How about 2 Valentine’s days?
And just like that, Valentine’s is around the corner. I love the idea of a special day to celebrate your relationship.
Most of the time it seems to be associated with food as the restaurants are filled with couples enjoying a lovely meal. The florists are busy creating stunning bouquets and the garages make sure they are stocked up on flowers in large buckets for the ‘late’ husbands and boyfriends while Hallmark is busy coming up with meaningful phrases.
For some reason, it seems that men are in charge of spoiling their other halves - buying flowers, booking the restaurant and perhaps even planning a romantic proposal.
But can we be romantic on command? And why is the onus on the man? In many Asian countries, there are different days for men and women.
A month after the traditional Valentine’s day, White Valentine’s is the day where men get gifts from their wives and girlfriends – mainly chocolates or other sweet treats.
I like that idea – by having two Valentine Days the onus is on both just on different days.
But back to our very own day of love. My own ideal Valentine’s is Mr T cooking a lovely dinner for me.
The first one he cooked for me was rather scary as I was told to stay in the living room in front of the fire (with a glass of bubbles so it wasn’t really torture) but the noises that came out of my kitchen were really rather disturbing!
The result was worth the anxiety as it was delicious.
He even dressed the table nicely (at least half of it – it’s a large table). He cooked dishes from a cookbook and stuck to the recipes – the result was very tasty indeed.
He doesn’t do it every year but I still see it as a treat when he does.
Now, if you would like to step into his footsteps (not to cook for me but for your partner), the best tip I can give you is to keep it simple.
Don’t try to become a Neven Maguire (saying that, his recipes do work) but do something that is easy and doesn’t need to much skill. After all – it’s the thought that counts!
A soup is a great starter and can be prepared ahead of time (and you can get pretty good ones in supermarkets – just don’t tell).
For main, a tart might be nice with a leafy salad and an easy lemon oil dressing and you can’t go wrong with chocolate for dessert.
An even easier option is a charcuterie and cheese board – head to the English Market for some good produce, add some crackers and a good chutney and a good bottle of wine and romance is truly in the air and you won’t be stressed.
Whatever you do – going out or staying in – here’s to love, romance and delicious food!