Jump to content

  • Welcome to the eG Forums, a service of the eGullet Society for Culinary Arts & Letters. The Society is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of the culinary arts. These advertising-free forums are provided free of charge through donations from Society members. Anyone may read the forums, but to post you must create a free account.

Valentine's​ 💘 Day 2026

gulfporter

By gulfporter
in Food Traditions & Culture

 Share

Recommended Posts

gulfporter

gulfporter

Posted
Posted

Have any plans?  Going out?  Eating at home?  Cooking, or delivery/take out?

 

We won't eat out for any holiday.  Too many over-priced meals, too crowded.  Plus one Valentine's Day we witnessed a young man ask his date to marry him at the (far too close) table next to us.......and get (politely) turned down.  I still can't get over the sadness it left in me, and that was 40 years ago!  

 

For most holidays we cook together and/or divide the courses between us. 

 

I am making a simple seafood quasi-curry; mi esposo has taken on a Herculean task, given the inadequacy of our Mexican oven....a Basque cheesecake.   Our oven has no thermostat and keeping at a steady temperature for more than a few minutes is challenging, to say the least.  

 

What are you doing, planning?

  • Like 6
MaryIsobel

MaryIsobel

Posted
Posted

Like you we don't eat out any holidays but especially Valentine's Day! We're having friends over for gumbo tomorrow night and my daughters are taking me out for brunch on Sunday - so Valentine's dinner for us will no doubt be leftover gumbo! I haven't decided on a dessert for tomorrow yet but there will likely be leftovers of that as well.

  • Like 5
ElsieD

ElsieD

Posted
Posted

We aren't planning anything.   In our younger days going out for dinner was the big thing but our interest in that faded as we grew older.

  • Like 2
Smithy

Smithy

Posted
Posted

I have one piece of Christmas fudge left that a friend gave me. I'll probably eat it.

  • Like 4
  • Haha 4

Nancy Smith, aka "Smithy"
Host, eG Forums - nsmith@egstaff.org

Follow us on social media! Facebook; instagram.com/egulletx

"Every day should be filled with something delicious, because life is too short not to spoil yourself. " -- Ling (with permission)
"There comes a time in every project when you have to shoot the engineer and start production." -- author unknown

Maison Rustique

Maison Rustique

Posted
Posted

I'm going to a Galentine's dinner at a friend's home. I'm taking a quasi-shrimp cocktail thing that I talked about in the appetizer thread a while back. Hostess says it is a traditional steakhouse dinner and I know she is making steaks. I noted someone else said they are bringing creamed spinach. Not sure what else is on the menu.

  • Like 8

Deb

Liberty, MO

liamsaunt

liamsaunt

Posted
Posted

I don’t celebrate any of the Hallmark holidays, so have no special meal planned. Ideally, I will come up with something to use up some the massive amounts of potatoes, carrots, butternut squash, and cabbage I have in the house from my CSA right now.

  • Like 6
YvetteMT

YvetteMT

Posted
Posted

It happens to be my honeys birthday so we don't celebrate Valentines day, we celebrate the birthday.  And NEVER by going out!

About a month ago he asked for lobster tails "at some point". So that's on the menu, with undecided sides.  Roasted Potatoes? Mashed? Roasted sweet potato? No clue. 

  • Like 8

Hunter, fisherwoman, gardener and cook in Montana.

gulfporter

gulfporter

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted (edited)

Basque Cheesecake out of oven.  Mi esposo got some traditional burnt top.   Recipe suggested making day in advance. 

 

20260213_093018.jpg

 

Edited by gulfporter (log)
  • Like 6
  • Delicious 4
MaryIsobel

MaryIsobel

Posted
Posted (edited)

Here is my dessert for our "Not Quite Valentine's Day" dinner tonight. Chocolate ganache tart. The top is normally covered with raspberries but I got the vapours when I saw that they were 5.99 Cdn for 6 ounces, so just strew some over the top and will glam it up with some raspeberry coulis ans whipped cream and no one will every know!

choc ganache - 1.jpeg

Edited by MaryIsobel (log)
  • Like 7
  • Delicious 4
Alex

Alex

Posted
Posted

Given the holiday, I suppose I should cook some hearts, but we're fresh out, so I'll make the next closest organ that we do have: liver (chicken, from these good folks). Mushroom sauce w/demi-glace, cognac, and cream. Some sort of potato thing that doesn't require much work -- maybe just steamed, w/garlic butter, parsley, and Maldon. My semi-famous gluten-free torte-like brownie w/Fabbri Amarena cherries. Wine(s) TBD.

  • Like 5
  • Delicious 1

Imagine all the food you have eaten in your life and consider that you are simply some of that food, rearranged.  -Max Tegmark, physicist

 

Gene Weingarten, writing in the Washington Post about online news stories and the accompanying readers' comments: "I basically like 'comments,' though they can seem a little jarring: spit-flecked rants that are appended to a product that at least tries for a measure of objectivity and dignity. It's as though when you order a sirloin steak, it comes with a side of maggots."

 

No amount of belief makes something a fact.  -James Randi, magician and skeptic

MetsFan5

MetsFan5

Posted
Posted

I’m single and my tastes can range from absurdly expensive to trash. Today’s early Valentine’s Day dinner is up to you to decide! 
 

  There’s a place near me that makes soft pretzel”bombs”. The one I got is a cheesesteak one. I’m talking myself out of getting a fluffer nutter one  tomorrow! 
 

https://direct.chownow.com/order/38657/locations/58845
 

 Has their menu. They’re open until something like 4am. They know their audience! 

  • Thanks 1
  • Haha 3
FauxPas

FauxPas

Posted
Posted

 

Artichokes! (and not just the hearts, ha) Steamed with a lemon-butter-garlic dip. And steak. Sautéed mushrooms. Not sure what for dessert but I don't feel like baking so I'll probably buy something. 

 

 

 

 

  • Like 5
  • Delicious 2
FauxPas

FauxPas

Posted
Posted
12 hours ago, liamsaunt said:

I don’t celebrate any of the Hallmark holidays, so have no special meal planned. Ideally, I will come up with something to use up some the massive amounts of potatoes, carrots, butternut squash, and cabbage I have in the house from my CSA right now.

 

I never get tired of Molly Stevens' braised cabbage dish. I do increase the carrot a lot and don't always use too much onion. I also increase the stock a bit. I think it's delicious as leftovers. 

 

I am still jonesing for a butternut squash casserole. Maybe this one? 

https://leitesculinaria.com/97453/recipes-butternut-squash-gratin.html

 

I was going to make that squash dish for Christmas but our plans changed after catching the Super Flu bug. Please let me know if you do try it!  🙂

 

Anyway, I don't think you can go wrong if you do some kind of veggie casserole or gratin with your excess veggies. But you are a great cook, so I think you will come up with something fun without my input! 

 

 

  • Like 3
  • Delicious 1
JeanneCake

JeanneCake

Posted
Posted

As a newlywed, I would make us a nice rack of lamb for V day -as we've gotten older it's not as much of a big deal so we are doing our usual Saturday Thai take out.  I brought a few of our Valentine's Treat Boxes to the restaurant when I picked up our take out.  (It's a little box, with a heart-shaped brownie, long stemmed chocolate dipped strawberries, raspberry heart petit fours and vanilla and chocolate shortbread hearts. Working a holiday in food service - Valentine's, Easter, Mother's Day, Thanksgiving, can be miserable so little things can go a long way!  Looking forward to not seeing anything heart-shaped for a long time.....)

 

  • Like 1
  • Haha 2
YvetteMT

YvetteMT

Posted
Posted (edited)
On 2/13/2026 at 7:57 AM, YvetteMT said:

It happens to be my honeys birthday so we don't celebrate Valentines day, we celebrate the birthday.  And NEVER by going out!

About a month ago he asked for lobster tails "at some point". So that's on the menu, with undecided sides.  Roasted Potatoes? Mashed? Roasted sweet potato? No clue. 

At 3pm the birthday boy asked "how set are you on lobster tails for dinner?". Apparently someone had a craving for pizza and since I am all about the birthday person getting what they want,  pizza it was. 

 

His- ham, cowboy candy, olives, onion, peppers.  Her's- ham, olives and kraut.

20260214_174708.thumb.jpg.4f6e7ec1b1cf89f780e2ef7c8ca749e1.jpg

 

And since we don't need a cake for the two of us- these were good, not overly sweet.  The crust could have been crisper.

20260214_180950.thumb.jpg.18e909fe580f38d0249b43975aea74a7.jpg

 

20260214_181051.thumb.jpg.5c33b6ce0ea69e667906d5244272fe10.jpg

 

Lobster tomorrow. 

 

Edited by YvetteMT
Spelling (log)
  • Like 4

Hunter, fisherwoman, gardener and cook in Montana.

 Share
Go to topic listing
×
×
  • Create New...