Valentine's Day

Last night I cooked Kelly a nice dinner for Valentine's Day (we're celebrating early because she's leaving for AZ on the 14th). It was pretty involved, and I was really happy how everything turned out. But the important thing is that Kelly loved it too. So here's my three course menu:

Insalata Mista
Earthbound Farms herb salad mix
cucumber
carrots
red onion
homemade balsamic vinaigrette (red wine vinegar + balsamic vinegar + olive oil + salt)

Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe
orecchiette (ear-shaped) pasta
broccoli rabe + garlic + red pepper flakes
parmesan cheese

Individual Apple Crostate
homemade pasta frolla dough
2 granny smith apples
1 braeburn apple
cinnamon
sugar
lemon juice

All three recipes come from Italian Classics from Cook's Illustrated, which also includes an awesome recipe for vegetarian lasagne. I really like this cookbook because they explain how they experimented with different ingredients and techniques in order to figure out the perfect recipe.