Valentine's Day & Other Culinary Adventures

We love cooking together. I think it is one of our love languages. (Who said there are only 5?) There is nothing that I enjoy more than hanging out with my wonderful husband in the kitchen and creating meals that (to me) taste better than almost anything that we could purchase at a restaurant.

Chicken with Roasted Tomatoes and Mushroom and Zucchini Orzo - Yum! I was able to get off a few minutes early from work on Valentine's Day and Brett worked late, so this was the perfect opportunity to surprise him with a nice homemade meal!

We saved our Valentine's Day meal for this past weekend. We like to cook a special recipe that we learned in our cooking class a few years ago in DC. This was our 2nd year re-creating this meal. (Moroccan Spiced Braised Lamb Shanks with Couscous and Arugula Salad with a Mustard Shallot Vinaigrette) It was much easier this time than it was last time. Brett is such a good sport to prep the meat. That's definitely my least favorite part.

The finished product... drum roll please....
No worries, Cali received her fair share of love too. When we sat down to eat dinner, she curled up between our feet and sighed. I think all of our commotion in the kitchen wore her out. So cute!
I've been trying to plan more meals and use items we already have or that are on special. I love doing it, but it takes time and depending on how much we have (or have not) been at home, it's not always at the top of my priority list. However, we've done much better the last week or so which means we benefit from amazing food which to me adds comfort. This meatloaf (randomly combined ingredients) turned out really well. We served it with roasted onion and butternut squash (olive oil, thyme, rosemary, 400 degrees for 40 minutes). So tasty!
If you like blue cheese... this recipe is for you! I was really surprised by the flavor. It was very tasty! The concept of this dish was to combine items that you would find at a steak house (sauteed mushrooms, creamed spinach, mac-n-cheese) in a fairly healthy, flavorful combo. It's called Steak House Mac & Cheese. You should give it a shot!