The Valentine's Dinner
My girlfriend and I are not big Valentine's Day people, so I said that I would cook dinner tonight for us and our roomates instead. Here is tonights menu:
Appetizers
- Cheese and crackers
Main Course
- Sauteed Shrimp
- Roasted Pork Tenderloin
- Roasted Potatoes
- Grilled Asparagus
- Pan fried squash and onions
Dessert
- Ice Cream
The recipes for the shrimp and pork are:
Sauteed Shrimp
1 lb. shrimp, peeled
2 shallots, finely chopped
1/4 c. butter
1 c. white wine, fairly dry
1 c. whipped cream
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. garlic salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 tbsp. lemon juice
Flour
Lightly floured shrimp and saute in butter for 2-3 minutes. Add shallots or green onion (white part only) and saute for 1 minute. Remove shrimp and boil sauce with white wine until it resembles thick juice. Add cream and reduce once more. Add salt, pepper, lemon juice and return shrimp to mixture cooking 1-2 minutes.
Pork Tenderloin
1 lb. pork tenderloin or sliced tenderloin
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
1/2 c. dry bread crumbs
1 tsp. rosemary, crushed
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Brush pork with oil. Combine remaining ingredients on a plate or shallow dish; blend well. Coat pork with crumb mixture; place on roasting rack, tucking small end of tenderloin under. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until meat thermometer reaches 165 degrees.
Comments
So, how was the dinner? The menu and recipe sound great!
Posted by: Guy Prall | February 15, 2005 08:12 AM
Dinner went very well. Everything came out great though the squash and onions were a bit salty, but I knew that was going to be the case because when I was seasoning the squash, the salt came out much faster than I expected. It was my first time cooking shrimp, and I must say, that was probably the best dish of the night. I was not sure if I was supposed to, but I cut along the backs of the shrimp to clean them, which caused them to butterfly a bit, and I think that helped with the flavor because there was more surface area exposed to the reduction sauce.
I think all parties were happy with the evening.
Posted by: cwp | February 15, 2005 09:07 AM
This stuff is so addictive - and I'm not talking about your food. I'm talking about blogs and chat rooms.
The Hildersham House Yahoo Group that I started has gathered about 65 old boys and generates 10 - 20 messages a day, with one of the people sending at least three to five messages a day. I hate to think of how much time he spends on his email.
Posted by: Guy Prall | February 15, 2005 09:35 AM