Valentine’s Day is the perfect opportunity to share love with those who are special. Send a lacy Valentine invitation and have a few girlfriends or mothers and daughters over for an elegant ladies’ luncheon with golden hearts at each plate and lots of pink flowers. The menu is also perfect for a couples’ dinner party or a candlelit dinner for just you and your sweetheart.
The table is set with a French Valencia lace tablecloth and vintage damask pink monogrammed napkins tied with soft dupioni silk bows accented with small golden heart ornaments. Printed name cards rest on antique reverse-cut cameo intaglio place card holders, and printed menu cards are at each place setting. Pink and gold Old Paris breakfast plates combine old and new atop gold scalloped Vanessa chargers by Studio 10 Strawberry Street. The tablescape is completed with crystal and silver and a garland of fresh greens, ferns, golden hearts, ribbons, and floral heart-shaped centerpieces of roses and Dusty Miller. Even salads are placed on plates in heart shapes, and pink French macaron desserts present the perfect light sweet ending. And if you want to make your meal even easier, purchase your salad dressing and macarons. A pink and feminine setting and delicious offerings for a very special occasion to share love!
Menu
BLT salad with Remoulade Dressing
Shrimp Alfredo over Angel Hair Pasta
Fresh Green Beans with Almonds
Macarons with Raspberries and Lemon Cream
BLT SALAD WITH REMOULADE DRESSING
1 (16-ounce) bag baby spring greens mix
1 (12-ounce) container cherry tomatoes, sliced
1 (4.3-ounce) package of real bacon bits
Place salad greens in the shape of a heart on each plate. Randomly place tomatoes around the heart of salad greens. Sprinkle bacon bits over salad greens and tomatoes; drizzle with Remoulade Dressing.
Yield: 6 servings
REMOULADE DRESSING
1 cup mayonnaise
¼ cup white vinegar
1/3 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons Creole mustard
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon celery salt
½ teaspoon Tony Chachere’s Creole seasoning
In a bowl, combine all ingredients. Chill until serving.
Yield: 1½ cups
SHRIMP ALFREDO OVER ANGEL HAIR PASTA
1 (16-ounce) box angel hair pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
Salt, black pepper, and paprika to taste
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons finely chopped onion
In a saucepan over medium heat, cook pasta al dente according to package directions. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil, and set aside. Season shrimp with salt, pepper, and paprika. In a skillet, heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil; add shrimp and cook in a single layer for 1 to 2 minutes per side until they are pink. Remove to bowl; set aside. Add butter to pan and sauté onion. Stir in wine and reduce by a fourth, deglazing pan. Stir in cream, and heat for 2 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese and stir until creamy and smooth. Add additional salt, pepper, and paprika to taste. Turn off heat, and add shrimp. Serve over pasta and sprinkle with parsley, cheese, and cracked black pepper.
Yield: 6 servings
Fresh Green Beans
1 pound fresh green beans
3 tablespoons butter
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
½ cup sliced almonds, toasted
In a saucepan, bring one inch of salted water to a boil. Place beans in pan or in a steamer insert. Steam for 4 minutes. Remove from heat, and plunge in ice water for 3 to 4 minutes. In a skillet over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in lemon juice, zest, and almonds or until lightly browned; set aside. Warm beans in a 350-degree oven for 5 minutes, and drizzle with lemon butter sauce.
Yield: 6 servings
Emily Ellis, Indianola
Macarons with Raspberries and Lemon Cream
This is my absolute favorite macaron recipe, after trying many. Follow the instructions very carefully, and you will think you are a French pâtisserie chef!
Macarons:
1¼ cups almond flour
1¾ cups confectioners’ sugar
4 large egg whites, at room temperature
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
½ cup sugar
Pink gel-paste food coloring
In a large bowl, whisk together almond flour and confectioners’ sugar. Sift mixture into a large bowl. (Discard any tiny almond pieces too large to go through sifter.) Set aside. With mixer on medium speed, beat egg whites and cream of tartar until foamy. With mixer running, gradually sift in sugar, beating to combine. Increase mixer to medium-high speed, and beat until whites are still glossy. Blend in food coloring to desired shade. Fold beaten whites into almond flour mixture. Carefully beat with spatula until batter slowly falls into a smooth mass from spatula when lifted. Place into a piping bag with a ½-inch round tip and pipe rounds to desired size onto parchment-lined baking sheets or macaron mats. Let dry for 30 to 60 minutes until a crust forms on top. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake one sheet at a time on the middle rack of the oven for 15 to 18 minutes, rotating sheet after 8 minutes. Remove from oven and place parchment or baking mat with cookies on a wire rack to cool completely. When cool, gently lift macarons off sheet or mat.
Yield: 18 to 20 large macarons
LEMON CREAM FILLING:
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
½ cup fresh lemon juice
Zest of 1 lemon
1 (8-ounce) container whipped topping
Blend sweetened condensed milk with lemon juice and zest. Fold in whipped topping.
Yield: about 2½ to 3 cups
Robin Wise, Jackson
Assembly:
For each serving, place one macaron on a plate. Spoon on 2 tablespoons of Lemon Cream Filling. Top with a second macaron. Garnish with fresh raspberries and fresh mint.
Yield: 9 or 10 servings
Fresh Green Beans
1 pound fresh green beans
3 tablespoons butter
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
½ cup sliced almonds, toasted
In a saucepan, bring one inch of salted water to a boil. Place beans in pan or in a steamer insert. Steam for 4 minutes. Remove from heat, and plunge in ice water for 3 to 4 minutes. In a skillet over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in lemon juice, zest, and almonds or until lightly browned; set aside. Warm beans in a 350-degree oven for 5 minutes, and drizzle with lemon butter sauce.
Yield: 6 servings
Emily Ellis, Indianola
Macarons with Raspberries and Lemon Cream
This is my absolute favorite macaron recipe, after trying many. Follow the instructions very carefully, and you will think you are a French pâtisserie chef!
Macarons:
1¼ cups almond flour
1¾ cups confectioners’ sugar
4 large egg whites, at room temperature
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
½ cup sugar
Pink gel-paste food coloring
In a large bowl, whisk together almond flour and confectioners’ sugar. Sift mixture into a large bowl. (Discard any tiny almond pieces too large to go through sifter.) Set aside. With mixer on medium speed, beat egg whites and cream of tartar until foamy. With mixer running, gradually sift in sugar, beating to combine. Increase mixer to medium-high speed, and beat until whites are still glossy. Blend in food coloring to desired shade. Fold beaten whites into almond flour mixture. Carefully beat with spatula until batter slowly falls into a smooth mass from spatula when lifted. Place into a piping bag with a ½-inch round tip and pipe rounds to desired size onto parchment-lined baking sheets or macaron mats. Let dry for 30 to 60 minutes until a crust forms on top. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake one sheet at a time on the middle rack of the oven for 15 to 18 minutes, rotating sheet after 8 minutes. Remove from oven and place parchment or baking mat with cookies on a wire rack to cool completely. When cool, gently lift macarons off sheet or mat.
Yield: 18 to 20 large macarons
LEMON CREAM FILLING:
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
½ cup fresh lemon juice
Zest of 1 lemon
1 (8-ounce) container whipped topping
Blend sweetened condensed milk with lemon juice and zest. Fold in whipped topping.
Yield: about 2½ to 3 cups
Robin Wise, Jackson
Assembly:
For each serving, place one macaron on a plate. Spoon on 2 tablespoons of Lemon Cream Filling. Top with a second macaron. Garnish with fresh raspberries and fresh mint.
Yield: 9 or 10 servings
