Skip going out to dinner and cook at home for your next date night! This date night menu is fun and delicious and a great way to spend leisurely time together in the comfort of your own home.
Date Night Menu
Entree: Scallops with Mushroom and Pea Risotto
Dessert: Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries
Recipes
Entree: Scallops with Mushroom and Pea Risotto
Author: Tonja Engen
INGREDIENTS
- 6 scallops
- ½ cup flour
- 5½ cups of chicken broth
- 4 Tbls. butter
- 1 cup onion, finely chopped
- 8 ounces white mushrooms, finely chopped
- 1½ cups arborio rice
- ½ cup white wine
- 1 cup of frozen peas, thawed
- 1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup parsley, minced
- 1 tsp. lemon zest
- salt & pepper to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
- In a medium sized saucepan, bring chicken broth to a simmer.
- Pat scallops dry and season with salt and pepper. Dredge in flour and set aside.
- In a large skillet over medium heat add butter. When melted, add onions and saute until softened, 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add in mushrooms, and saute until tender and the juices have evaporated, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Next, add in arborio rice, and cook stirring one minute. Add wine and stir until liquid is absorbed, 2 minutes.
- Turn the skillet down to medium-low and add in 1 cup of the broth to the skillet. Stir gently until most of the liquid is absorbed. Keep adding stock a cup at a time and stirring until all of the broth is incorporated (this takes approximately 29-32 minutes). At this point taste the rice. It should be tender and creamy but still have a slight bite to it. Stir in peas, parsley, and freshly grated parmesan cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Heat another large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 Tbls. olive oil. When oil is hot add scallops to the pan and sear for 2 minutes on each side.
- Remove from skillet and serve over risotto.
Dessert: Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries
Author: Tonja Engen
Serves: 4
INGREDIENTS
- 1 package fresh strawberries
- 8 oz block cream cheese, at room temperature
- ¼ cup confectioner’s sugar
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp almond extract
INSTRUCTIONS
- Remove the stems from the strawberries, and using a melon baller, scoop out a hole from the top of each strawberry. Cut a small part of the bottom of the strawberry with a sharp knife to create a flat surface for the strawberries to stand on. Strawberry prep is done!
- Using a hand mixer, mix together the cream cheese, confectioner’s sugar, vanilla extract, and almond extract, until fluffy and light.
- Transfer the cream cheese mixture to a piping bag lined with a star tip, and pipe the filling into each of the prepped strawberries. If you don’t have a piping bag, cut the corner of a zip-loc bag, fill it with cream cheese, and pipe the filling in the same way.
