Doesn’t It Taste Romantic?

Valentine’s Day is Wednesday, a weeknight, and the last thing we can imagine is putting together a romantic meal for two after eight hours at work.

But the beauty of this menu is that most of the preparation can be done ahead. Make Tuesday a pizza night and do the work of the menu the night before. That way you’ll be relaxed on Wednesday and more inclined to be romantic, which is, after all, the point of Valentine’s Day.

The salad of baby greens with individual Gruyere cheese souffles is an adaptation of a recipe from “The Best of Food and Wine” edited by Mary Simons (American Express Publishing). The original recipe called for goat’s cheese, but I found that Gruyere gives the souffles a warmer, more mellow flavor.

I came up with the idea for a rack of lamb because I wanted to serve something substantial and wintry, yet easy and quick to prepare. The Dijon marinade takes just minutes to prepare and adds a wonderful flavor to the meat. Baby red Bliss potatoes and haricots verts are a nice accompaniment to the lamb and require little preparation.

The cobbler fills the house with the sweet aroma of fresh fruit and cinnamon as it simmers in the oven. The biscuit crust, lightly sweet and crunchy, is a wonderful contrast to the warm fruit bathed in a beautiful purple blueberry syrup. Don’t forget the ice cream or fresh whipped cream on top.

If your Valentine hasn’t already declared undying love and devotion, he or she is sure to do so after this display of gastronomic genius. Just don’t reveal how easy it was.

Menu

Salad of Baby Greens With Individual Cheese Souffles

Rack of Lamb

Baby Potatoes With Butter and Parsley

Haricots Verts With Butter and Shallots

Warm Winter Fruit Cobbler

Wine Suggestion

Champagne, Red Burgundy or Pinot Noir

Staples

Milk

Butter

Flour

Salt

Pepper

Eggs

Olive oil

Vegetable oil

Garlic

Granulated sugar

Light brown sugar

Cornstarch

Cinnamon

Baking powder

Baking soda

Vanilla extract

Shopping List

1 ounce Parmesan cheese

1/4 pound Gruyere cheese

1 bunch thyme

1 bunch parsley

1 bunch chives

1 to 2 shallots

1 (12-ounce) bottle Sherry vinegar

1 (8-ounce) jar Dijon mustard

1/2 pound round red boiling potatoes

1/4 pound French green beans

3 apples (preferably McIntosh, or other tart green cooking apple)

1 lemon

3 pears

1 pint blueberries

1 pint buttermilk

1 pint vanilla ice cream or 1/2 pint heavy whipping cream

GAME PLAN

Evening before or few hours before: Prepare and bake fruit filling for cobbler, cool and then refrigerate. Prepare biscuit dough for cobbler and refrigerate. Prepare souffles and refrigerate. Prepare coating for lamb and refrigerate.

1 hour before: Trim green beans and chop shallots. Chop parsley for potatoes. Prepare greens and dressing for salad. Coat lamb. Remove souffles from refrigerator and bring to room temperature. Cut out and arrange biscuit crust for cobbler, cover and set aside.

40 minutes before: Roast lamb.

15 minutes before: Remove lamb from oven and let rest 10 to 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to heat souffles. Cook potatoes and green beans.

Just before serving first course: Put cobbler in oven to bake.

After serving salad: Remove cobbler from oven and let cool.

After main course: Make coffee and serve cobbler.

SALAD OF BABY GREENS WITH INDIVIDUAL CHEESE SOUFFLES

I’ve left the souffle recipe at its original yield of four servings because it’s not only a wonderful starter for a romantic dinner for two but also a terrific dinner party dish. It’s simple to increase the greens and dressing if you’re serving four; if not, save the extra souffles for lunch or supper the next day.

SOUFFLES

Butter

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/3 cup milk

1 1/2 tablespoons flour

1/4 pound grated Gruyere or Swiss Emmenthaler cheese

Salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

2 large egg yolks

1 1/2 tablespoons chopped mixed herbs, such as thyme, parsley and chives

3 large egg whites

Water

Butter 4 (1/2-cup) ramekins and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Bring milk to boil in small saucepan. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in separate small saucepan over medium heat. Add flour to butter and cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Gradually whisk in boiled milk and continue to whisk vigorously until smooth. Remove from heat and mix in 1/2 grated Gruyere, 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper. Let souffle base cool 10 minutes.

Beat egg yolks in medium bowl. Stir in several tablespoons of souffle base until blended, then fold in remaining souffle base. Let mixture cool to room temperature, then stir in herbs.

Beat egg whites with pinch of salt until stiff peaks form. Gently stir 1/3 of beaten egg whites into souffle base to lighten it, then gently fold in remaining whites until just until incorporated.

Spoon souffle mixture into ramekins to fill each by 1/3. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Top off each ramekin with remaining souffle mixture and place in baking dish at least 1/2 inch apart. Set baking dish in middle of oven. Pour enough boiling water into baking dish to reach 1/2 way up sides of ramekins.

Bake at 350 degrees until souffles are browned on top and beginning to shrink away from sides of ramekins, about 45 minutes. Remove ramekins from water and let cool on rack 15 to 20 minutes. Souffles can be made up to 1 day in advance, refrigerated and reheated in 325-degree oven until warmed through, about 10 minutes. Makes 4 souffles. Use 2 souffles for salad; reserve remaining souffles for another use.

SALAD

2 tablespoons minced shallots

2 tablespoons Sherry vinegar

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup vegetable oil

3 cups mixed baby lettuces

Steep shallots in vinegar 1 hour in small bowl. Stir in mustard, pepper and salt. Slowly whisk in olive and vegetable oils.

To serve, toss greens with 1/4 cup dressing. Unmold 2 souffles and place each in center of salad plate. Surround with salad and serve. Cover remaining dressing tightly and refrigerate.

Makes 2 servings.

Each serving, without extra souffles, contains about:

529 calories; 816 mg sodium; 189 mg cholesterol; 47 grams fat; 9 grams carbohydrates; 17 grams protein; 0.69 gram fiber.

RACK OF LAMB

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup Dijon-style mustard

1/4 cup minced parsley

2 tablespoons olive oil

Salt

Freshly ground pepper

1 (3/4-pound) rack of lamb (about 4 chops)

Combine garlic, mustard, parsley, olive oil and salt and pepper to taste in small bowl. Coat meaty side of lamb with mustard mixture and place in greased roasting pan, coated side up.

Roast at 500 degrees until golden brown on outside but pink on inside, 20 to 25 minutes. If rib bones begin to brown too much, cover with foil and continue cooking.

When done, remove from oven and let meat stand 10 to 15 minutes before carving.

Makes 2 servings.

Each serving contains about:

494 calories; 921 mg sodium; 68 mg cholesterol; 44 grams fat; 2 grams carbohydrates; 13 grams protein; 0.14 gram fiber.

WARM WINTER FRUIT COBBLER

FRUIT FILLING

3 apples

3 pears

Juice of 1 lemon

1 pint blueberries

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Peel and core apples and pears. Cut into small chunks and toss in medium bowl with lemon juice to keep from browning. Add blueberries to bowl.

Mix granulated sugar, brown sugar, cornstarch and cinnamon in small bowl. Sprinkle over fruit and toss to coat fruit thoroughly.

Put fruit in 8-inch-square baking pan or other 2-quart baking dish, cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees 15 minutes before topping with crust. Cobbler can be prepared up to this point 1 day in advance and refrigerated. For best results, allow refrigerated fruit mixture to return to room temperature before continuing.

BISCUIT CRUST

1 1/2 cups flour

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

2/3 cup buttermilk

2 tablespoons milk

Ice cream or fresh whipped cream, optional

Put flour, 1/3 cup sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in food processor and pulse to combine. Add butter and process until mixture resembles crumbs. Add vanilla extract. Add buttermilk little by little, pulsing to combine. Finished dough should be moist but not sticky.

Remove dough from processor and turn out onto lightly floured work surface. Form into disk shape, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour, up to 1 day.

Place chilled dough on lightly floured work surface and cut in 1/2. Roll each piece 1/2-inch thick. Use heart-shaped cookie cutters dipped in flour to make cut-outs. (Variety of cutter sizes will make for most attractive presentation.) Gather scraps into ball, roll out and make more cut-outs.

Brush cut-outs with milk and place in single layer over baked fruit. Sprinkle lightly with remaining tablespoon sugar. Bake at 375 degrees until fruit is tender and crust is golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from oven and cool 5 to 10 minutes on wire rack. To serve, place in small dessert bowl and top with vanilla ice cream or fresh whipped cream, if desired.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Each of 6 servings, without ice cream or whipped cream, contains about:

414 calories; 383 mg sodium; 22 mg cholesterol; 9 grams fat; 82 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams protein; 2.46 grams fiber.