I want to make a romantic dinner tonight for my girlfriend - any ideas or suggestions?

Question

I want to do something special for my girlfriend tonight. So tonight I want her to come home to a nice, romantic, candlelight dinner. I really haven't cooked much, but I want to try it tonight. Does anyone have any recommendations as to what I should make? Or the presentation or anything? I want to put on a really, really nice dinner for her tonight. Your help is appreciated. Thank you.

Answer 1

Good luck and I hope that you both enjoy!

Appetizer: Red Pepper and Tapenade Slices
1 (8-ounce) can crescent rolls (recommended: Pillsbury)
1/2 cup marinara sauce (recommended: Prego)
1/2 cup jack cheese, shredded (recommended: Kraft)
3 tablespoons blue cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup olive tapenade
1/3 cup roasted red bell pepper, cut into strips
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Remove crescent dough from can and unroll. Separate into 8 triangles. Lay pieces of dough on baking sheet. Top each slice with a spoonful of marinara sauce, some shredded jack and blue cheese, a spoonful of olive tapenade, and red bell pepper strips.
Bake in oven for 12 to 15 minutes, or until edges are golden.

Pasta: You Won't Be Single For Long Vodka Cream Pasta
This recipe will make enough for 2 couples. If you plan a romantic evening where more than two's a crowd, reserve half the sauce to freeze for another supper before the addition of basil, and only cook 1/2 to 2/3 pound of penne.

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, once around the pan in a slow stream
1 tablespoon butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 shallots, minced
1 cup vodka
1 cup chicken stock
1 can crushed tomatoes (32 ounces)
Coarse salt and pepper
16 ounces pasta, such as penne rigate
1/2 cup heavy cream
20 leaves fresh basil, shredded or torn
Crusty bread, for passing
Heat a large skillet over moderate heat. Add oil, butter, garlic, and shallots. Gently saute shallots for 3 to 5 minutes to develop their sweetness. Add vodka to the pan, 3 turns around the pan in a steady stream will equal about 1 cup. Reduce vodka by half, this will take 2 or 3 minutes. Add chicken stock, tomatoes. Bring sauce to a bubble and reduce heat to simmer. Season with salt and pepper.
While sauce simmers, cook pasta in salted boiling water until cooked to al dente (with a bite to it). While pasta cooks, prepare your salad or other side dishes.
Stir cream into sauce. When sauce returns to a bubble, remove it from heat. Drain pasta. Toss hot pasta with sauce and basil leaves. Pass pasta with crusty bread

Main Course: Garlic Roast Chicken with Rosemary and Lemon
2 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into large chunks
6 cloves garlic, crushed
3 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves stripped from stems
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, eyeball it
1 lemon, zested and juiced
1 tablespoon grill seasoning blend (recommended: Montreal Seasoning) or, coarse salt and black pepper
1/2 cup dry white wine or chicken broth
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
Arrange chicken in a baking dish, 9 by 13-inch. Add garlic, rosemary, extra-virgin olive oil, lemon zest and grill seasoning or salt and pepper to the dish. Toss and coat the chicken with all ingredients, then place in oven. Roast 20 minutes. Add wine and lemon juice to the dish and combine with pan juices. Return to oven and turn oven off. Let stand 5 minutes longer then remove chicken from the oven. Place baking dish on trivet and serve, spooning pan juices over the chicken pieces.

Salad: Your Basic Tossed Salad
2 hearts romaine lettuce
2 small plum tomatoes, diced
1 Kirby cucumber or 1/4 European seedless cucumber, diced
1 small yellow onion or 1/2 red onion, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and shredded
1 /4 cup (a couple of glugs) extra-virgin olive oil,
2 to 3 tablespoons (a couple of splashes) red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
Coarse salt and black pepper

Place salad greens in a salad bowl and top with tomatoes, cucumbers, onion, and carrot. Place oil, vinegar and sugar in a small plastic container. Put the lid on the container and shake dressing until sugar dissolves, about 1 minute. Pour dressing over salad. Season salad with salt and pepper, to taste, and toss to combine.

Chocolate Cups with Whipped Cream
Make your dessert first for this menu to allow these chocolate cups to set and chill: This recipe is a no bake pot de creme, no kidding.

2/3 cup whole milk
1 egg
2 tablespoons sugar
Pinch salt
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons hazelnut liqueur or dark rum
4 demitasse cups
1 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons sugar
Mint sprigs, for garnish, optional

Heat milk in a small pan over moderate heat until it comes to a boil.
In blender or food processor combine egg, sugar, a pinch of salt, semisweet chips, and liqueur. Run processor or turn on blender to low setting. Pour in boiling milk in a slow stream. The hot milk will cook egg and melt chocolate. Process or blend 1 minute, until smooth.
Spoon chocolate into 4 demitasse cups and chill. After dinner, beat cream until soft peaks form. Add a little sugar and beat to combine. Top the chocolate cups with a dollop of cream and garnish each cup with mint sprigs.
Place cups on saucers and serve with demitasse spoons. If you use teacups, this recipe will yield 2 cups, rather than 4.

Answer 2

You didn't really provide much background to base on. So let's do it with a little sterotyping and assumption.

Set the table with tablecloth and cloth napkin. use the best plates and flatware you got. You already mentioned candles, use the tall long ones. If there is time, flowers would be nice.
A long stem rose on top of the place setting is simple but effective. Soft music for the background is a must.
For the food, steak and potatoes are simple and easy. If red meat is frowned, then do chicken breast in tomato herb sauce.

If she is stereotypical, the dessert will be far more important than the main meal. Chocolate anything is a good bet, otherwise cheesecake are pretty fail safe. You pick the wines. Good Luck.

Answer 3

I don't think the meal will impress her as much as your desire to make such a special night for her. You know her better than I, what her preferences are. Does she like pasta's, fish, is she a carnivoire? Here is a great recipe for chicken. It really is incredibly good and I gaurantee she'll be impressed.

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
flour seasoned with salt and pepper for dredging
1/3 cup butter
1 sprig of fresh parsley, just for a garnish

(1) Seperate the fillets of each breast (you know, there's a line down the side of the breast that connects a smaller piece to the larger one) Pound the larger pieces to flatten them. Dredge them in the seasoned flour, shaking off the excess.

(2) Heat the butter in a large heavy frying pan until it bubbles. Place the fillets in the pan, in one layer. Cook one side over a moderate to high heat for about 3-4 minutes, until they are golden brown.

(3) Turn the chicken over. Reduce the heat to between loew to moderate and continue cooking until the fillets are cooked through but still springy to the touch, about 9-12 minutes. If the chicken begins to brown too much, cover the pan and reduce the heat for the final few minutes of cooking.

(4) Serve at once with parsley garnish.

What to serve with it? Get a box of Rissoto (italian flavored rice) or mashed potatoes. Roasted asparagus would be nice. Just drizzle a little olive oil over some asparagus, season with salt and pepper and bake at 350F for about 15-20 minutes. A salad goes very well. And I always love a crusty bread.
Use a nice tablecloth, some candles, some soft music and maybe even some flowers. Oh yeah, don't forget the wine. I hope you both enjoy the night.

Answer 4

I would start with having some music playing (whatever she likes) and then when she gets there I would break out some wine (or some other drink she enjoys). I would have everything cooking (I am big on salmon because it is SO easy to bake...just get some I can't believe it's not butter spray and dump it all over the salmon and cook it wrapped in foil, throw on some veggies she likes, and maybe some baked potatos) and I would have her sit down while I gave her a short shoulder massage (gotta remember your food is still cooking so BE CAREFUL here). Then I would serve the food to her and have a candle (just one) on the table (just one candle symbolizes so much...one heart, one love, one thought, one feeling, etc). Make the talk about her day, her feelings, and keep it about her. Make her feel like the most special and important person in the world. If she turns the conversation to you just say "there is so much more I want to know about you...we can talk about me another time babe"). After dinner I am guessing you know what to do from here. Good luck!!!

Answer 5

Make Over 200 Juicy, Mouth-Watering Paleo Recipes You've NEVER Seen or Tasted Before?

Answer 6

Here you go: easy as pie.

Steaks - t-bone or spencer is fine. Put a little steak sauce on them before broiling. The average cook time for medium well is about 5 to 6 minutes per side.

Baked potato with sour cream and chive - wash potatoes, coat them with a little margarine and bake in the oven for 45 minutes to an hour or until a fork penetrates them easily. Take them out before broiling the steaks.

Tossed green salad - you can buy salad fixings already cut and bagged at the grocery store. Add her favorite dressing and you're good to go.

For desert - her favorite ice cream.

Answer 7

try maong somethin like spagetti, or raviolli (or something u can make from a cookbook without too much trouble) OR order 4m a restuarant
put a candle with a rose in the centre of a table with a table cloth (white or a good colour) and CLEAN plates, spoons, forks, knives and glasses. keep the wine (if any) ahndy in a tub of ice nearby
keep the lights low (!!!!). make sure u pull the chair back 4 her 2 sit (and hold the door open while she's walkin in)
and most importantly, sit face 2 face so u can talk with ease. don't talk TOOOOOOOO much, but talk sensibly

GOOD LUCK ;-)

Answer 8

EDIT: Let me preface this by saying this is not a difficult meal to make. But, it will be tasty, and fairly healthy! Since you say you aren't much of a chef, that is, you haven't cooked much, this is a simple meal that you can put together, that will still be delicious without being too ambitious. Whoever gave thumbs down for this doesn't know what they are talking about.

For future reference, it might be helpful to say what type of foods she likes, for instance, is she a picky eater??

Here's the menu I would make:
-Mozzarella, tomato and bell pepper salad
-oregano seasoned baked chicken
-sauteed squash and zucchini



Start with this salad:
Buy these things:
Buy 3 bell peppers (different colors: one red, one green, and one orange or yellow). Buy a ripe tomato, and one small red onion.
Buy some balsamic vinegar, and olive oil, and some fresh basil, if possible. One ball of fresh mozzarella cheese. Fresh is the key here.

Wash all the vegetables, then slice a couple of slices off the tomato. Use nice plates!! I have to stress this. Cover the top of the olive oil so only a couple drops can come out and put a little on the places. After the olive oil, put the tomato down on the plates first. Then, cut slices of each of the bell peppers, and lay over the tomato, have the edges touching, but not overlapping. Cut a couple of slices of the mozzarella cheese, and lay over the peppers. Slice the red onion VERY thin, and put a few pieces here and there around the plate.Then, placing your thumb over the top of the balsamic vinegar so only a small amount comes out, sprinkle balsamic vinegar over the plate. It should make a pretty sprinkled pattern around the outside of the veggies, and make sure to sprinkle some on the veggies as well. If you like basil, slice it very very thin and sprinkle over the whole mixture.
This makes a beautiful and impressive presentation, and it's very tasty as well! Salt and pepper to taste.

These can be prepared while the rest of the food is cooking.

Dinner:
For a simple yet tasty meal I recommend making some baked chicken, sauteed squash and zucchini, and buying some crusty bread.

You'll need to purchase: chicken, squash, zucchini, one sweet or white onion, and a loaf of french bread.

To prepare the chicken, buy fresh chicken breasts or leg quarters in the grocery store. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Rinse the chicken and pat dry with a paper towel. Rub a tiny pat of butter or olive oil over the skins of the chicken. Then, use your spice or seasoning of choice to rub into the skin. Personally, I like it plain, just a little butter and salt and pepper. But, oregano is also really good. Rub it into the skin. Then, put it on a pan and bake in the oven for about an hour and a half, uncovered.

For the squash and zucchini, cut them into slices. Chop up the onion. Put a pat or two of butter in a large pan on the stove, or olive oil, but not tons of it, you don't want them to get too greasy. Turn the burner on to a little less than medium temperature.
Put the onion in the pan with the butter/oil and let it cook for a minute or two, turning it with a spatula so it doesn't burn. Then, add the rest of the veggies to the pan to sautee. Turn the veggies over so they all get a little butter/oil on them. Add a little more butter if it seems too dry. Cover the pan and let the veggies steam and cook for a few minutes. Stir frequently so they cook evenly. Taste one after about 10 minutes or so to see how firm they are. If it is still mostly raw, replace the lid and let it cook for another 5-8 minutes. Stir intermittantly, but make sure to let the moisture build under the cover. Once you are finished cooking these, remove them from heat. Salt and pepper to taste.

Warm the bread in the oven for a few minutes. For extra crispiness, wet your hands and rub them over the outside of the bread. Put directly onto the rack in the oven and let it bake for a couple of minutes. Be careful not to let it burn.

Then, using some sort of utensils, remove the chicken from the pan, and place on the plate. Spoon some squash and zucchini out of the pan (being careful to let any excess liquid spill out of the spoon. Place on the plate. Cut up the bread and put in a serving bowl, set the table nice, candles, etc...

If you have pepper left over, put a sprig of it, on top of a basil leaf or whatever you used to spice the chicken, on any empty space on the plate, for added color.

Next, get a nice bottle of white wine. Maybe a Riesling, because they are a little sweet, and not too rough if you aren't much of a wine drinker.


For dessert, slice up some strawberries and put on a plate with maybe a slice of cheesecake or something from the bakery. Drizzle with a little chocolate syrup.

Good luck!! :)

Answer 9

CHICKEN MARSALA - In first frying pan, Cut boneless chicken into chunks or strips, coat with flour and cook in butter until all sides just start to brown, set aside. In second frying pan, melt butter and add fresh sliced mushrooms (lots) and cook until they just start to soften, add generous amount of Marsala wine and a couple of finely diced garlic cloves and cook for three minutes. Add chicken from first pan and cook until sauce thickens (flour from chicken will thicken sauce), Add a small spritz more Marsala wine ( to refresh Marsala wine flavor) and serve immediately.

Answer 10

something small that she really doesn't have to spend time cutting. The more time you two spend cutting, the let time you spend talking. I'd try something like shrimp and broccoli w/bowtie pasta in a pink vodka sauce. (The sauce you can buy at the grocery store in the spaghetti isle.)
Candles lit or lights as dim as possible maybe classical music in the background.. Or something w/no words. Flowers on the table is usually a nice touch... Good luck..

Answer 11

Fondue is fun, romantic, and interactive. But I'm guessing you don't have a fondue pot.

I would go with pasta. It's easy. If you get an alfredo sauce from your pasta aisle, you can add in shrimp, chicken, steak, crab (even canned) whatever your cooking level is prepared for.