
Valentine’s Day At Home: Ideas and Recipes from Cooking Channel’s Laura Vitale
Valentine’s Day is coming up, and there is no better romantic gift than creating a home-cooked meal for your loved-one. Cooking takes on more emotional significance, and it’s a way to illustrate feelings for one another. This Valentine’s Day is the perfect time to break the tradition of eating out for special occasions, ditch stress and crowds, and create homemade restaurant-like experiences to enjoy.
Contrary to belief, Valentine’s Day at home can be as romantic as time spent in any restaurant or other special setting. The key is to take the time to set the scene using creative ideas and preparing a meal that will match (if not surpass) what you will get elsewhere. Some candles, a nice table setting with a tablecloth, cloth napkins, nice dinnerware, crystal, and flowers will create a romantic and intimate environment. Also, choosing the right music you want to listen to and having it play in the background while you enjoy your meal together is always a plus!
A recent survey by ConAgra Foods found more people are considering the Valentine’s Day at home option instead of going to a restaurant. This especially holds true for millennials.
Valentine’s Day at home
Take a look at the findings from the survey:
Valentine’s Day Plans
On Valentine’s Day, Staying in is the New Going Out
o More than half of Millennials say it’s more romantic to cook at home with their significant other than go out to eat
o 40% of Millennials will stay in and cook this Valentine’s Day
- A slightly higher percentage of women compared to men think cooking at home is more romantic than going out (56% vs. 48%)
Expensive Meals and Crowded Restaurants are the Top Reasons Millennials will Avoid Restaurants this Valentine’s Day
o Other reasons include the difficulty in securing a reservation (38%), childcare (28%), difficulty in coming up with new ideas (21%), traffic (16%) and not enough time to plan (11%)
Adios Cookbooks and Grandma’s Recipe Cards: Millennials Flock to the Internet in Search of Unique Valentine’s Day Dishes
o 56% of people will search on the internet or watch an online cooking show
o Nearly half of Millennials will look for a dish that is unique, while 3 out of 10 will look for one that is easy to prepare
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Valentine’s Day Food Preferences
– Italian is the Most Romantic For Your Amore
o Whether dining in or going out, respondents overwhelmingly chose Italian as the most romantic cuisine for Valentine’s Day (52%), followed by 15% for French cuisine and 13% for American cuisine
– Nothing Says “I Love You” Like Chocolate
o When it comes to dessert, 7 out of 10 Millennials say chocolate is the most romantic dessert for Valentine’s Day (47% chose chocolate covered strawberries; 24% chose anything chocolate)
– $50-$100 is the Budget Sweet Spot
o Dining out for Valentine’s Day: 55% will spend $50-$100, 21% will spend $50 or less
o Cooking at home for Valentine’s Day: 38% will spend $50-$100, 32% will spend $50 or less
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Millennials and Cooking
Millennials enjoy cooking, but they need help figuring out what to cook
o Most Millennials “love to cook” (60%), but less than 20% say they have good recipes and ideas
Married couples cook more than those who are single
o 68% of married people cook as often as their schedule allows, compared to just 50% of single people
Valentine’s Day at home
To get inspiration for a romantic Valentine’s Day at home, I spoke with self-taught cooking expert Laura Vitale, Host of Cooking Channel’s ‘Simply Laura‘ and YouTube’s ‘Laura in the Kitchen‘. She shared two of her exclusive Valentine’s Day recipes from her show:
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Laura also gave some tips on how to create the perfect stay-at-home dinner date for two.
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Take a look at the interview below.
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To discover more easy recipes to enjoy Valentine’s Day at home, visit laurainthekitchen.com.
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Great ideas – love the chicken recipe!! Pinning that to try one day! 🙂
We are planning on staying in. Thank you for the recipes! With three boys, it is too hard to find someone to watch them. Everyone wants to go out! And it’s an additional expense.
I like the idea of staying in, plus its going to be really cold in the DC area. Thanks for the cooking ideas.
My husband and I don’t celebrate Valentine’s Day, but we do have a lot of date nights at home. It’s more fun than going out sometimes.
Thanks for these ideas and recipes!
Some great ideas and recipes for Valentines! Thanks so much!
I would love to have that Pasta with Pancetta! That sounds so good. I might have to try that for dinner sometime. 🙂
Your recipes looks delicious. We are staying in this Valentine’s Day – pizza and a movie with the kids. Plus we are having Strawberry Sundae’s for dessert.
Mmmm…that chicken sounds so good. We’re not planning anything big for v-day for us! After 20 years there’s no need.
Great recipes for V-Day! The last 2 years we stayed home and I made a romantic dinner and dessert. Since it’s on a Saturday this year, my husband made reservations for us at one of my favorite restaurants. But I don’t mind staying in for Valentine’s Day at all.
We usually stay in for Valentine’s Day – so making a nice dinner at home is a must. Since we usually eat so much Italian I like to mix it up and try something different.
I agree, Italian foods just seem more romantic! These recipes sound tasty!
Both of these recipes are fantastic. My husband and I usually spend Valentine’s day at home and avoid the over crowded restaurants. We splurge on our favorite foods and light candles. I’m really looking forward to it.
That pasta sounds absolutely delicious. I do like the idea of staying in for Valentine’s instead of dealing with the crowds.
These dishes look amazing! I would love a dish like this made for me.
The chicken and pasta dishes look amazing. I ran out of new recipes for both and have been getting bored. Thanks for giving me 2 new recipes to try.
We stay in. Love that pasta.
Yum that pasta! We are staying in. I don’t believe we have ever gone out for valentines
Which is okay with me!
I’m really surprised about the number of millennials staying in, but I think that’s neat. I do believe that’s what I’ll be doing too.
The pasta with pancetta and peppers looks perfect! I think the entire family would enjoy it.
We stay in almost every year. Although I don’t usually cook a big meal, we do dim the lights and have music with our take out.
I have no Idea what I am doing for Vday…hopefully a guy I am seeing will think of something thoughtful. Men are so lazy these days lol
I totally agree with staying in on Valentine’s Day! In fact, I think we’re sending the kids out this year!
I think Valentine’s Day at home is way more romantic than going out. I hate the huge crowds that show up for holiday meals in a restaurant.
Great ideas and delicious recipes! We always spend the night in.
That Chicken Thigh Recipe looks so good! Lemon and Chicken go so well together! Great ideas. Hubby and I are staying in.
Pasta with Pancetta and cherry peppers sounds so yummy right now. I’m enjoying a bowl of my homemade soup right now, but the pasta is on my list for next week.
I love these tips and recipes. I agree. Valentine’s Day at home can be incredibly romantic.
The ideas are great! Your food looks amazing. I might have to make one of these recipes.
This single girl in the city is going OUT! 🙂
I love collecting recipes. Both of these recipes sound amazing!
Those lemon roasted chicken thighs sound amazing. Maybe Valentine’s Day is over, but I see no reason not to make these anyway! Yum!