Easy Valentine’s Day Dinner

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Easy Valentine's Day Dinner

Valentine’s Day is next week! Don’t worry if you haven’t made a dinner reservation at a fancy restaurant. Today on Indy Style, I showed you how to impress your valentine with a romantic meal at home. From appetizers to dessert, I used beautiful Pink Lady apples to bring some love to your table.

Bacon-Wrapped Apples

Bacon-wrapped apples from The Produce Mom

Start your Valentine’s Day meal off right with bacon-wrapped apples. Simply wrap a slice of bacon around a Pink Lady apple slice. Then bake the apples in the oven until the bacon is crispy. Serve the apple slices with dipping sauces, such as hot fudge, peanut butter, and caramel.

Bloomin’ Apple

Bloomin' apples from The Produce Mom

A bloomin’ apple is a sweet way to end your romantic dinner. The best part is that these Bloomin’ Apples are “baked” in the slow cooker! Again we used Pink Lady apples from Sage Fruit for this recipe in order to capture the sweet and tart taste of this special apple.

Coring and cutting the apples in a special way creates the bloomin’ effect. Then fill the hollowed-out core with caramel sauce and a mixture of butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and flour. Cook the apples in the slow cooker on high for 2 hours or on low for 4 hours. Serve the bloomin’ apples with ice cream and caramel sauce on top. Your valentine will love this sweet and salty treat!

Watch the video to see how to slice the apples just right:

Heart-Shaped Kale and Sausage Hand Pies

Kale and Sausage Hand Pies from The Produce Mom

In my second segment, we tackled the entrée and side dish for your Valentine’s Day dinner. Try making these dishes together with your valentine! Start off with Heart-Shaped Kale and Sausage Hand Pies.

Step 1 – Make the filling by browning sweet Italian sausage with onions over medium-high heat. Add curly kale and let it wilt over the heat. Add shredded Romano cheese then add salt and pepper to taste.
Step 2 – Using a large heart-shaped cookie cutter, cut four hearts out of refrigerated pie crust.
Step 3 – Place the sausage filling inside two of the hearts, leaving about a half-inch border. Then top the filling with the two remaining hearts.
Step 4 – Seal the edges with a fork. Lightly brush the tops with egg. Prick the tops with a fork to create vents for the steam.
Step 5 – Sprinkle the tops with more cheese. Place the hand pies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Step 6 – Bake at 400 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown. Let cool 10 to 15 minutes on a wire baking rack before serving.

Cauliflower Poppers

Cauliflower Poppers from The Produce Mom

The perfect veggie side dish for these hand pies is Cauliflower Poppers. This roasted cauliflower features nutritional yeast seasoning, a vegan-friendly cheese substitute.

Step 1 – In a large bowl, combine olive oil, garlic salt, and nutritional yeast seasoning. Add cauliflower pieces and thoroughly coat each piece.
Step 2 – Place the cauliflower pieces on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Step 3 – Bake at 400 degrees for one hour, turning several times during cooking.
Step 4 – Remove from oven and enjoy!

See how easy it is to make this entrée and side dish:

Red Pear-Infused Water

Pear cocktail from The Produce Mom

And what’s a romantic dinner without a cocktail? This Valentine’s Day cocktail starts with Red Pear-Infused Water. Pour the water mixture into a martini glass. Then add RumChata and soda water and garnish with a cinnamon stick.

 

This Valentine’s Day dinner is elegant enough to impress the love of your life but simple enough that you won’t spend all night preparing it!

Wishing you a very romantic Valentine’s Day!

xoxo Lori

About Lori

Lori Taylor is the Founder & CEO of The Produce Moms. For ten years she sold fresh produce to over 300 grocery stores throughout the United States, and today she is fully focused on working with the produce supply chain, media, and government to increase fresh produce access & consumption in the US and around the globe. Connect with Lori on LinkedIn.

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