Valentine's Day
I mentioned in an earlier post that I'm making my boyfriend homemade treats for Valentines Day. There are two things I never get sick of hearing about: other people's relationships and other people's cooking/eating habits.
So, who's your honey, does he/she like to cook, and what will the two of you be making for this ridiculously commercialized faux-holiday?
My boyfriend and I have been together for three years and we're madly in love. I'm making him homemade truffles, coconut candy, and I'm buying him gourmet coffee. He can't cook, so he'll probably send me candy, a cute love letter, and a book of some sort.
Your turn!
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9 Comments:
my husband is in the Navy & in Iraq right now....so we will have a long distance Valentines Day! His safe return will be gift enough but I already received his homemade card and wonderful letter that would put Hallmark out of business (hee hee).He said he has another surprise and it's on it's way..I look forward to it :o)
I am mailing out a box of his favorite treats..I searchd high and low for all his treats--Gibbles potato chips from Pa..(he loves those) cookies from Levain bakery, chocolates from this mom and pop chocolatier that has the best chocolates....(chocolate covered cherries, turtles) and a box of Sees chocolates and Garrett popcorn (the best popcorn, in my opinion)--In addition to all the standard treats: Twizzlers, cheetos, and barbeque pork rinds and a box of Little Debbie honey bun (he loves those) & blueberry poptarts...I also included extra so he can share with others..If I could, I would send him a homeade lasagna which is his absolute favorite!!
@PumpkinBear: homemade truffles and coconut candy--YUM!! Sounds like a great time in store for you and your honey!! Good for you!
Italiancupcake at 7:50PM on 02/03/09
My boyfriend and I have been dating a little over a year (and, like pumpkin and italian, are madly in love), so this is our second valentine's day together. Last year we went to a really great restaurant in NYC, but it was also ridiculously expensive. So for this year, I suggested that we just cook dinner together and splurge on some better ingredients then we would otherwise. He is actually a fantastic cook, and together we make a really good team - he is better at cooking proteins then I am, and makes really good pie, and I am better at cooking all other food groups, and bake really good everything BUT pie. He's even acclimated to my dietary restrictions when we cook at his house (I keep semi-kosher, so he started buying kosher meat for us, and remembers not to mix meat and dairy for me).
However, now he's decided he wants to cook for me and I'm not allowed to make anything, even dessert! I think he is making duck, but I'm not sure
I will make him the cookies that I posted about yesterday, and might make him some guinness-baileys cupcakes (smittenkitchen.com had a post with the recipe the other day). I am at a loss at what else to give him, though, so I welcome any ideas (food related or non-food). For the holidays I got him a bunch of different fancy salts/seasoning mixes, and this cast iron stovetop smoker/grill pan/roasting pan made by Emeril, so if anyone has any suggestions of something to go with that, let me know!!
@italian, that sounds like the best present. I hope he gets home safe soon!
NYCEater at 8:30PM on 02/03/09
My boyfriend and passed the three year mark around Christmas. He likes to cook, but when left to his own devices won't make anything that takes effort. Every time I'm gone he reports that all he is eating is cereal, salad, and frozen pizza (and a lot of fruit). When I am home but don't feel like cooking though, he'll take over and the results rarely disappoint. He's also in charge of grilling, and for good reason.
He left yesterday to go climbing for a month (8 hours away), but since Valentine's Day falls on Presidents Day weekend and I have that Monday off, I'm going out there for the weekend (he works remotely and I can't do that with my job - or I'd be out there now too!). I'm really hoping he doesn't get me the same flowers I've gotten for the past 3 V-days (Hawaiian flowers that come in a huge box and take forever to deal with but are really pretty) just to avoid the hassle. We have a few good sushi restaurants that we like where we'll be, as well as an awesome steakhouse, but we haven't really picked anything out yet.
I have a crockpot out where he is (a bunch of us pitch in to rent a house, so there's a full kitchen), so we might throw something in there if we do decide to stay in since we'll be out all day. I have no idea what to get him. Maybe I'll just buy dinner if we go out ... I'm terrible, I know.
joyyy at 9:29PM on 02/03/09
My gift to whatever boyfriend I have is to not do Valentine's Day. For the most part, they've all seemed pretty grateful at this boon. For me, V day is rife with too much danger. Who cares more? Was my present too big? Not big enough? I can't tell you how many relationships I've had end as a direct result of the signals sent out on that day.
That said, since V day is on Saturday night, when we usually get together, we are having Godfather night, movies 1 & 2. I am making rosemary/lemon chicken and pasta w/marinara sauce. Carpaccio. Snacks will be a basic antipasta platter with prosciutto, fresh mozzarella, cannellini bean and rosemary spread, other various marinated veggies, home made sun-dried tomatoes, etc.
I'm unsure about dessert. I'm thinking a homemade sorbet/ice cream with some kind of interesting fruit macerated in sugar with a bit of 25 year balsamic to finish it.
But I don't do V-Day!!!!! No presents. No talk of "the future." No acknowledgement of cherubin with arrows. Too scary for a girl who clearly has some intimacy issues.
chisai at 10:02PM on 02/03/09
SO and I have been together for 4 v days and each year we have a quiet day and stay in. We usually have a living room picnic and just curl up and watch the princess bride and other romantic movies, (Yes he loves them)
This year he had to go back west because of a family issue, and I'm in the middle of some health issues so we wont be together. I've made sure he took lots of treats in his bags and I sent out a box today full of things he loves like homemade filled chocolates, homemade truffles and lots of homemade brittles. Also when he packed I sent 28 vday cards in his bag each dated on the day he was to open it.
So since i'm going stag this year I'll probably make popcorn and watch the ghost and mrs muir so I can cry my eyes out. ;-)
huneybumper at 10:28PM on 02/03/09
My Paddles and I have been together 4 years next month, but we knew each other for over 20 years. There is this very small, cute Italian restaurant that is close to us that I will try to make reservations either day before or day after V-Day. He does not cook much but will do the dishes after I make things and that is good as gold to me because I HATE with a passion doing dishes by hand (we don't have a dishwasher), I will buy him a book of some sort, and he will get me some treats I like and something that he knows I want. Paddle's philosophy is to give someone something that they will use up (like wine candy ect) and something that they will keep to remember you by.
pjracz10 at 10:29PM on 02/03/09
my wife definitely does not know her way around the kitchen- I do all the cooking-
either we'll go to sushi, or I'll make a nice seafood dish with some fresh baked bread and a lot of wine.
doctorcop at 1:57AM on 02/04/09
this is my 5th valentines day with the BF -- like i said in a previous post i learned the hard way about going out to dinner on valentine's day, getting screwed with exorbitant prix fixe prices and mediocre food, and looking around at the entire restaurant filled with couples and just feeling like we're suckers.
so the new tradition as of a couple years ago is: 1. i make dinner on valentines (this year it will be jamie oliver's halloumi, speck, and strawberry salad, a penne with shrimp and creamy tomato herb sauce, and pistachio macarons courtesy of nigella, with wine from l'aventure in paso robles that we picked up wine tasting.) 2. he takes me out to a nice dinner in the weeks following valentine's day so we can have our OWN valentines day without the crowds, price, or hassle. :)
megannesta at 1:18PM on 02/04/09
My husband doesn't really like to cook but he's usually willing to help me out as a sous chef if I give him very clear instructions on what to do.
We usually do valentine's day at home so we can avoid the crowds and enjoy an intimate dinner together, plus you can celebrate in your pj's if you like (which is what I did last year becuase I had had a pretty long day at work) Last year the menu was polenta with creamy mushrooms and Marcella Hazann's decadent tomato sauce, roasted acorn squash and for dessert, creme brulee. I am considering doing osso bucco for dinner this year if I feel ambitious enough. Still trying to decide on desert...
missjess at 1:07PM on 02/05/09