Happy February! We hope your February is filled with lots and lots of LOVE. Valentine’s Day is less than two weeks away, and lucky for us— it is on a Saturday this year!
Start your Valentine’s morning off by preparing a romantic brunch to serve up in bed to the one you love. Nothing says “I love you” more than heartwarming fare… especially when it’s served in bed. Valentine’s morning is the perfect excuse to indulge in a Lover’s Egg’s Benedict and heart-shaped Valentine’s Day Tuna Tartar, paired with his and hers Sex on the Beach.
Now dish up a little love for your sweetie, prep your favorite flowers, light some candles, put on a feel good romantic movie, cozy up, and enjoy!
Valentine’s Day Tuna Tartar
Fresh diced ahi, burning chilis, pine nuts, sriracha aioli, bloody citrus, red berries, and beet chips
Ingredients:
1 cup ¼ inch diced ahi
1 tbsp. toasted pine nuts
1 tbsp. brunoised fresno chilies and jalapenos
½ orange blood orange segments
4 pieces grapefruit segments
2 berries brunoised strawberries
1 tsp. yuzu
dash aji amarillo paste
1 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. fresh grapefruit juice
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp. brunoised cucumber
Instructions:
Mix everything well and let the tuna marinate for a few minutes.
Place a heart shaped cookie cutter on the plate and stuff it with the mix, then slowly pull it up while lightly pressing down on the tuna mix.
Repeat to make two hearts on the plate.
Garnish with shaved radish cut into hearts, micro greens, and your favorite chili sauce, heart-shaped croutons, and beet chips.
Lovers Eggs Benedict
Two English muffins topped with smoky chorizo and grilled asparagus, two poached eggs, and chipotle hollandaise
Ingredients:
2 English muffins cut into hearts
4oz chipotle hollandaise
6oz cooked chorizo
2 poached eggs
8 pieces cut and trim grilled asparagus
Roasted red pepper cut into a heart shape
Instructions:
Toast muffins with butter and place on plate.
Smear hollandaise on bottom of both muffins.
Place grilled asparagus on top of the bottom muffin, then top with the roasted red pepper.
On the top muffin, stack chorizo, a poached egg, and then coat with chipotle hollandaise.
Garnish with micro greens.
Chipotle Hollandaise
Ingredients:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
3 large egg yolks
2 tbsp. hot water
1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tsp. sauce from a canned chipotles in adobo
Instructions:
Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat until it is foamy but not browned, about 5 minutes.
Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and using the double boiler method, set a small bowl on top of the saucepan (the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water).
Add the egg yolks to the bowl, 2 tablespoons of hot water, the lemon juice, salt, and adobo sauce, and whisk until foamy and just starting to thicken, about 5 minutes.
Slowly add the melted butter a little bit at a time and whisk the sauce until it is smooth. Turn off the heat and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let the sauce stand over the warm water for up to 30 minutes before serving.
Mini Skillet Breakfast Potatoes
Home-style potatoes, paprika and spice, roasted peppers
Ingredients:
2ea boiled whole russet potatoes, cooked until just tender (do not overcook) then diced ¾ inch
1 cup diced red peppers
½ cup diced red onion
2 tbsp. paprika
1 tsp. granulated garlic
1 tsp. sea salt
Pepper to taste
Instructions:
Mix ingredients, coating the potatoes with the seasoning.
Roast in the oven at 350 degrees for about 15-20 minutes, until peppers, onions, and potatoes are tender.
Heat in a pan with a small amount of oil and crisp potatoes.
Once hot and crispy, place in mini skillets and garnish with cilantro.
Beet Chips
His and Hers Sex on the Beach
Blood orange juice, splash of cranberry juice, vodka, peach schnapps, served tall, and on the rocks
Ingredients:
1 1/2 oz vodka (our favorite Is Hangar One Mandarin Blossom)
1/2 oz peach schnapps
2 oz cranberry juice
2 oz blood orange juice
Instructions:
Add vodka and peach schnapps to a highball glass over ice. Fill with equal measures of cranberry juice and orange juice, stir, repeat to make two.
Stay tuned for our next blog post of our Valentine’s Day Second Annual Photo Contest on details on HOW TO WIN A FREE DINNER FOR TWO cooked by award-winning Executive Chef Ashley Santo Domingo!
Photo Credit: Studio EMP Photography
Creative Director: Arpi Torosyan