10 Meals to Impress: Valentine's Day 2015

Valentine's Day — that mad rush for roses and reservations at dining establishments that have been booked for weeks. To top it all off, this year it falls on Saturday night. I don't know about you, but I believe cooking a nice meal at home sounds like a winning option. With that in mind, I've put together the following roundup of 10 dinners to impress — fit for any budget, taste and cooking expertise to help you "win" this Valentine's Day.

1. This veal piccata is an Italian classic. Served with a side of angel hair pasta ,it is sure to be a hit every time. If veal doesn't fit the budget you can easily substitute chicken and turn this into chicken piccata.
2. Even though this recipe says grilled lamb chops these can easily be achieved indoors on a cast iron skillet or griddle. Complete the meal by serving with baby roast vegetables and couscous.
3. Fresh garlic, ripe tomatoes and white wine — oh yeah, there is lobster and spaghetti!
4. If you are fixing dinner, a beer is in order! How about an AleWerks Bitter Valentine?
5. Looking closely at this zucchini and shrimp you might think it's a typical scampi. A closer look reveals there are no noodles, that is the zucchini!
6. Red velvet is one of the quintessential desserts you will see on Valentine's Day. Since this year's holiday falls on Saturday, you'll have plenty of time to make these red velvet Oreo brownies. 
7. One of my favorite dishes to make — risotto primavera with shrimp. You will not believe how easy and elegant this dish can be.
8. I recently made this for a Burns Supper I attended — smoked salmon paté. Because you are going to work up an appetite, cooking these will definitely hold you over!
9. I made this easy Valentine's Day pasta for two 2 years ago. It was so good the fine folks over at Ledbury featured it on their blog last year!
10. To go with all of the meals above, or to make it a meal all in it's own, nothing quite beats a classic Caesar salad.

Ok, I have teed up the dinners, now it's your responsibility to remember the flowers and personalize the Valentine — go get 'em!

E.A.T. local E.A.T. well