It’s almost Valentine’s Day, and if you’re in charge of making plans, such as a dinner reservation, you’re probably too late to the game for most restaurants. Don’t despair though, because if you’re like me, you’d either prefer to celebrate another day, enjoy cooking a meal at home, or want to do something unique. Restaurants are usually so busy on Valentine’s Day that many offer pre-fixe menus, and in my experience, quality and service are often subpar. I’m here to hook you up with two ideas for Valentine’s Day: what to gift and what to make for anyone you love.
What To Give
Give the gift of cooking, obviously! Cooking is the perfect gift whether you are looking to show your partner, friends (hello, Galentines!), kids, or yourself some love! I would know… the February before coming on board as General Manager of The Chopping Block in 2015, I gifted my husband the Steakhouse DIY class for Valentine’s Day. It was probably more of a gift for me, but he still brags that he knows how to cook a steak.
While you can reserve a specific class on a specific day/time for someone, I always think our gift cards are the way to go. A gift card lets the recipient choose what interests them and what date works in their calendar, and our gift cards never expire! If they’d prefer to grill, we have a beautiful grilling patio open May through Octobers. Or, if cocktail and wine classes are more their style, we have those too! Truly, something for everyone! Our February and March calendars are live and date nights are always some of the first classes to fill!
Believe it or not, we still have two seats left in Thursday's Date Night: French Bistro at 6pm. This hands-on class turns Valentine’s Day into a shared experience—where you cook, learn and savor an elegant Parisian meal together instead of just sitting across the table from one another.
Need a gift for kids or teens? Get them a gift card, or a class. We still have some seats available in Teen Cooking: Dim Sum on Tuesday, February 17 at 10am. We also have family classes monthly and have already posted our teen and kids summer camps. I know it’s been frigid the past three weeks, but summer is coming and the last thing you want to hear your kids say is “I’m bored.” Send them to cooking camp and they might even bring you home some leftovers to sample!
The ultimate gift of cooking is in the form of Culinary Boot Camp, our five-day intensive cooking program. It’s the perfect staycation or vacation, and if you’re local, we offer the course on five consecutive Saturdays with the next session starting April 11th.
What to Make
Over the past few months, I’ve either seen social media posts, reels, or even grocery meal kits for a dish called Marry Me Chicken. So delicious that it may spark a wedding proposal, supposedly. Must be good, right? I didn’t want to find out on Valentine’s Day itself so I did some experimenting a few weeks ago to make sure I had a plan.
Marry Me Chicken is a pan-seared chicken breast with a creamy Tuscan-inspired sauce of sundried tomatoes, garlic, Parmesan cheese, and basil (you can also add some fresh spinach if that’s your style). I decided to make mine into a pasta dish, and I loved the result. My toddler even asked for more!
I’ve also seen people use it as a concept for soup, which is now on my list to try. Ditch the restaurant reservations, and make this for a cozy, love-filled meal at home. It’s a quick and delicious way to show love. Thank me later.
Marry Me Chicken
Serves: 4
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Total time: 30 minutes
4 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts (about ½ inch thick) (about 1lb)
1 cup flour
Salt
Pepper
2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
1 tablespoons butter
4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 cups chicken stock
1.5 cups heavy cream
1 cup grated Parmesan
1 cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh thyme
2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes (feel free to decrease, or omit)
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, torn
2 cups fresh spinach (if desired)
3/4 lb pasta (I used Vesuvio) – I like something with crevices for the sauce!
1. Over high heat, set a large pot of water to boil and prepare pasta according to directions.
2. Place the flour in a shallow dish.
3. Season flour with salt and pepper.
4. Coat each chicken breast in seasoned flour. Set chicken aside. Discard flour.
5. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat, add grapeseed oil and butter.
6. Once hot, add chicken to the pan (you may need to do this in batches depending on the size of your pan and chicken).
7. Sear until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes per side. Set aside.
8. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.
9. Add chicken stock to the pan and scrape the bottom to remove the fond (browned bits). Let this reduce for 2 minutes.
10. Add thyme, crushed red pepper flakes, heavy cream and sundried tomatoes. Simmer for 5 minutes.
11. Add 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese and stir to melt, set 1/4 cup aside for garnish.
12. Add 3/4 of the torn basil to sauce, reserve 1/4 for garnish.
13. Add chicken back to the sauce. Simmer 5 minutes.
14. Add one chicken breast to each plate, leaving the sauce in the pan.
15. When the pasta is cooked, drain and reserve 1/4 cup pasta water.
16. Add the pasta to the pan with sauce and toss to coat, adding pasta water as needed. Add fresh spinach and let it wilt, if using.
17. Plate the pasta with the chicken and garnish with remaining fresh basil and Parmesan.
18. Enjoy!
Wishing you a Happy Valentine’s Day and hoping this has inspired you to recognize that there are so many food-centric ways to show love! Cooking is an act of love, and cooking together in one of our classes (especially when neither of you have to clean up) is a great way to relax, learn, and connect. Check out our upcoming date nights:
