A Gilded Valentine

Valentine's Day is for romance, but that doesn't mean it has to be expensive or involve a dinner reservation.  Create your own panther's lair at home.  Here is how the panther gilded her family room for a romantic Valentine evening.

A cozy tented effect is very romantic and can be achieved with yards of organza (inexpensive at most fabric stores), a ladder, and some push pins.  Pin the ends of the fabric to the ceiling then drape and twist to achieve your desired look.  Think about rich, decadent colors when selecting your fabric.

Might we offer up the suggestion of a quick trip to your local sporting good store where for under $40 you can take home a queen sized air mattress.  Layer it with your best linens and scads of pillows, place in front of your fireplace, and dim the lights.

Take a look at your coffee table, but look at it with the panther's eyes.  Clear the clutter.  Gather your best-looking candlesticks, votives, and beautiful vases.  The panther says you do not have to spend tons of money buying flowers.  Take a look at what she put together with 2 dozen roses, 4 lily stems, 6 leather fern stems, and 2 curly willow branches - all courtesy of surprise... Safeway Florist!  You can pick the lovliest roses there for $19.99 a dozen!  Crazy!

The panther is partial to the color orange, so Veuve Clicquot was her choice for the evening.  Less expensive choices are Prosecos from Italy.  Along with the champagne, the panther served chilled prawns on ice with a zippy red cocktail sauce.  This was accompanied by baked brie that had been split and spread with a cranberry/candied walnut preserve.   Next up were prosciutto-wrapped canteloupe bites.  Small skewers of multi-colored cheese-filled tortellini with grape tomatoes and fresh basil leaves dipped into a sauce of creme fraiche, lemon juice, roated garlic, finely grated parmesan, salt and pepper, completed the appetizer course.

Next was lamb scottadito.  This is a rack of lamb marinated in balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, rosemary, oregano, salt and pepper, then cut into individual chops and pounded thin between waxed paper then grilled quickly, 1-2 minutes per side.  This is nibbled with your fingers and served with a sauce of roasted red peppers, chili flakes, olive oil, oregano and basil.

Dessert can be you, or anything else that is sweet... of course with more champagne.

-The Panther