The Ultimate Steak Dinner

Nuthin says luvin like a T-Bone in the Oven. Fellas Do you have a special girl who you really want to impress. Does your wife or girlfriend complain that you are not romantic. Maybe you're in the dog house and wanna get out. Did you forget her birthday again? Well I have good news, Here is a meal that will get you out of trouble 98% of the time. This meal is 100% guaranteed to earn Cuddle points. Even if your idea of romantic is Netflix and Doritos this dinner will work for you.

This Dinner is a complete experience, so execution is the name of this game. You will need a few special items, excellent timing and an accomplice. It is important that the experience is more special than the meal so Do not take any short cuts. Yes you could take her out to an expensive restaurant, it will not have the same effect, so no restaurant food. You must cook this meal yourself.

What you need to do:

Step One - Set the mood:

• Have your accomplice occupy your mate. get her hair done, nails etc. for extra Cuddle points, tell your mate it's on you. You could even arrange to have your accomplice take her shopping for a dress that she can wear to the dinner, at your expense of course.

• One table cloth

• 2 place mattes

• 2 tall wine glasses

• 2 drinking (water glasses)

• 2 ceramic/glass dinner plates (DO NOT USE PAPER PLATES) Alternatively for extra cuddle points use a sizzle platter. you will need two.

• One complete set of silverware

• flowers, use roses for extra cuddle points

• candles (at least two)

• 2 cloth napkins with napkin rings.

• Soft music

• Netflix

• For extra cuddle points sprinkle rose peddles on the table.

Step two - Prepare the food:

• Lemonade, soda/pop or Kool-aide, water is ok too.

• Champaign, Wine or alcoholic beverage of your choice. If your girl does not drink I suggest a sweet red wine.

• 2 T-Bone Steaks

• 1-2 lbs of shrimp (more if you like)

• 2 medium to large baking potatoes

• 1 bunch of asparagus

• 2 lobster tails (the biggest that you can afford)

• one bunch of romaine lettuce (Do Not Use Iceberg Lettuce)

• Caesar salad dressing, croutons and parmesan cheese. You will need to find out what kind of salad dressing she likes before hand. If she is not a huge salad fan you can skip this or just make a Caesar salad.

• Bread sticks or garlic toast. (some type of bread or roll).

Step 3 - Cook:

By now you should have a good understanding of what we are going for. This meal will show your girl that you do have a romantic, sensitive side. I must warn you though, this is a super special occasion meal only, unless you plan to be her personal chef don't cook like this everyday.

when cooking try to coordinate your dates arrival with your food being done. You don't want cold food.

The Gold Brick.

Hot Fudge Brownie and Ice Cream. This is the money in the bank. Your insurance. Even if you managed to somehow ruin the whole rest of the meal. get this right and all else is forgiven.

Ingredients

• 2 ½ sticks unsalted butter, plus more, softened, for greasing

• 8 oz good-quality semisweet chocolate, or bittersweet chocolate, 60-70% cacao, roughly chopped

• ¾ cup unsweetened dutch process cocoa powder, divided

• 1 tablespoon espresso powder

• 2 cups granulated sugar

• ½ cup dark brown sugar, packed

• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• 2 teaspoons kosher salt

• 6 large eggs

• 1 cup all-purpose flour

• flaky sea salt, for sprinkling

Preparation

1. Grease a 9x13-inch (23x33-cm) dark metal pan with softened butter, then line with parchment paper, leaving overhang on all sides. Grease the parchment with softened butter.

2. Combine the chopped chocolate, ¼ cup (30 g) of cocoa powder, and espresso powder in a heatproof liquid measuring cup or medium bowl and set aside.

3. Add the butter to a small saucepan over medium heat and cook until the butter just comes to a vigorous simmer, about 5 minutes, swirling the pan occasionally. Immediately pour the hot butter over the chocolate mixture and let sit for 2 minutes. Whisk until the chocolate is completely smooth and melted, then set aside.

4. Combine the granulated sugar, brown sugar, vanilla extract, salt, and eggs in a large bowl. Beat with an electric hand mixer on high speed until light and fluffy, about 10 minutes. It will be similar to the texture of very thick pancake batter.

5. With the mixer on, pour in the slightly cooled chocolate and butter mixture and blend until smooth.

6. Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350°F (180°C).

7. Sift in the flour and remaining cocoa powder and use a rubber spatula to gently fold until just combined.

8. Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and smooth the top with a spatula. Bake until lightly puffed on top, about 20 minutes.

9. Remove the baking pan from the oven using oven mitts or kitchen towels, then lightly drop the pan on a flat surface 1-2 times until the brownies deflate slightly. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt.

10. Return the pan to the oven and bake until a wooden skewer inserted into the center of the brownies comes out fudgy but the edges look cooked through, about 20 minutes more. The center of the brownies will seem under-baked, but the brownies will continue to set as they cool.

11. Set the brownies on a cooling rack and cool completely in the pan.

12. Use the parchment paper to lift the cooled brownies out of the pan. Cut into 24 bars and serve immediately.

13. Enjoy!

• TIP Make the brownies first. (before you cook the full meal). Then after you eat heat the fudge up in the microwave and poor over the ice cream and brownie and serve.

Baked Potatoes

1. Heat oven to 450°F. Yep, you read the temperature right. The oven needs to be extra hot, so that the potato skins will crisp up quickly.

2. Prepare your foil sheets. tear off two foil sheets large enough to rap each potato in with out a lot of excess foil..

3. Poke your potato all over with a fork. Because no one wants to deal with exploding potatoes. ;)

4. Brush the potato with melted butter or olive oil. Use a pastry brush to brush the potato with melted butter or olive oil evenly on all sides. Sprinkle the potato with a generous pinch of Kosher salt. Then rap each potato in a sheet of foil and place them in the center of the oven.

5. Wait 20 minutes. After 20 minutes flip the potatoes over and Bake for an additional 20 minutes. Then very carefully, use an oven mitt to squeeze the potato (it will be hot) to check for doneness. If the insides are nice and soft and give under pressure, remove the potato from the oven. Alternatively you can use a fork or tooth pic. If the fork is easy to insert the potato is done. Otherwise, continue cooking in 5-minute increments until the potato is ready to go. Cooking time will vary depending on the size of the potatoes, but on average, they typically take 45-55 minutes to cook.

6. Cut, squeeze, fluff, season and serve! Finally, slice the potato open lengthwise with a paring knife, give it a good squeeze to open it up, fluff the insides with a fork, add your favorite seasonings or toppings. Then a perfectly crispy-on-the-outside, soft-and-fluffy-on-the-inside, and oh-so-delicious baked potato will now be yours to enjoy!

Broiled T-Bone Steak

1. Set your oven to broil

1. Move oven rack 6 inches from heating element and Place your cast iron skillet in the oven for 20 minutes. if you have sizzle skillets use them instead.

2. Bring your 1 to 2 inch steaks to room temperature and use a clean cloth to remove excess moisture.

3. Rub steaks with olive oil, kosher salt and coarsely ground pepper. NOTE: Use any seasonings of your choice.

4. Once the skillet is pre-heated, pull out the oven rack and carefully lay steaks on the skillet. NOTE: Pan is Extremely Hot and will spit and splatter.

5. Close oven and sear the steaks for 3 minutes on one side, turn and sear the opposite side for 3 minutes. DO NOT USE A FORK TO TURN STEAKS use tongs or a spatula.

6. Once seared, set the oven to 500F and cook using this Time Chart. Turn steaks half way through the remaining cooking time.

7. Rare (120-130F)1" 0-1 minute, 1 1/4" 2-3 minute, 1 3/4" 4-5 minute

8. Medium (140-150F) 1" 2-3 minute, 1 1/4" 4-5 minute, 1 3/4" 6-7 minute

9. Medium Well(150-160F) 1" 4-5 minute, 1 1/4" 6-7 minute, 1 3/4" 8-9 minute

10. Remove steaks from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes.

11. Serving on warm plates is recommended to maintain meat temperature.

Asparagus

1. In the same pan that you cooked the steak, using the steak drippings, cook the asparagus with salt and pepper until tender but still slightly crunchy. Remove from heat. serve with the steak.

Fried Shrimp

• 2 pounds jumbo shrimp devein and peel but leave tails on

• 1/2 cup all purpose flour

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

• 3 eggs beaten

• 1 3/4 cups panko breadcrumbs

• oil for frying

• lemon wedges and parsley for garnish optional

• cocktail sauce for serving

INSTRUCTIONS

• while oven is pre-heating for the steaks

• Place the flour in a medium size bowl along with the salt, pepper and garlic powder. Stir to combine.

• Place the eggs in a second bowl. Place the breadcrumbs in a third bowl.

• Dip each shrimp first into the flour, then into the egg, then roll in the breadcrumbs to coat evenly. Place each breaded shrimp on a sheet pan. Repeat the process until all shrimp are breaded. let rest.

• Heat 3 inches of oil in a cast iron skillet to 350 degrees F.

• Add 6 shrimp at a time and cook for 3-4 minutes or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

• Repeat the process with the remaining shrimp.

• Place the shrimp on a plate. Serve immediately with the steak and cocktail sauce. Garnish with lemon wedges and parsley if desired.

Boiled Lobster Tail

• Add water and salt to a large pot making sure its enough to cover the lobster tails.

• Bring the water to a boil, then carefully add the tails to the pot.

• Cook until the meat is translucent, pinkish-white, and shells are red, about 1 minute per ounce.

• Drain and allow to slightly cool before opening the shell to remove the meat. Add desired seasonings.

• Butterfly the tail

• after cooling Use sharp kitchen shears to cut the top part of the shell lengthwise. Start from the exposed meat side down to just before the tail fin.

• Remove any dark-lined digestive tract that runs down the middle of the tail if present and discard. Wash the tail with cool water and dry thoroughly.

• Flip the lobster tail over with the abdomen facing up. Use your thumbs to gently press the ribs to crack them. This will make it easier to open the top part of the shell and remove the meat.

• Open the shell starting at the wide base of the tail, run your fingers between the meat and shell to release. Carefully lift the meat out, but keep it attached to the tail end. Lay the lobster meat on top of the shell.

Garlic Bread Sticks

place your favorite brand of garlic bread sticks in the oven and bake for recommended cook time. serve immediately with salad.

Caesar Salad

While bread is baking. In a large mixing bowl, combine lettuce, crispy croutons, shaved parmesan and Caesar dressing, toss gently to coat the lettuce in the dressing. You can add grilled chicken breast also.