Easy Valentine's Recipes: Pasta Puttanesca & Flourless Chocolate Cake
Valentine's Day is all about taking the time to show your love. Sometimes showing how much you care can be as simple as making a home cooked meal. Whether for just two of you, for a family of four, or for a group of Galentine's, we love this Swordfish Puttanesca and Flourless Chocolate Cake for a meaningful Valentine's Day.
Swordfish Puttanesca
One of my favorite recipes that's much simpler than it seems, this is a favorite that everyone always loves. Perfect for a romantic meal for two, for a dinner party or for a night at home with family. I often combine it with roasted potatoes or pasta and some sort of green vegetable or salad.
Ingredients
Serves 2
- 3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 swordfish steaks (about 6 oz. each and 1/2″ thick), skin removed
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1/2 onion, diced
- 1 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 ⁄ 4 cup dry white wine
- 1 cups whole peeled canned tomatoes in juice, crushed
- 1 ⁄ 2 cup Castelvetrano olives, pitted and roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp. capers, rinsed and drained
- 4 oz of spaghetti
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 ⁄ 2 tsp. crushed red chile flakes (optional)
Method
- Season each swordfish piece with salt + pepper and heat 2 tbsps of oil in a deeo skillet or 12" saucepan over high heat.
- Add swordfish to pan, flipping once, until brown outside and medium rare inside. About 2 minutes per side.
- Transfer fish to a lined plate and set aside.
- In the same pan, add 1 tbsp of oil, onions and garlic. Cook until golden and softened.
- Add white wine to the pan and use a spoon or spatula to scrape up the golden bits that are stuck to the sides.
- Pour in tomatoes, olives, capers, chili flakes, salt and pepper.
- Bring to a boil and then allow to simmer until the sauce starts to thicken.
- Once the puttanesca sauce has thickened, nestle your fish into the sauce. Cook for an additional 5 mins, covered.
Ottolenghi's Flourless Chocolate Cake
This recipe is a fan favorite in our household that my children (and husband) ask me to make over and over again. It's decadent, delicious, but not so rich that's overwhelming. Each bite melts in your mouth. Of all the flourless chocolate cake recipes, this one reigns supreme.
Ingredients
Serving: 1 cake (9 inches)
- 2 sticks (8 oz) unsalted, European butter
- 1 1/2 cup 52% dark chocolate, chopped
- 1/2 cup 70% dark chocolate, chopped
- 1 1/2 cups muscovado sugar (or light brown sugar)
- 4 tablespoons water
- 5 large eggs, separated
- pinch of salt
- cocoa powder for dusting
Method
- Butter a 9-inch springform pan. Line with baking parchment and set aside.
- Preheat oven to 350°F and place a rack in the center of the oven.
- Place the chocolate and butter in a microwave (or in a heat proof bowl over simmering water) and heat, in 30-second increments, until the butter has melted and the chocolate has begun to melt.
- Place the muscovado sugar and water in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
- Pour boiling sugar over chocolate mixture and stir until completely melted and smooth.
- While stirring, add egg yolks, one at a time, incorporating completely before adding the next. Once fully combined, set aside until cool.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip egg whites and salt until stiff but glossy peaks form.
- In three additions, fold egg whites into chocolate mixture.
- Pour two-thirds of the batter into the prepared pan, and bake 45-55 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out mostly clean.
- Remove from oven and let cool completely on a baking rack.
- If needed, use a spatula to push down the cake, then pour remaining batter over the top and smooth.
- Bake an additional 30 minutes, or until a skewer inserted comes out with clumps of cake clinging to it.
- Cool completely before removing from the springform pan.
- Sift cocoa powder over the top and adorn with raspberries.
- Serve and enjoy!