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Family Features -- Avoid dinner reservations and unseasonably cold temperatures this Valentine's Day with a delicious, romantic date-night dining that doesn't take you any further than your own kitchen. You don't have to be an accomplished chef to set the table for a memorable romantic dinner at home. You can take inspiration from simple, quality Italian dishes anytime to celebrate the link between food and love.
As with this and two other of our favorite recipes show, a romantic meal can be ready in minutes or, like a great love story, simmered to perfection. To plan the ultimate date night at home, start by choosing one of these dreamy main dishes made with a mouthwatering sauce. Whether you make the Red Wine Braised Beef Short Rib Ragu featured below, or the Italian Sausage,
Spinach & Tomato Rigatoni, or the
Creamy Italian Garlic Chicken, your romantic candlelit dinner will be one fondly remembered for years to come.
Flavorful sauces make a great Italian meal, but the sauce doesn't need to be made from scratch (at least, not completely). For example, Bertolli d'Italia sauces are made in Italy for authentically delicious flavor. They are crafted with tomatoes vine-ripened under the Italian sun, finely aged Italian cheeses, fresh cream, and Mediterranean olive oil. The result is a sauce that's perfect for your date-night meal.
Once you select your main course, prepare a simple salad of greens with a drizzle of Italian vinaigrette or Caesar dressing.
There is nothing better than a loaf of bakery-fresh Italian or focaccia bread warmed in the oven served with butter or olive oil for dipping. If you're so inclined, cap off the meal with a classic Italian dessert from your local bakery, like tiramisu, cannoli, or a creamy panna cotta topped with fresh fruit.
Red Wine Braised Beef Short Rib Ragu
Prep time: 25 minutes / Cook time: 3 hours
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 pounds bone-in beef short ribs
salt, to taste
ground black pepper, to taste
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and finely diced
1 small onion, chopped
8 cloves garlic, finely chopped
4 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup red wine
4 sprigs fresh rosemary
2 sprigs fresh sage leaves, chopped
8 sprigs fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
1 jar Bertolli d'Italia Marinara Sauce
2 cups beef bone broth
water
24 ounces pappardelle pasta or preferred pasta
freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for garnish
Instructions:
Heat oven to 350 F.
In 5-quart Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium heat. Season short ribs with salt and ground black pepper, to taste. Place one layer of short ribs in pot. Set remaining ribs aside.
Cook ribs 3-4 minutes per side until browned. Transfer to plate and set aside. Repeat with remaining short ribs.
Add celery, carrots and onion to pot used to brown ribs. Stir and cook until vegetables are browned, about 15 minutes.
Add garlic and stir 1-2 minutes. Add tomato paste. Cook 2-3 minutes.
Carefully pour red wine into pot.
Stir and scrape any browned bits from bottom of pot. Cook 3-4 minutes until wine is almost completely absorbed into vegetables.
Add rosemary, sage, thyme and bay leaves to pot. Add sauce, bone broth and browned ribs. Cover pot and place in oven 2 1/2-3 hours, or until ribs are fall-apart tender.
Remove pot from oven. Transfer ribs to plate or cutting board. Remove and discard herb stems and bay leaves. Remove bones from ribs then shred meat into bite-sized pieces using two forks or tongs. Return shredded ribs to pot with ragu. Stir to combine. Set aside.
Bring large stockpot of water to boil. Boil pappardelle pasta until al dente. Add drained pasta to pot with beef ragu and toss until combined.
Garnish with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
Find more romantic dishes perfect for sharing at Bertolli.com.
"If these trends continue, and we expect them to, then on Monday, February 28, we will lift the indoor mask requirements for the State of Illinois," Pritzker said at his 2pm press conference in Chicago. Currently, Illinois is one of nine states that still required masks inside public places.
After the 28th, masking will then be optional in grocery stores, bars and restaurants, public buildings, and non-scholastic sporting events - vaccinated or not.
There will be some indoor areas and venues where masks will still be required until further notice.
With 16 points to her credit, Taylor Henry dropped points in all four quarters of the Rockets home game against Monticello on Monday. The senior was also credited with six rebounds as Unity picked up the conference win, 37-34.
Raegen Stringer delivered three assists and racked up four steals as the team's second-leading scorer with eight points.
Producing just a single free throw, Katey Moore led the Rockets' rebounding effort with seven boards to break a three-game skid.
It didn't take long for first-year St. Joseph-Ogden head coach Drew Artega to notch his first 20-win season. The Spartan girls basketball team ended the conference season with a 50-28 win at home over Paxton-Buckley-Loda.
Draining four treys for SJO, Peyton Jones turned in a 16-point game-high performance on Monday. Addison Frick, who was 2-for-3 from the charity stripe, also finished in double-digits with 10 points. Senior Ella Armstrong chipped in another six.
Lorena Arnett spearheaded the Panthers' scoring effort with 8 points. The senior converted on all four trips to the free-throw line.
"Howdy," was a common everyday word where I grew up. Raised on old Stidham, now known as Milo road in rural Appalachia, I spent a lot of time at my Grandpa and Grandma Hinkle’s store. People came and went buying gasoline, sandwich meat, snacks or groceries for the week. There were cane bottom chairs in the store. Often people would sit and chat for a while.
Regardless of how many times during the week I walked down the road to that store, the opening salutation was typically, "howdy."
People were in and out of the Hinkle store doing business. A family member was often coming or going because my grandparents had raised ten children and there were many grandchildren who frequented the Hinkle business. Often, family members were buying a soda pop or just stopping in to say “howdy.”
We grew up on Milo speaking to most everyone who came and went. When a car drove by, we usually waved even though we didn’t always know them. At family or church gatherings we typically talked to everyone for a minute or two and shook hands or hugged a few people.
The only time I can remember our family being speechless was when fifteen or twenty of us were sitting on the porch and a man from New York City pulled up in an older car.
My grandpa had received an advertisement in the mail about a great used car he could buy for $500. He ordered the car to surprise my grandma and we were all really surprised when this man pulled in front of the store in an old beat up looking car. He had driven the car from New York City, which was a long drive on those roads back then.
After being drop jaw stunned silent for a few minutes, everyone loosened up and eventually started talking to the man who was just doing a job but now had to get back to New York. By this time, some of us were chuckling just a little. A couple of the family members took the guy over to Kermit, West Virginia to catch a Greyhound bus to begin his long journey back home.
A part of American culture has been hand shaking and embracing those we know. A part of most American religious gatherings has been shaking hands. One church I attended insisted on everybody hugging each other.
Covid-19 has impacted our world with death, sickness and business failures. The distancing for many of us continues to be tough. We wear our masks and seldom know who else is in the grocery store.
We’re fearful of going to the funeral home to honor and respect the deceased. Shaking hands or embracing anyone anywhere is typically totally unwelcome. Many holiday parties of large gatherings were fewer over the past holidays. People don’t want to be sick and so the distancing continues.
We do have the telephone, social media and email which helps us at least stay connected.
However, please keep in mind, when you do recognize someone at the grocery or any public place you may not feel comfortable embracing or shaking hands, but you can still convey a greeting and kindness by at least saying, "howdy."
