Valentine’s Day is the ideal holiday to test your culinary skills and create delicious dishes for a romantic dinner occasion. Some couples celebrate this day with a special dinner, decorating it with petals, candles and every other cheesy detail, but often they forget the most important thing: a delicious dinner!

So I’ve thought to share with you 3 Vallarta recipes to make your Valentine’s dinner a success –I’m sure it will be exquisite!

Appetizer //Vallarta-Nayarit style Mussel cream with saffron and ragout

Ingredients:

• Chopped carrots 60 g
• Fish fumé 600 ml
• Heavy cream 2 L
• Chopped green onions 10 g
• White wine         220 ml
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Olive oil (as much as you want)
• Live mussels 5 kg
• Saffron 20 g
• Chopped white onion 80 g
• Minced garlic 20 g

Preparation:

1. Wash and disinfect all ingredients.
2. Preheat a pan with olive oil, put the mussels and cover.
3. Keep them in high temperature and add white wine, salt and pepper; let white wine to open the mussels.
4. Turn off the heat and clean the mussels of any dirt.
5. Sauté in another pan the onion, garlic and carrot; add ¾ of clean mussels.
6. Add the saffron petals and season with salt and pepper.
7. Add the fish fume and let it reduce for 12 minutes; reserve 120 ml of cream, add the cream let it there until it boils and blend it.
8. For the ragout, sauté the rest of the mussels with 120 ml. liquefied cream and add the chopped scallions, now just let it reduce.

Entrees // Puerto Vallarta-style Lobster ceviche

Ingredients:

• Onion 80 g
• Red cabbage 60 g
• Pineapple 60 g
• Cucumber 60 g
• Jalapeno to taste
• Lime juice to taste
• Olive oil to taste
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Lobster tail 400 g
• Arugula 60 g
• Carambola 50 g
• Tomato 120 g

Preparation:

-Ceviche

1. Cook the lobster with the Shell; once cooked, remove the shell and clean the digestive tract.
2. Cut it into pieces, put in a bowl and add the chopped tomatoes, chopped and seeded jalapeno, chopped onion, chopped pineapple, chopped cucumber and the startfruit.
3. Add the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper mixture.

-Arúgulas and Lombard

1. Cut the cabbage and place at the bottom of the plate with the arugula.

Dessert // Yelapa style Coconut pie

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cup of flour
• 2 tablespoons of sugar
• ½ tablespoon of salt
• 4 tablespoons of water
• ½ cup of vegetable oil
• 2 coconuts
• 1 can of condensed milk
• 5 yolks
• 1 teaspoon of butter

Preparation:

-Crust

1. Add salt to the flour, then add the oil, sugar and water; knead until smooth dough comes out and let it rest for 10 minutes.
2. Spread the dough with a rolling pin.
3. Rub the butter around the pan and cover it with the dough.
4. Click the dough with a fork at the bottom of the pan and place it in the oven at 150 ° C for about 15 minutes.

-Filling

1. Separate the white coconut meat and cut into small pieces.
2. Place the coconut in a blender with a cup of boiling water and blend it for 3 minutes.
3. Strain the mixture and separate two tablespoons from the zest.
4. Mix the coconut milk with condensed milk, egg yolks and put the mixture in a water bath, stirring on continuously until thickened.
5. Add the butter and set aside.
6. Place the coconut cream filling into the mold.

Ready! Now enjoy your Valentine’s dinner Puerto Vallarta style with your loved one.