Valentine’s Day Recipes: 40+ romantic dinner ideas to make at home

If you're looking for an ultra-tasty, easy-to-make appetizer that you can make in no time, you'll love this simple crab cakes recipe. Made from jumbo crabmeat and seasoned with mayo, mustard, hot sauce, and parsley, these Maryland crab cakes are crispy on the outside and creamy and tender on the inside.

With a creamy velvet-like texture and rich taste, lobster bisque is an elegant soup you can serve as a starter or even a main dish on special occasions. It's easy to make this delicious French soup.

Bacon roses are an easy, fun recipe to enjoy as a delicious, fancy appetizer. Super easy to make and assemble, this bacon bouquet is a perfect idea to spoil your special person with a tasty gift on Valentine's Day or for your anniversary.

If you're looking for a fast, easy seafood recipe that's sure to impress, try making seared scallops. This simple recipe is the best way to get restaurant-style seared scallops at home. With a slightly sweet, caramelized flavor, rich golden-brown crust, and incredibly tender texture, seared scallops taste as good as they look.

Mussels au gratin are a delicious seafood appetizer, perfect to serve during special occasions or holidays. It is basically mussels with their shells stuffed with a mixture made of breadcrumbs, garlic, extra virgin olive oil, parsley and a spoonful of grated parmesan cheese, which will give to the mussels au gratin that typical crust that incorporates the seafood.

If you've been searching for an indulgent way to jazz up your favorite mac and cheese recipe, look no further. This outstanding lobster mac and cheese is the perfect elegant yet rich dish to serve when you're in the mood to treat yourself or want to impress loved ones on special occasions.

Shrimp scampi is one of those amazing dishes that tastes incredible, is simple and fast to make, yet remains elegant enough to serve for special occasions as well as a flavorful weeknight dinner.

If you're in the mood for a quick-to-make, easy yet elegant dinner, you'll adore this simple creamy salmon pasta recipe. Made from oven-roasted salmon, spinach, and al dente linguine served in a creamy white wine-based sauce, salmon pasta feels luxurious without the hassle of having to prep and cook an elaborate meal.

You'll love this super easy hearty Tuscan chicken mac ‘n cheese. It's a fast, delicious one-pot meal that's perfect for busy weeknights – you can make it under half an hour. Tuscan chicken mac ‘n cheese is a protein-packed dish with savory cheesy, spinach, juicy chicken, and boasts a silky, creamy texture.

Everyone loves pasta and its endless combinations, even if nothing beats the most classic pasta recipes. Spaghetti Bolognese is a classic Italian pasta recipe everyone likes. The Bolognese sauce is rich, thick and flavorful.

If you're looking for a simple yet elegant, flavorful meal you can make for special occasions, you'll love this phenomenal lobster tail recipe. It's an ideal dinner to serve up for anniversaries, birthdays, Valentine's Day, or over the holidays.

If you've been searching for a nutritious dinner you can make on busy weekday nights, try broiled salmon. This pink-fleshed fish is full of healthy fats and other nutrients, making it a great addition to any diet. The beauty of this broiled salmon dinner is that it's not only absurdly easy to make, it also takes less than 30 minutes from the time you start cooking to the moment you dig into your first bite. Enjoy it on its own, or serve with a side of roasted veggies, rice, or noodles.

With its delicious citrus-soy-honey marinade, orange-glazed salmon is a seriously delicious dish you can whip up in under 20 minutes. Just pop the salmon in the pan, add the orange juice, garlic, honey, and soy sauce, and reduce the mixture until you get a gorgeous, ultra-flavor sauce.

When you're trudging your way through a busy week, you might find yourself with little energy left over to cook. For those busy weeknights when you want something fast and healthy that doesn't skimp on flavor, make garlic butter shrimp.

Beef Wellington is a rich, impressive main course of English origin, perfect for holidays and special occasions. Beef wellington consists of a tenderloin fillet coated with mushroom and ham, wrapped in buttery puff pastry and finally baked.

If you want to cook up an irresistibly delicious dish that's fast and easy to make, look no further than marry me chicken. Made from juicy, tender chicken in a rich, tangy, creamy sauce made from heavy cream, parmesan, and sundried tomatoes, marry me chicken is said to be so good, it'll make your partner propose.

Decadent, show-stopping prime rib roast is the perfect main dish to serve on holidays and special occasions as it feeds a crows. Tender, juicy meat becomes rich and flavorful as it roasts in the oven with aromatic herbs and vegetables. Just remember to serve the prime rib roast rare or medium and never well done.

Chicken parmesan is one of those timeless dinners that is always a big hit. Made with tender, moist chicken breasts coated in crispy breadcrumbs and topped with rich marinara sauce and fresh mozzarella, it's no wonder folks love this delicious Italian-American dish.

When the weather is cold, nothing hits the spot quite like a homemade hearty stew. This delicious coq au vin recipe is ideal for when the weather is chilly.

Caprese Chicken incorporates all the wonderful ingredients of a Caprese salad, into a quick and easy dinner. Basically, Italian Caprese ingredients are stuffed into pockets into the chicken breast, covered with an egg and sour cream mixture, and baked to perfection. The texture? Expect juicy, tender chicken with pops of flavor from the pesto, tomato, and cheese.

This Valentine's Day, if you want to impress your date with a sweet but easy-to-make dessert, try making Valentine's sugar cookies. These tasty heart-shaped sugar cookies are a variation of old-school sugar cookies but decorated with royal icing, so you can draw different themed designs and write sweet messages on them.

Heart-shaped cake is a wonderful dessert you can serve up for Valentine's Day, anniversaries, or simply to let someone know you care. This delicious cake is a classic red velvet cake, with the same irresistible lighter-than-air, moist, soft texture, and subtle chocolate-vanilla flavor, topped off with decadent cream cheese frosting.

It’s that time of the year again where love is in the air, and everything is decorated with red hearts and cupids! So what better time to make Valentine’s Day cupcakes? These hidden heart cupcakes are perfect for making a special baked good for your loved one.

If you want to surprise your partner by showing off your culinary skills this Valentine's Day, try making these delicious Valentine cake pops. They're made from a decadent mixture of chocolate cake mixed with a chocolate buttercream shaped into a ball or heart and dipped in a festive pink candy melt coating.

This Valentine's Day, impress your date by making this beautiful, delicious no-bake heart-shaped cheesecake. Made with sweet raspberries, decadent cream cheese, and Greek yogurt sweetened to perfection and set on an irresistible graham cracker crust, heart-shaped cheesecake is a mouthwateringly tasty dessert that's surprisingly easy to make.

This Valentine's Day, treat your date by whipping up a batch of homemade Valentine's Day cupcakes. These adorable, delicious cupcakes have a mouthwatering chocolate flavor and are topped with decadent, silky vanilla cream cheese frosting.

Making a homemade dessert for your sweetheart is such a romantic thing to do for Valentine's Day and other special occasions like birthdays and anniversaries. This Valentine's Day, instead of going out to buy a box of chocolates, why not make these easy red velvet cake balls?

Do you want to tell in a special way that you love him or her? Surprise your great love by serving this delicious dessert after a romantic dinner. And if you still do not have a partner, it is also a nice way to show your friends how much you love them, I am sure that after giving them to try this delight, they will love you much more.

Chocolate raspberry truffles are an incredible homemade treat that is virtually effortless to make. With a rich, slightly bittersweet chocolate flavor swirled with a delicious hint of raspberry, these chocolate raspberry truffles are delicious and oh-so-satisfying. These bite-sized desserts are perfect for those moments when you want to whip up an easy-to-make dessert or are looking for a simple yet elegant and colorful homemade gift to give friends and family.

With its rich, indulgent creamy vanilla-flavored custard and sweet, caramelly, crispy top, crème brûlée is one of the most popular and recognizable French desserts. Crème brûlée is served so the pudding-like custard is cold and the crispy top is warm – the perfect contrast.

With its beautiful, mouthwatering chocolate-vanilla flavor and eye-catching red color, red velvet cake is a much-loved American dessert that's is perfect for any occasion. This delicious cake gets its name from its rich, velvety texture and stunning red color.

Think the air fryer is only for savory dishes? Think again! This chocolate molten cake will change the way you thought about your air fryer forever! Many home cooks are hesitant to make lava cakes, as it’s difficult to get right. But not this Air Fryer Lava Cake.

For a luxurious, decadent dessert that's super easy to make yet is sure to impress, you'll love this fantastic chocolate fondue recipe. Chocolate fondue is ideal for special occasions like Valentine's Day, anniversaries, birthdays, or any time you want to dazzle with your culinary skills.

Red velvet cupcakes are beautiful baked treats that anyone can whip up with ease. This simple recipe is the cupcake version of the classic popular red velvet cake.

Who wants a bouquet of flowers when you can have a cupcake bouquet? This rose cupcake bouquet is an easy, impressive recipe for a special occasion like Mother’s Day or Valentine’s Day.

Fudgy, rich Southern chocolate cobbler is a chocolate lover's delight. It's a virtually effortless dessert to make and is fantastic for all sorts of occasions, from potlucks to parties, or any time you're entertaining guests at home.

Red velvet whoopie pies are the best of both worlds. Somewhere in between a cake and cookie in texture, these mouthwatering sweet treats are fluffy, moist, and tender, loaded with that classic subtle chocolate-vanilla red velvet flavor. The cookies are stuffed with silky smooth cream cheese frosting, making each bite heavenly.

There's nothing like a warm homemade pear cobbler fresh out of the oven, especially topped with a dollop of vanilla bean ice cream. Packed with ripe, juicy, sweet slices of pear layered over cinnamon-spiced sweet cake-like batter, pear cobbler couldn't be simple to make.

Who doesn't love red velvet cake? If you're in the mood for an easy homemade treat to satisfy your sweet tooth, why not make these delicious red velvet brownies? This irresistible recipe is the brownie version of the classic red velvet cake, and it's so easy, even novice bakers can whip up a batch without any problems.

Drink your dessert with this easy chocolate martini recipe. With its rich, creamy texture and boozy chocolatey flavor, this sweet dessert version of the classic martini is always a winner. It's a fantastic drink to serve after dinner when you're in the mood for something sweet but don't want to make a proper dessert.

The Cosmopolitan is a strong classic American cocktail based on vodka but it is a drink that immediately makes you think of New York. In fact, served in a cone glass, the Cosmopolitan cocktail was drunk for the first time by the singer Madonna at the Rainbow Room in New York City but became famous for the Sex and the City television series thanks to one of the protagonists, Carrie Bradshaw, who tells about her life during parties while sipping this red-colored drink.