Valentine's Day Dinner Ideas: Last-Minute Menus & Recipes‎ : Happy Valentine's Day!

Chocolate Mousse with Cointreau and Chocolate Shards by merrill:

Tips:

• Make your mousse first: After melting the chocolate, cool over an ice bath to hustle it along.

• Once the mousse is setting up in the fridge, you can turn your attention toward the scallop dish, and pouring yourself a glass of wine.

• Hint: The lemon creme fraiche drizzle is delicious with the scallops and couscous, but your date won't know if you skip it.

ourbon Chocolate Bread Pudding by student epicure:

Tips:

• Be sure to buy a day-old baguette for the bread pudding (or use whatever stale crusty bread you have at home). In a pinch, cube fresh bread and toast it in the oven to dry it out.

• Get the bread soaking in its bourbony bath while you prep everything else, so you can pop it in the oven when you sit down to eat.

Aunt Mariah's Lemon Sponge Cups by ENunn:

Tips:

• • Be sure to double the mussels recipe for two, and have plenty of great crusty bread on hand for sopping up the broth.
• • The sponge cups are way more forgiving than a souffle -- you can bake them before dinner and they won't deflate (you won't want to fuss with whipping egg whites after dinner, will you?)

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