Valentines

We don't really celebrate Valentines usually since it's a Hallmark holiday, but I did make Matt a good dinner the Friday before just because. I used some of the garlic from my CSA the week before, the saute mix, some romanesco, parsley, and the onions. I had an entire pack of pork chops to make so we ended up with 12 of them! Matt was eating them for his lunches for days, but seriously, that boy can eat!! I cook like I'm cooking for a whole family.

 I did what I call Hawaiian pork chops with BBQ sauce, pineapple, onion, and seasonings all baked up in the oven on a low heat. The green stuff is mixed saute greens, cilantro, and romanesco quickly cooked in a skillet with a bit of butter and olive oil. Garlic mashed potatoes finish out the plate and are covered in the thickened sauce off of the chops. Oven roasted garlic, not powdered!

For dessert I made couer a la creme which is so delicious, but rich. A once a year dessert. It's also called bleeding heart in some recipe books. Gross, right? The sauce is Grand Marnier, mint syrup, and pureed strawberries that have been thickened. A normal choice for thickening it would have been corn starch, but I had that molecular gastronomy kit and knew Xantham Gum would do the trick without having to cook out the fresh strawberry flavor. The base uses cream cheese, heavy cream, vanilla bean seeds which make the flavor incredible, and powdered sugar. You use a special mold with holes in the bottom and let the liquid drain over night and you end up with something similar to a heavy mousse. I used individual molds, but neither of us could finish a whole one because they were so rich. I think next time I'll do a large mold so we can just take a bit off at a time.