“One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.”
― Virginia Woolf
Well Virginia said it all!
At least for me, nothing show love more than cooking and enjoying food with my loved ones.
this dinner board I am going to share with you today is the perfect valentine gift/dinner for you and your partner if you are in a relationship; Or for you and your friends for a girl’s night in or even for you and some selflove to indulge yourself with a delicious dinner.
Why is this board different from any other boards?
This board is not just a cheese and charcuterie board or some ready-made stuff. It is a full dinner meal board with salad, protein and carbs. It is a board that has it all. All you need to do is just pop a bottle of wine and you are good to go!
This board is made for 2 to 4 people because it has a lot of stuff. You can also make it as big as the crowd you are having on that night.
What is in this dinner board?
My dinner board is a fusion of many cuisines, it is Lebanese in base but fused with many international other flavors.
This board has a delicious Caesar salad with a Lebanese dressing with a twist.
Trio dips: an infusion between Lebanese and other cuisines.
Moist delicious Grilled chicken and beef steak.
Some extra sauces that go amazingly with the grilled proteins.
Some pitta bread to wrap the steaks and dip then into the sauces.
To break it up to you, this board contains:
- Lebanese Caesar salad
- Grilled chicken
- Grilled beef steak
- My signature guacamole dip
- Feta creamy dip
- Nutty hummus with veggies kabsa
- Mini pitta breads
- Condiments medley: plum chutney, caramelized onion chutney olives& sundried tomato spread, grilled pickled olives, pickled veggies, …
- Extra optional stuff you can add: potato and sweet potato wedges, grilled cheese and more condiments to your liking you can play and mix and match to your likings but the items mentioned below are my personal intake on flavors that go well together
How to make the dinner board?
– I start by preparing my meats, I marinate my chicken and steak and set aside to set to room temperature before grilling while preparing the other things.
– Next I prepare my dipping sauce and their toppings but I don’t assemble yet and keep aside or in the fridge while I prepare the other stuff.
– Next, I prepare my salad dressing, toast my kaak croutons and marinate my kales for the salad and chop the lettuce. To mix the salad later.
– I set my board and start arranging the already ready stuff like the sauces and the bread.
– I turn on the grill , I use my iron cast grill pan but you can use your outdoor bbq as well.
– I grill my proteins : chicken and steak
– While the meat is cooking I start setting my board arranging the dips, mixing the salad and adding it to the board, and finally topping it with the croutons.
– And finally after the meat has finished grilling and resting I cut and add it to the board .
– Serve with some wine aside to set the mood and enjoy!!!
If I am not serving the board immediately, I keep my warm food (chicken, meat and halloumi) in a warm oven until it is time to put on the board and serve immediately.
What should I buy for the board? (grocery list)
And because it is a “dinner board” there is a lot of stuff going on and a grocery list is a must. and because I love you guys so much and I want you to try this amazing board I am going to make your life easier and share with you a grocery list for all the stuff you need, just print it or open the article and buy this list below to make this amazing board. So you have the recipe, all the details and the grocery list, can it get any easier? so let’s go shopping for some delicious ingredients and flavors and start making this board to impress your valentine guests.
Valentine dinner board grocery list pdf list download link below
Serving suggestions:
I am going to share with you my serving, suggestions what goes well with what:
– Pitta + steak + hummus and kabsa topping
– Pitta + steak + caramelized onion chutney + fetta dip
– Pitta + steak + plum chutney + some avocado spread
– Pitta + chicken + avocado dip
– Pitta + chicken + caramelized onion chutney + hummus
– Pitta + chicken + olive and dry tomato spread.
– Pitta + fetta dip + olive and dry tomato spread.
– Pitta + caramelized onion + avocado dip
– And many more of course but those are some of my favorites combos
Valentine full dinner board
Ingredients
for the chicken marinate:
- 1 chicken whole chicken breast boneless
- 1 garlic clove minced.
- ½ tsp cumin powder
- 1 tbsp pomegranate molasses
- 1 tbsp red grape vinegar
- Salt and pepper
- 2 tbsp zaatar herb mixture
- 2 tbsp neutral cooking oil
For the beef steak marinade:
- 1 beef flank steak
- spice mix: 1 tsp ground cumin 1 tsp ground coriander, 1 tsp smoked paprika, ½ tsp ground turmeric, ¼ tsp ground cloves, ¼ tsp cayenne pepper, ½ tsp ground cinnamon, ½ tsp salt and ¼ tsp black pepper
- 1 garlic head cut in half
- 3 tbsp olive oil
Creamy fetta dip:
- 200 g fetta cheese
- 100 g arisheh cheese Lebanese ricotta
- 60 g labneh or plain yogurt
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp dry mint
- For the topping:
- 1 tbsp fresh mint chopped
- 1 tbsp pistachio chopped
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- ¼ tsp coarse salt
- 6 tbsp olive oil
Nutty Kabsa hummus:
- 1 cup cooked chickpeas drained
- 4 tbsp tahini
- 2 tbsp almond butter
- Juice and zest of 1 lemon
- ¼ cup olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 4 tbsp Warm water water maybe more
- For topping:
- 1 onion sliced
- 1 carrot grated
- 2 to mato diced
- 2 tbsp Kabsa spice mix see notes
- 1 tbsp curry powder
- 1 tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 4 tbsp raisin
- 4 tbsp pine nuts or cashew or almonds or pistachio
- Extra olive oil and toasted nuts for garnish
My signature guacamole:
- 2 big ripe avocado
- 1 red tomato cut diced
- 1 capsicum any color you want or mix of many colors, diced
- 1 red onion diced
- 1 tsp whole grain mustard or normal yellow mustard
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 2 tbsp lemon juice or more to taste
- 1 tbsp lime juice optional
- ¼ tsp white pepper
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- ½ tsp cumin powder
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- 4 tbsp fresh parsley chopped
- 4 tbsp fresh coriander chopped
- 1 leave geranium عطرة chopped (optional)
Lebanese Caesar salad and dressing:
- 2 cups chopped romaine lettuce.
- 2 cups chopped kale.
- 1 cup sesame kaak cut into cubes
- Dressing:
- 2 tbsp tahini
- About 2 tbsp warm water
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 1 lemon juiced and zest
- ½ tbsp Dijon mustard
- ¼ cup grated parmigiano cheese and some extra shaved slices for garnish
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 3 tbsp virgin olive oil
Instructions
For the chicken:
- Remove chicken 30 minutes before you want to grill to set to room temperature.
- In a small ball mix the minced garlic,cumin, molasse, vinegar, zaatar herb mixture.
- Pour over the chicken and rub it well with the marinate , cover and set aside for 30 minutes to marinate and get to room temperature before grilling.
for the meat :
- after we do the chicken, time to do the same with the steak, remove the steak 30 minutes to one hour before grilling to set to room temperature.
- Mix your spices. brush your steak from all sides with some oil and rub it from al the sides with the spice mix. Set aside while we prepare other stuff.
For the creamy fetta dip:
- In food processor, combine the dip ingredients: fetta, arisheh (ricotta), labneh (yoghurt), lemon juice and dry mint. Blend until a creamy smooth mixture is formed. Taste for salt and adjust . I usually don’t add any extra salt because the fetta is already salty.
- To make the topping of the dip: because it is a small quantity I use my hand blender but you can also do it with a traditional mortar by hand. Add the mint, lemon juice, pistachio and salt and pulse until they everything is blended and have a paste consistency . while you are blending pour the oil gradually until you have a pesto consistency. You might need more or less oil that mentioned.
- Keep the dip in the fridge and the topping in room temperature. When ready to serve, transfer the fetta dip into your serving bowl and spoon the pesto over it with some extra olive oil if you want and sprinkle some pistachio for garnish.
Nutty kabsa hummus:
- in your food processor, add the drained chickpeas, tahini, almond butter, and lemon juice and zest.
- Blend the mixture until smooth , scraping down the sides occasionally when necessary. With the machine running stream in the olive oil until smooth and creamy.
- If the hummus is too thick for your liking, you can thin it with water. Add 1 tbsp at a time until your desired consistency is reached. Taste and season as desired for salt and pepper. Set aside in the fridge until it is time to serve.
- For the topping:
- In a skillet on medium heat, add the oil and the kabsa spices with the curry and turmeric cook for a minutes until the spices flavors are infused . add the onions and cook for a minute than add the carrots and ginger and mix it through and cook for 2 minutes. Ad the tomato paste and mix. Add the diced tomato and mix all together,lower the heat and let it simmer for a good 10 minutes stirring occasionally, until everything is tender and cooked through. Add the nuts and raisin and mix it through. Let the raisin and the nuts cook with the sauce for two minutes than turn off the heat and set aside to cool down before serving.
- To serve, transfer the hummus to your serving bowl and top it with the kabsa veggies and sprinkle some extra toasted nuts and drizzle of olive oil to garnish.
For the signature avocado dip:
- In the food processor or in a mortar by hand, add the ripe avocado with mustard, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, lime juice, white pepper, nutmeg, cumin and salt and black pepper and pulse until you have a smooth creamy mixture.
- In a small strainer, chop the tomato, capsicum, onion and let it drain a little bit. Add to a deep mixture bowl, pour the avocado mixture over it, add the chopped parsley, coriander and geranium and mix with a spatula or spoon until everything is coated with the avocado mixture , taste for extra salt, pepper or lemon and adjust to your liking.
- Set in the fridge until time to serve. To serve transfer your avocado to your serving bowl and garnish the top with some of the chopped veggies and herb and some lemon or lime slices.
For the Lebanese Caesar salad:
- First start with the sauce, you can mix in a bowl or with a hand blender for a smooth creamy dressing.
- Combine the tahini, garlic, lemon, Dijon mustard, and cheese and blend until smooth and creamy add the water if the mixture is too thick like hummus and pulse till smooth. While you are blending stream in the olive oil until you have a smooth creamy dressing. Adjust salt and pepper to your taste. Set the dressing aside.
- Add your kale to a mixing bowl drizzle just two tbsp of the dressing over the kale and massage it well until all the kale leaves are coated with the dressing , add the lettuce and set asdie without mixing, to mix just before serving.
- For the croutons I am using the kaak, so I just cut my sesame kaak into smaller cubes bites toss in some garlic and oil and bake in 180 C° preheated oven until golden and crispy.
- To serve add the dressing to the lettuce and massaged kale and toss well until everything is coated with the sauce. Add to the dinner board and garnish with the kaak croutons and some shaved parmegiano cheese.
For cooking the chicken and meat:
- After the chicken and steak have been sitting in room temperature for more than 30 minutes.
- Preheat a cast iron skillet or griddle over medium-high heat . add oil to the pan, add chicken and cook for 10 minutes turning mid time . Season with some extra salt and black pepper each side before flipping to the other, you will know that your chicken is perfectly cooked when the inside temperature of the chicken reach 70 C° and if you poke the liquid the comes out of the chicken will be clear.
- Transfer the chicken to a plate a loosely cover with some aluminium foil to rest while cooking the meat. don’t cut before the chicken rest at least 5 minutes.
- For the steak, heats the cast iron pan or griddle over medium-high heat and get as hot as the you can. You might wanna open the window and turn the oven fan on if you are cooking it indoor, we need it realy hot. Cook for 8 minutes, flipping every minute this for a medium-rare, cooked steak, you need to cook it longer if you like your meat more well done. You will know that your steak is ready when the internal temperature reach 55 C ° (for medium rare). Transfer the cooked steak to a plate and rest for 5 minutes (or more) covered loosely with aluminum foil before cutting and serving.
Finally, for plating and serving:
- Now finally to assemble your board. Pour your dips into the serving bowls and garnish.
- Mix your salad , cut your meat and chicken after resting.
- Put your condiments in small serving bowls and start arranging your board as you like
- I put my salad on the board and arrange my chicken and steak strips.
- Add the dips bowl and add the pitta breads and the bowl with the condiments (chutney, caramelized onion , olives spread) than I fill the negative spaces with some pickles, grilled olives, fresh veggies like cherry tomatoes and garnish with some extra edible flowers for a pop of color.
Notes
Kabsa spices: for the kabsa spice mix and buy it ready mix from grocery store but you can quickly mix it at home if you don’t find it . just mix together 1 tsp of each: turmeric powder, coriander powder, black pepper, ginger powder, cardamon powder and fennel powder.
For the zaatar herb mix: if you live in Arabic or middle eastern country there Is no way you don’t have some zaatar in your pantry, it is the one we do manakich with but if you don’t mix together: 3 tbsp sumac, 1 tsp cumin,2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds, 3 tbsp dry zaatar (wild thyme), 1 tsp salt.