A mouthwatering Valentine’s Day Dinner with your college budget in mind
From books to banzai vodkas, as college students we are constantly spending money to survive, enjoy and celebrate college. So when it comes to a holiday like Valentine’s Day, dishing out 100 bucks often makes us cringe. Whether you’ve already blown through the money your parents gave you from winter break or you waited too long to make a reservation at one of the few C-U restaurants your girlfriend/boyfriend would approve Valentine’s Day worthy, don’t worry! I sifted through dozens of recipes and searched high and low through Schnucks grocery store, to create a four course Valentine’s Day feast for under fifty dollars! Using store brand products, fresh but inexpensive produce and executing dishes with easily replaceable ingredients, I have created a meal fit for any Valentine’s Day dinner.
Not only will you save your wallet by spending under fifty bucks, but you will score major points with your sweetheart by making a homemade meal for him/her. (Or make a night of it and tackle the cooking together!) This meal takes some muscle; this isn’t a meal you can whip up just an hour before dinner time. However, I have created a two day plan where you can prep most of the meal the night before. I can guarantee that these recipes will be unique and delicious. But for this meal, try to focus on presentation just as much as taste. Considering most of our cabinets are filled with garage sale dishes or plates from your older brother or sister’s college days, presentation is hard to execute. So for three of these dishes I used glasses that I am sure most college students have on hand: a wine glass, shot glass and martini glass.
Cocktail Shrimp with Garlic Mustard Dipping Sauce
Roasted Red Pepper, Potato and Cheddar Cheese Soup
Filet Mignon with Shallot Mashed Potatoes
Chocolate Mousse with Oreo crumbles
Garlic
(6) Jumbo Shrimp Pre-Cooked, De-Veined and De-shelled
White Wine
Lemon
Whole Grain Mustard (Garlic Flavored)
Red Wine Vinegar
(2) Red Peppers
(3) Russet Potatoes
Onion
Milk
Butter
Coriander
Worcestershire Sauce
Sharp Cheddar Cheese
(2)Filet Mignon (or any other steak)
Parsley
(1) Shallot
Jello No Bake Chocolate Mouse with Oreos
Strawberries
Vanilla Ice Cream
When it comes to grocery shopping, try to look for store brands. I chose to shop at Schnucks because they have the highest quality ingredients that I am proud to compile into a meal and serve. You most definitely can go to Meijer or Wal-Mart to find even less expensive products. I scored a two pack of filet mignon on sale but any steak will do!
Sunday Night (Day 1)
The Dish: Cocktail Shrimp with Garlic Mustard Dipping Sauce
In a food processor, (more likely a blender in a campus kitchen) puree ½ t. garlic, ¾ cup olive oil, ¼ cup red wine vinegar and 2 T. Whole Grain Mustard, salt and pepper until smooth. Vary the amount of garlic to your desired taste. Refrigerate.
The Dish: Roasted Red Pepper, Potato and Cheddar Cheese Soup
Remove the stem and seeds from each red pepper and slice them open, laying them skin side up. Put peppers under the broiler for eight to ten minutes, or until the skin is completely black. Remove peppers and place them in a bowl, tightly covered with plastic wrap and let cool. Meanwhile, sauté one peeled and diced potato with half a medium onion. After five minutes, add a cup of water and cook for ten minutes. Add this mixture to a blender with one and a half cups milk. Once the peppers have cooled, peel the skins and discard. Add the peppers, a T. of coriander and two T. of Worcestershire sauce to the blender. Puree, then add mixture back in to the pot and slowly combine two cups of shredded sharp cheddar cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste; Store soup in the refrigerator overnight.
The Dish: Filet Mignon with Shallot Mashed Potatoes
Rub each filet with a t. of garlic, a T. of Whole Grain Mustard, salt and pepper. Refrigerate overnight to marinate the steaks. Make sure to add plenty of olive oil to ensure a juicy steak! Melt a stick of butter for 30 seconds and add chopped parsley, salt and pepper. Put mixture in saran wrap and mold into a log shape. Freeze overnight to make your own flavored butter to put atop the steak!
Quick Tip: This recipe can also be made with green peppers which tend to be cheaper than its familiar red, yellow and orange counterpart. Also, you can use whole milk, 2% or skim milk; whatever you have on handy will work great. For a richer soup use whole milk, for lighter, healthier fare opt for skim. Last but not least, when it comes to the cheese you can use almost anything that melts but I find that cheddar is the best option for my budget!
The Dish: Chocolate Mousse with Oreo crumbles
To make your life easier, the desert is practically instant with its add milk, stir and enjoy quality! Open the contents into a bowl with milk and whip vigorously with a whisk. Once the mousse is light and fluffy, cover the bowl and refrigerate overnight.
Monday Night (Day 2)
The Dish: Cocktail Shrimp with Garlic Mustard Dipping Sauce
Simmer a cup of water, a cup of white wine, a lemon, pepper and salt in a saucepan. Add the shrimp and cook for three minutes. Add the shrimp to a bowl of ice water immediately to prevent over cooking. Fill a wine glass with the pre-made garlic sauce and add shrimp around the rim.
The Dish: Roasted Red Pepper, Potato and Cheddar Cheese Soup
Add the soup to sauce pan and reheat or heat in the microwave. Add soup to a bowl and garnish with parsley.
The Dish: Filet Mignon with Shallot Mashed Potatoes
Take the steak out of the refrigerator to let it get to room temperature. While you wait for the steak, boil water and add diced, peeled potatoes. Cook until you can pierce through a piece of potato with a fork. Drain the potatoes. Meanwhile, sauté one diced shallot in a pan and add potatoes. Mash the potatoes with whatever tool you have handy. Add two T. of butter and five T. of milk.
Heat a large sauce pan with olive oil and add steak. Brown the steak on both sides (about five minutes a side) until the center is pink (or whatever your steak preference may be). Remove the steak from the pan and add a splash of water and two T. of butter into the pan to create a sauce. Lay steak on mashed potatoes and drizzle with sauce. Remove the homemade butter from the freezer and cut a small slice and let it melt atop the steak.
The Dish: Chocolate Mousse with Oreo crumbles
Fill a martini glass with the Oreo crumbles from the package. Next layer a scoop of vanilla ice cream and then the chocolate mousse. Garnish the mousse with more Oreo bits and a strawberry. Voila! Your desert is ready in minutes. Refrigerate until you serve.
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