Quick and healthy 3-course Valentine's Day dinner

Valentine's Day is a great opportunity to show your love.

With a vegan version, this Valentine's Day dinner has three courses and can be prepared in less than an hour. This will allow you to prepare a delicious dinner and enjoy it to the fullest with your loved one.

1^er serving: Beetroot salad with sunflower sprouts

Ingredients

• 2 whole beets, cooked and cooled
• 1 cup sunflower sprouts
• 2 tablespoons ofsliced almonds
• 1/8 cup feta cheese (vegan option: super blue fauxmage)
• 8 to 12 fresh raspberries
• Fresh mint leaves
• 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise (vegan mayonnaise as needed)
• 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon of fresh lemon juice
• Salt and pepper

Approach

1. Cut (or cut into heart shapes) the beets into thin slices and divide between 4 plates.
2. Place ¼ cup of sunflower sprouts in the center of each plate of beets.
3. Cover withsliced almonds, feta cheese, fresh raspberries and mint leaves.
4. Prepare the vinaigrette by whisking, in a separate bowl, the mayonnaise, the Dijon mustard and lemon juice. Salt and pepper to taste.
5. Spread the vinaigrette over the salads when serving.

2^th serving: tomato linguine with wine sauce

Ingredients

• 15 cocktail tomatoes, sliced in half
• Filet ofolive oil + 1 tablespoon
• Salt and pepper
• 400g of durum wheat semolina linguine or a gluten-free equivalent
• 1 tablespoon of butter or vegan butter-style spread
• 4 green onions, roughly chopped
• ¼ cup of pine nuts
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 3 tablespoons of capers
• ¼ cup dry white wine
• ½ cup of Marcello Farms dried tomato pesto (vegan version available)
• 2 tablespoons of water

Toppings:

• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• Fresh oregano leaves
• Goat cheese (vegan option: fauxmage brie)
• Ground black pepper

Approach

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Farenheit.   
2. Spread the cocktail tomatoes face up on a small baking sheet lined with a parchment paper. Sprinkle the tomatoes with a drizzle ofolive oil. Salt and pepper generously. Bake for 20 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, boil a pot of water and prepare the durum wheat semolina linguine according to the manufacturer's instructions.
4. In a medium-sized skillet, heat a tablespoon ofolive oil and melt the butter. Add the green onions and pine nuts. Leave to brown for two minutes before adding the garlic and capers.
5. Add the white wine, dried tomato pesto and water. Cover and simmer over low heat for ten minutes. If necessary, add water if the sauce becomes too thick.
6. Salt and pepper to taste.
7. Once the durum wheat semolina linguine cooked, rinsed and drained, place them back in the pot. Add the grilled tomatoes from the oven and the wine sauce.
8. Add the toppings including lemon zest, fresh oregano, goat cheese and ground pepper.
9. Serve immediately.

3^th service: Layered with strawberries, cream and chocolate

Ingredients

• 1 cup fresh strawberries, rinsed and sliced
• 1 cup whipped cream (coconut whipped cream if needed)
• Some Prana chocolate bark
• 4 teaspoons of agave syrup.

Approach

1. At the bottom of 4 medium-sized cocktail glasses, place a layer of sliced strawberries.
2. Cover with whipped cream andPrana chocolate bark.
3. Repeat the first and second steps.
4. Cover each serving with a teaspoon of agave syrup.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

About the author

Naturopaths from La Boite à Grains

Team of qualified and certified naturopaths (ND) in Gatineau in Outaouais.

Original article written by Véronique Cousineau, Naturopath