This year is my first Valentine’s Day as a married lady, and I’m celebrating by making a romantic home-cooked dinner. My husband and I normally go to a nice restaurant, but this year we wanted to see if we could recreate the same experience at home, and for a lot less money.

On the menu are some of my husband’s favorite foods: crab cakes as the appetizer, steak and mashed potatoes as the entree, and tiramisu for dessert. (I cook. He cleans. That’s the deal.) I’m going to be brave and try to make everything from scratch. So check back next week to hear how it went. If you have plans to stay at home, let us know what you’re planning to cook. Send us pictures of your culinary masterpieces and we’ll post some of them next week. Or if you go to a Bronx restaurant for dinner, let us know about that too. And don’t forget you can always post a restaurant review in our forum.

Here’s the recipes that I’ll be using for Valentine’s Day, along with some other useful links.

1. Crab Cakes
2. Steak with Chimichurri Sauce and Yuca Fries.
2. Tiramisu

Click here for other Valentine’s Day recipes including two favorite V-Day desserts: Chocolate Mousse and Molten Lava Cake.

Here’s a video that has tips for creating an easy romantic meal at home, which includes adding candles and fresh cut flowers to the table.

Happy cooking and see you next week!