The Cliché: Chocolate Dipped Strawberries and Fondue
Why it’s cliché: We get it—chocolate is an aphrodisiac.
The solution: Mexican–inspired fondue with unique things to dip.
The recipe:
- Break up several ounces of your choice of chocolate (dark chocolate preferred).
- For every two ounces of dark chocolate add one ounce of Abuelita (chocolate mix found in specialty isle of the grocery store).
- Place a metal bowl in a larger pot of boiling water, stir frequently to stop from overheating the chocolate.
- Quickly dip potato chips and dried mango into the mixture.
Add extra cayenne for garnish if desired.
The Cliché: Steak and Potatoes
Why it’s cliché: Meet a nice lady, buy her a steak? Doesn’t make sense, but I guess someone popularized it.
The solution: Deconstruct boring steak by adding some skewers.
The recipe:
- Soak bamboo skewers to protect against splinters.
- Marinate chunks of steak in a mixture of soy sauce, olive oil, lemon juice and garlic powder (add couple drops of hot sauce for added heat).
- Alternate marinated steak and diced potatoes and char them on a medium–heat skillet.
The Cliché:Red Wine
Why it’s cliché: You are in college, we know that you aren’t buying nice wine. No one finds "$8.99 and tastes like grape soda and rubbing alcohol" romantic.
The solution: Turn your cheap wine into a Spanish classic. One word: Sangria.
The recipe:
Get one bottle of the cheapest red wine you can find, add two–three shots of brandy (or a fruit flavored liqueuer) and 1/5 cup of sugar. Stir and then add a half can of sprite (taste for sweetness). Add various fruits. Oranges and limes are classic choices, but strawberries work particularly well for Valentine’s Day. Add arugula if desired.
The Cliché: Red Velvet Cake
Why it’s cliché: A red dessert on Valentine’s Day? How original!
The solution: Take that cake and make it into a shake (or buy one from Wawa, we won’t judge).
The recipe:
Make a simple vanilla milkshake as a base. Add about a tablespoon of chocolate syrup and four tablespoons of red velvet cake mix. This won't be enough to turn the milkshake the right shade of red, so add a couple of drops of red food dye for full effect.
