Tony and I had the best early Valentine’s dinner. We’ve only dined out on V-day once and vowed never to do it again. I found a cool restaurant, but what they failed to mention was that their Valentine dinner was pre fix, no substitutions and . . . $100 per person, without drink!
We almost walked out right then and there but we stayed. It was a small dining room, and while the food was delicious – it was small food because there were so many courses. After drink and tip I think we spent $275 on dinner and left still hungry! (Pretty sure my brother Charlie just had a hard attack reading that – he doesn’t like to spend money dining out, even if someone else is paying!)
We never could have gotten our dinner at a restaurant for $33! And its been ages since I’ve had bay scallops – they were so perfect – slightly sweet.
Our Menu
Bay Scallop Gratin
Sourdough Bread
Prime Filet Mignon with Rosemary Butter
Asparagus with balsamic vinegar and shaved Parmesan
Bay Scallop Gratin (printer friendly version here)
Adapted from Ina Garten
2 servings: 455 calories, 27 fat, 25 carbs, 1.6 fiber, 23 protein
12 PointsPlus
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- Zest of half a lemon
- Ā½ teaspoon salt
- Ā½ teaspoon cracked pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Ā½ cup panko bread crumbs
- 3 tablespoons white wine
- Ā½ pound bay scallops
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
2. Make the topping my mixing the butter, garlic, parsley, lemon juice, zest, salt, pepper, olive oil and panko bread crumbs. I just put all the ingredients in a bowl and whipped with a fork.
3. Put wine in bottom of baking dish. Layer the scallops on an even layer. Top with bread crumb mixture and bake for 10 minutes. Turn broiler on and broil until the top is bubbly and browned. Serve with crusty bread.
I wish I could describe how delicious this was – I think the lemon zest added to the topping makes this dish (and Ina didn’t have that in her original recipe – ha!). We each took our sourdough bread and soaked up all the buttery garlic goodness. Totally worth the 12 points! Actually, the next time I make this, I think I’ll reduce the butter and olive oil to one tablespoon each – and then serve it with a salad for a dinner.
I took the steaks out of the refrigerator 45 minutes before cooking – its key to have your meat at room temperature (that’s what she said!) otherwise if you have a cold steak to a hot skillet – you’ll get a tough steak.
Then into a 425 degree oven for exactly 10 minutes – flipping after the first five minutes.
Can I just tell you that the rosemary butter made this dish? I had a mushroom gravy on the side, but the butter mixed with the pan juices was all that was needed.
My plate – I ate only about 1/3 of the steak – it was so much meat! (that’s what she said!) My whole dinner came in at 29 points – nice! So I ended up with 47 points for the day, but I still have 31 flex points left for the week.
When we first cut into the steak and took our first bite, we both closed our eyes to savor the deliciousness – and best part with all the leftover filet? I had 2 ounces diced into my scrambled eggs – so good.
So we are headed to the hospital this morning to check Tony in before his surgery tomorrow. We had to go to the hospital yesterday to get his blood checked – he has an artificial heart valve, so he stopped taking his blood thinners Friday night – but its a delicate balance – you don’t want the blood too thin for surgery otherwise he bleeds a lot, and you don’t want it too thick because he may get a blood clot.
We were told to go to the Main Entrance since it was a Sunday and go to the lab. The woman said “no you have to go to the ER to get registered first.” We say we were told by several people that they knew he was coming and to go to the lab. So we go to the lab, and they also say to go to the ER. Mind you, the Main Entrance and the ER are on opposite sides of the hospital.
The woman walked us to the ER, we start registering, and she said “do you know your way back?” We did, so she left. Only one problem, to go back the way we came, you need a hospital ID and no one would let us back that way. So we had to go outside, walk down two flights of stairs, across the parking lot back to the main entrance! When we saw the woman who helped us and she apologized for us having to walk outside to get back to the lab.
So we go to the lab, and they have no clue why we are there. Apparently, all we had to do was go to the ER, register, they would call the lab, the lab would come to us, take the blood sample and we were good to go. Luckily, they took his blood at the lab and didn’t make us walk back to the ER!
On the BSI front – check out all the vanilla entries here – thanks for hosting last week Wendy!
This week’s BSI hostess is Sara of Cupcake Muffin – she chose green beans!
Ooo that’s a good idea to add cinnamon to cofefe! I bet that’s great . And your tilapia wraps look super delicious! I threw a random dinner together last night- just ground turkey, salsa, black beans, corn, and a little bit of sour cream and I mixed it all together and warmed it up haha. Quick question- who are you self-hosted through?Lindsay@ In Sweetness and In Health recently posted..
I am making the scallops tonight! Thanks for the recipe
Cool! Make sure you have some crusty bread for the herbed butter!
Lovely Valentine’s Day meal…it sounds really delicious! š My prayers are with you and Tony!!!
Tony is in my thoughts and prayers! That V-day dinner should have him ready for surgery — happy spirit and tummy!
Best of luck to you & Tony with this hospital adventure!
Your dinner looks Ahhhhh-mazing! And I never knew WHY we’re supposed to let steaks get to room temp before cooking, so thanks for the beefy cooking tips!
Awesome looking V-Day dinner Biz š
Here’s hoping all goes well tomorrow. I’m sure it will.
I really appreciate your tips on how to cook red meats b/c I’m terrible at it. I will make sure to get them to room temp next time! Everything looks scrump-diddly-umptious! Sorry the hospital gave you the runaround! I will be thinking of you both tomorrow and am praying but heart out! <3
Wow…what a great looking Valentine’s Day dinner!!! And holy smokes, what a hospital “song and dance” you guys had to endure!!! I hope all went well today, good thoughts still coming down your way from my husband Dennis and I. Hugs!
1. I appreciate all of your “that’s what she said” jokes
2. I had to restrain myself from licking the screen when I saw your scallops
3. I hope Tony’s surgery goes well!
What a wonderful dinner! Looks amazing!
Good luck with the surgery! You guys are in my thoughts! Hugs!
Wonderful looking supper for a romantic dinner…it all looks great. My honey made me breakfast in bed yesterday!
i tried to impress my boyfriend by cooking beef wellington last night – his favorite. unfortunately i still don’t know how to cook meat very well – yes! i used a meat thermometer! – because it came out well done. boo! your meat looks way better. at least my dessert was delicious and saved the lackluster meal.
happy valentine’s day to you and tony!
Wait, has Michael Scott taken over your blog? LOL That’s what she said! š
I had a similar experience at the hospital on the Saturday when I hurt my ankle and was sent there for xrays – so much fun. NOT!
I’ll be thinking about you and Tony tomorrow – I’m sure everything will go just fine, and I hope he’s cured and back to his normal self soon! Hugs to you both.
Oh, good luck to Tony with his surgery! I’m keeping you all in my thoughts and prayers!
Your Valentine’s dinner looks fantastic! Definitely going to have to try that scallop dish, it looks divine! And I’m drooling over that steak with rosemary butter.
We ended up going out to dinner at a Thai restaurant; our first choice place, for which we had a gift card, was booked solid. (Had we planned better, we’d have made reservations or better yet, figured out a take-out strategy before we were hungry enough to chew our own arms off. But Thai was tasty, and you’d have loved the spicy curry dish I got!)
yummy! i wanted to try scallops in a different way!
What a great dinner! Love the bay scallop gratin. Dining in is definitely our preferred choice too – my boyfriend is cooking me dinner tonight so I’m really excited! Happy Valentine’s Day š
You dinner looks and sounds wonderful! And I bet the Asti went very nicely with it… š We aren’t doing anything special for Valentine’s Day, but I do have a bottle of sparkling wine in the fridge… š
You and Tony are in my thoughts and prayers! Sending you a big hug!!!
I hope all goes well with the surgery. It looks like an awesome V-day dinner. I love to go out for dinner but it is always a hassle, like you said, those set menus are no good for a vegetarian. I often need to make some substitutions. You can obviously make a great meal for much less as you demonstrated.