Valentine's Day Menu

Veal with Persillade and Wilted Spinach

Ingredients:

200g truss cherry tomatoes
2 tsp olive oil
20g unsalted butter
6 veal escalopes* (about 75g each)
3 cups baby spinach leaves
Persillade
20g unsalted butter
1 small eschalot, finely chopped
1 small garlic clove, finely chopped
2 tbs lemon juice
2 tbs finely chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves

Method:

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 200°C.

Step 2

Place the cherry tomatoes on a small baking tray and drizzle with the olive oil, then season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Place in the oven and roast the tomatoes for about 12 minutes or until skins begin to blister. Turn oven off and leave tomatoes in the oven to keep warm.

Step 3

Melt the butter in a large frypan over medium-high heat. When it starts to froth but before it browns, add the veal and cook, in batches, for about 30 seconds on each side or until browned.

Step 4

Transfer the veal to a warm plate and cover with foil to keep warm.

Step 5

Add the spinach to the hot frypan with 2 tablespoons water. Stir continuously over high heat until spinach leaves just start to wilt. Discard pan juices and transfer leaves to a plate with the veal. Cover with the foil to keep warm.

Step 6

For the persillade, melt butter in same pan, then add eschalots and garlic, and cook, stirring, for about 3 minutes or until soft. Add juice and 2 tablespoons water, and simmer for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and stir in parsley.

Step 7

Arrange veal, spinach and tomatoes on a platter or between 2 plates, and drizzle veal with the persillade.

Watercress and Fig Salad

Ingredients:

1/4 cup (45g) hazelnuts

1/3 cup (80ml) balsamic vinegar

2 cups watercress sprigs

2 ripe figs, broken into quarters

1 tbs hazelnut oil (see note)

Method:

Step 1

Preheat oven to 200°C. Place hazelnuts in a roasting pan and cook for 5 minutes or until toasted. Place hazelnuts in a clean tea towel and rub to remove skins (this is easiest when hazelnuts are still warm). Cut hazelnuts in half and set aside.

Step 2

Meanwhile, place vinegar in a small saucepan over high heat. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to medium-high and simmer for 5 minutes or until reduced to 1 1/2 tbs. Set aside to cool.

Step 3

Arrange watercress sprigs, figs and hazelnuts on serving plates. Drizzle with balsamic reduction and hazelnut oil and serve immediately.

Chocolate Strawberries

Ingredients:

150g milk chocolate

150g dark chocolate

150g white chocolate

750g large strawberries, washed, dried

Method:

Step 1

Line a baking tray with baking paper. Break milk chocolate into even pieces. Place into a heat-proof bowl.

Step 2

One-third fill a saucepan with water. Bring to the boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low. Place chocolate bowl over saucepan (don't let bowl touch water). Stir with a metal spoon until smooth.

Step 3

Dip one-third of the strawberries into chocolate. Place onto tray. Repeat with dark and white chocolate. Refrigerate until set.

Sparkling Strawberry Cocktail

Ingredients:

30ml strawberry liqueur

2 large strawberries, washed, hulled, sliced

1 x 200ml btl chilled dry sparkling white wine

Method:

Divide the liqueur and strawberries evenly between 2 serving glasses.

Top each glass with the sparkling wine to serve.

See loads of other recipes for Valentine's Day at Taste.