You can do it ! Make a Valentine dinner for you sweetheart !!

I read somewhere recently, that Valentine's Day is the second busiest day of the year in restaurants, only surpassed by Mother's Day.  Why not just stay home and make a simple but elegant dinner for your sweetheart?  Even if you don't ordinarily cook, here is a simple menu that will be delicious and sure to please.  You can do it.  It's easy.  Here is the menu we will make:

Greek Salad

 Filet Mignon and Lobster Tail with Drawn Butter

Baked Potato with Sour Cream and Chives

Asparagus with Hollandaise Sauce

Purchased Chocolate Dessert

I have purposely designed the menu using lots of store bought ingredients, so that even a novice can do this meal.  For example, we are going to use hollandaise out of a jar, instead of making it from scratch.  A trained chef might be able to tell the difference, but your sweetie will just be glad you are trying and will think this is great. Just follow along step by step and you will be surprised how easy it is. 

Step one is to make a shopping list and I have done that for you.  Here you go.

For the salad:

One head Romaine lettuce

Some Greek salad mix from the olive bar at your local grocer.  This will be a mix of olives, and feta cheese.

4 pepperoncino's (spicy peppers form the olive bar)

Greek seasoning mix

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Balsamic Vinegar

For the main course:

2 small lobster tails

butter

2 5-6 Oz. filet mignons

Course ground sea salt and ground black pepper

2 medium baking potatoes

sour cream

Fresh chives

1 Lb. asparagus

1 small jar Hollandaise sauce ( I like Reese brand)

For Dessert:

Purchase any type of chocolate dessert that you think your Valentine will enjoy. 

To Prepare your dinner just follow these easy steps:

1.5 hrs. before you want to eat, preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Scrub the potatoes with a brush and water.  Dry them with paper towels. Using a fork, poke holes in the skin of the potatoes all over the outside.  With a paper towel, rub a thin layer of butter over the entire outside of each potato and then salt with course sea salt.  Lay a sheet of aluminum foil on the middle rack of the oven and set the potatoes directly on the foil.  The potatoes will take about an hour to an hour and twenty minutes to bake.  Test them by squeezing with an oven mitt.  When they feel soft and give to the touch they will be done. 

While the potatoes are in the oven get the asparagus ready to roast.  Take one spear of asparagus and break off the bottom with your fingers.  It will snap at some point that is the natural break.  Once you have snapped the bottom off of one piece, lay it down next to the remaining pieces of asparagus and using a chef's knife cut the other stalks to approximately the same length as the piece that you snapped.  Lay the asparagus in a glass baking dish and drizzle it with some extra virgin olive oil.  Salt it with course ground sea salt and set aside. 

Chop the chives into 1/4" pieces and set aside.

Cut the bottom 2 inches off of the bottom of the head of romaine.  Separate the leaves and wash each leaf in cold water, discarding any leaves with bad spots. Lay them out on paper towel to dry for a few minutes.  Cut the lettuce leaves into 1" square pieces.  Put the cut-up lettuce into a plastic bag and refrigerate until time to mix up your salad.  Make dressing by mixing 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil with 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar.  Season to taste with the Greek seasoning.  Set aside. 

Put the hollandaise sauce in a small pan so that it is ready to go on the stove, but don't begin to heat it until later. 

Split the belly of each lobster tail length wise with a sharp scissors.  Lay the lobsters on a baking sheet and brush them with melted butter. 

Brush each filet mignon with melted butter and season with salt and  pepper. Put the filets in an oven proof skillet. Here are the steaks, lobster tails, asparagus, chives and salad dressing after following the steps above:

Twenty minutes prior to eating, sear the filets in the skillet over high heat on the stove top.  Sear each side for about two minutes.  Fifteen minutes prior to eating turn the oven from 400 degrees to Broil.  If the potatoes are done, take them out of the oven and hold them on a plate that you cover with foil.  If they aren't quite done yet, leave them in the oven.  Ten minutes prior to eating, put the skillet containing the steaks and the baking sheet with the lobster tails into the oven on the top rack.  Put the asparagus in the oven on the middle rack. Broil for ten minutes.  Check the steaks for temperature.  120 degrees is medium rare.  Ten minutes should do the trick.  

While the steaks and lobster tails are in the oven, put the chopped lettuce leaves into a salad bowl. Top with the Greek salad mix and the pepperoncini's.  Dress the salad with the dressing you made and using a tongs, toss the salad until well mixed.

Heat the Hollandaise sauce on low heat until just warm.

Cut a stick of butter into two pieces and put them into a microwave proof bowl.  Cover with a paper towel and heat on high for about thirty seconds or until the butter is liquid. 

Serve the salad on a salad plate.  Put a steak, a lobster tail, a baked potato and some asparagus on  each of two plates.  Slit the baked potatoes and top with a dollop of sour cream and some of the chopped chives. Spoon some Hollandaise over the asparagus on each plate.  Divide the melted butter into two small ramekins or bowls for dipping the lobster.  Serve with a nice Cabernet Sauvignon or Pinot Noir and enjoy your Valentine's Day.