a pan with a 2-3 pound weight in it and cook 1 1/2 minutes per sides.
7. Transfer sandwich to a cutting board and cut sandwich diagonally using a serrated knife.

1 serving.

My Niece Maude

I recently spent the weekend in my native Quebec where I got a chance to breakfast with my two young nieces.  Like their mom, my sister Josée, they love the combination of strawberries and Nutella, the chocolate hazelnut spread.

On the first morning of my weekend back home, the girls enjoyed Strawberry Nutella Treats.  On the second morning, I brought the Basic Crepe Batter I’d made the evening before and fixed Strawberry and Nutella-Stuffed Crepes.  The crepe batter is prepared in advance in a jiffy and the stuffed crepes are simple to fix for the whole family, even on busy mornings.  On this occasion, I added a few freshly-picked blueberries to the strawberries.

Ingredients:

• Basic Crepe Batter
• 4 Tbsps. butter
• 8 Tbsps. Nutella
• 1 pint of ripe strawberries, sliced
• Whipped cream (optional)

Directions:

1. In a large skillet (or crepe pan), melt 1 tablespoon of butter over medium-high heat until golden.
2. Add ¼ of the crepe batter to the skillet and spread it evenly over the entire surface of the pan by tilting the skillet around.  Cook the crepe until the surface is mostly no longer wet, about 45 seconds.  Flip with a spatula and cook the second side for about 30 seconds.
3. 

   Strawberry Nutella Crepe

   Remove the crepe to a plate.  Spread 2 tablespoons of Nutella over the crepe then top with ¼ of the slices strawberries.  Roll the crepe, jellyroll-style and served with whipped cream, if using.

4. Repeat steps 1-3 for the three remaining crepes.

Makes 4 crepes.

Notes:  The batter can easily be doubled or tripled if serving more guests.  The crepes can be stuffed with any berries, and another favorite of mine is stuffing them with a combination of raspberries and blueberries.

Strawberry season’s in full force and I can’t think of anyone who loves the little red gems more than my sister, Josée.  When her and her family visited me in New Jersey last, I, of course, had bought strawberries for her.  To my delight, my two nieces have inherited her love for strawberries and here’s a quick but special treat she fixed them one morning.

Ingredients:

• 2 slices white bread (could use whole wheat)
• 2 Tbsps. Nutella, hazelnut spread
• 4 large strawberries, hulled and thinly sliced

Directions:

1. Toast the bread.
2. Spread 1 tablespoon of Nutella on each slice of toasted bread.
3. Cover each Nutella-coated toast with the slices from 2 strawberries.

Makes 2 treats.

Not sure why, but the thought of throwing away over-ripe bananas drives me nuts.  Instead, I’ll spend a few bucks to save four $0.35 bananas – not logical, but makes for a treat everyone enjoys.

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup (1stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 4 over-ripe bananas, mashed
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Sift the flour, baking soda and salt in a large bowl – set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar on medium speed for about 2 minutes.  Add the eggs, beating well after each one, add the bananas and beat for 1 minute.
4. Pour the banana / butter mixture into flour mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until just combined – do not overmix.  Pour batter into a lightly grease 9×5 inch loaf pan and sprinkle walnuts over the top (if using walnuts).
5. Bake for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out with just a few moist crumbs.  Remove the banana bread from the oven and let  cool in pan for 15 minutes, then unmold and cool completely on a wire rack.

Notes: I like chunks of banana in my banana bread so I typically squeeze and knead the bananas while they’re still in the peel.  By the time I’m done with this fun task, all I need to do is remove the peels and add the ‘mashed’ bananas to the batter.

Oatmeal Serving

Oatmeal on a cold morning is a personal favorite.  I’ve seen a ton of recipes for Crockpot oatmeal and finally decided to try it.  I’ve tried my own version and it’s worked well on the first try!  The steel-cut oats give the oatmeal fabulous texture and the old-fashioned oats provide the creaminess that’s perfectly soothing on a cold morning.  Make in the evening and wake up to a perfect breakfast.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups water
• 1/2 cup steel-cut oats ( I used McCann’s Steel Cut Irish Oatmeal)
• 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats ( I used Old Fashioned Quaker Oats)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Maple syrup (optional)
• Golden raisins (optional)
• Warmed, light cream (optional)

Directions:

1. 

   Oatmeal Cooking

   Find a ovenproof bowl that will fit inside your Crockpot with some space around it.  Fill the Crockpot with water to half full.  Place the empty bowl in the Crockpot.

2. Blend the water, oats and salt in the bowl.
3. Turn the Crockpot on low and cook for 8 hours.
4. Serve with maple syrup, raisins and cream if desired.

Makes 4 servings.

Notes: Yes, the oatmeal can be made by incorporating dried fruit like dates, apricot and cranberries in the cooking process, but the above is the purist’s version.

They say a banana is the world’s most perfect food, but a soft-boiled egg with the right seasoning and a dollop of mayo might just be ‘it’ for me.

Perfect Egg

Directions:

1. Place room-temperature egg in a small saucepan. Cover with cold water so there’s about 1-inch of water above the egg.
2. Put saucepan over high heat.  Allow to come to a boil, then immediately remove from heat.  Allow eggs to stand in hot water for 5 minutes.
3. Drain hot water and place the egg on an egg cup or small saucer.
4. Cut a small ‘cap’ off the top of the egg, exposing some of the soft yolk.
5. Season with sea salt, cracked pepper and a small dollop of mayonnaise.

This simple batter is best made the day before and refrigerated.  Great stuffed with hazelnut spread and raspberries.

Ingredients:

• ¾ cup flour
• ¾ cup milk
• 2 tbs sugar
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 tbs vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• Vegetable oil for frying

Directions:

1. Stir together flour, sugar and salt in a medium bowl.
2. Add milk, oil and eggs.  Mix well until the batter is smooth.  Let rest in refrigerator for at least an hour or ideally overnight.
3. Heat large frying pan on medium-high heat.  Add 1 tsp vegetable oil.  Add ¼ of the crepe batter and swirl plan to create a thin crepe. Cook 1 minute on each side and serve with favorite topping.

Makes 4 crepes.

• 4 medium to large fresh portabello caps
• 3 Tbs. olive oil
• 4 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and caps sliced
• 1/2 small onion, finely diced
• 1 cup corn kernels
• 1/3 cup toasted pine nuts
• 1/2 cup fried, crumbled bacon
• salt
• 8 eggs

Preheat oven to 400 F.  Place the portobello caps, gill side up, in a large baking dish and bake 5 minutes.  Meanwhile, heat oil in a large sauté pan over high heat.  Add shiitakes, onion, and corn; sauté until mushrooms are limp and corn is tender, 3-4 minutes.  Add pine nuts and bacon and stir well.  Season to taste.  Be sure to season well, making it a little salty.

Remove mushrooms from oven and evenly divide shiitake mixture among the four caps, smoothing surface.  Make sure caps lay as flat as possible.  Crack 2 eggs on top of each mushroom.  Return dish to oven and bake until eggs are done to your liking.

4 Servings.