Valentine’s Day for the Distinctive

Guest writer Charlene V. Drayton

Soon comes the time for the reds, pinks, hearts and roses. The time of year that separates the boys from the men. The loved from the lonely. The Casanovas from the lames. That’s right gentlemen, soon will be Valentine’s Day, and your hot mama is enthusiastically waiting for a Valentine’s Day beyond the cliché. I am here to help guide you to making your Valentine’s Day special for not the average woman, but for the exceptional woman.

Yes you can take your lady out to a fine restaurant and let the chefs do all the work, but how about you step outside of your element and whip something up yourself? Get dressed up in your finest suit while your woman puts on her special black dress drenched in her diamonds or pearls. Now prepare for a romantic night in. But don’t get me wrong, making spaghetti with meatballs is not for the exceptional woman, yet what you can do to arouse and impress her is to look up a recipe from an exotic country that neither of you have ever visited. Perhaps explore the island of Aruba with their classic Aruba chicken, and then head to Brazil for dessert with a tasty Cassata de abacaxi (Pineapple cassata). Together your taste buds will explore unfamiliar spices and your woman will look at you in awe for the intense preparation and research you had to do to pull of this delicious meal.

Once dinner is done, set up an at-home wine tasting where you lay out different types of wines that you and your woman take turns trying. Be sure to look up the proper ways to taste wine so you can act as professionals! Then test each other’s wine tasting skills by allowing one another to identify which wine the other has tasted. Once you get a little saucy, then the nighttime fun can really begin!

Yet one of the most important aspects of V-Day is the gift you chose for your woman. Your lady wants something exclusive, something that shows you know her style and her taste. She doesn’t want you following the cookie-cutter guide to V-Day gift giving; what she wants is something unique that only she will possess. What she wants is the uber exclusive and fabulous Black Martini Eau de Toilette, which combines the elegance of Persian Musk with the youthfulness of Mandarin Orange.

With this soft, feminine scent of luxury that only few will call their own, your leading lady will be the topic of every ladies-night conversation. While the boys cowardly purchase the over-saturated use of Chanel’s Chance, or Dolce & Gabbana’s Light Blue, your beau will be rocking a limited yet enticingly rich scent. Black Martini is only available via the Surajo Bello website

Aruba Chicken

INGREDIENTS:
2 tbl Olive oil
1 med Onion, sliced
1 Fryer chicken, 3lbs cut into serving pieces
1 Smoked pork butt, (1 lb) cut into 1" cubes
1 can (8oz) tomato paste
1/4 cup Coconut, shredded
1/2 tsp Salt
Crushed red pepper to taste
4 whl cloves
1 Bay leaf
1/2 ts thyme
2 lb Sweet potatoes, pared, Cut into 1/2" slices
2 Bananas, sliced 3/4" thick
1/4 cup Green onions, sliced

METHOD / DIRECTIONS:
Heat oil in a heavy Dutch oven and saute onion about 5 minutes until golden, stirring frequently. Remove From pan. Add chicken, half at a time, and brown on all sides (adding more oil if needed). Return onion to pan and add pork Stir in water, tomato sauce, coconut and salt.
Tie pepper, cloves, bay leaf and thyme into a small cheesecloth square (poultice) and add to stew. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer For 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add sweet potatoes and simmer covered For 35 to 40 minutes longer, or until sweet potatoes are tender. Taste for seasonings and correct if necessary. Add bananas and cook for an additional 5 min.
Discard cheesecloth poultice. Arrange on a serving platter and garnish with green onions and more coconut, if desired.


Pineapple Cassata

Ingredients:
A. Cream:
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
1 can of milk (use the can from the condensed milk to measure the milk)
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons of corn starch
B. Cassata:
1 package of lady fingers biscuits
1 can of sliced pineapple in syrup
1 package of coconut flakes
1 can of thick cream
1 tablespoon of sugar

Preparation:
1. Put all the ingredients for the cream in a pan and mix well.
2. Let the mixture cook over medium heat for 10-15 minutes, stirring it constantly until the mixture loosens from the bottom of the pan and it forms a cream.
3. Let the cream cool down for 5 minutes and in the meantime
4. Line the bottom of a glass serving dish with a layer of lady fingers biscuits.
5. Wet the layer of biscuits with the pineapple syrup.
6. Spread the cream over the layer of biscuits and let it cool down for a while.
7. In the meantime, cut the pineapple into small pieces.
8. Spread the pineapple pieces over the layer of cream.
9. Sprinkle the layer of pineapple with coconut flakes.
10. Combine the (whipping) cream with the sugar and mix well.
11. Spread the cream over the layer of pineapple.
12. Sprinkle the layer of pineapple with coconut flakes.
13. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and put the cassata in the fridge.
14. Serve the cassata when it is ice cold.