Sunday, November 25, 2007

At Home Date Night

My husband and I love to go out to eat and see movies. The problem is it's expensive and we have to find a babysitter. That's why we only go out once in a great while.

Instead of going out a lot, my husband and I have a date night at home every Saturday night. First we make dinner for the kids, usually something simple that they enjoy (sloppy joes, hot dogs, hamburgers, ham, etc). Then when the kids are done eating and go off to play or watch TV, my husband makes some cocktails and we cook a nice meal together.

I still try to make something simple, but I make it a little more special than our weekday meals. Last night we made grilled pork tenderloin, butternut squash, and salad with honey mustard dressing. It was so good. This is a great meal that doesn't cost too much and is simple to cook! We get everything ready, put the youngest to bed, then grill and eat in peace.

Grilled Pork Tenderloin

1 pork tenderloin
olive oil
garlic powder
oregano
salt
pepper
crushed red pepper flakes

Just rub as much of the spices as you like on the tenderloin and grill until pink in the center!

Butternut Squash

1 butternut squash
butter
maple syrup
salt
pepper

Cut the squash in half and scoop out seeds. Lay skin side down in baking pan with a little water on the bottom. Put butter, a little maple syrup, salt, and pepper on top. Cover with tin foil and bake 350' until soft (about 1-1/2 hour). Scoop the flesh of the squash out into a bowl to serve.

Honey Mustard Dressing

1 cup olive oil
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons prepared mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Whisk ingredients together and pour on salad when serving.

For the salad I used Boston bibb lettuce, a little red onion, 1 tomato, sweet red pepper, crispy bacon, and shredded cheddar cheese. I pour lots of honey mustard dressing on it so I have plenty to dip my pork into. So simple. So delicious!

6 comments:

Mary said...

I love your dinner dates! Your dinner sounded and looked delicious!

Kitty said...

Mmmmmmm, now I'm hungry! :-)

suchsimplepleasures said...

what a great idea! and...that's my kind of meal. sounds so yummy!
we hardly ever go out. it's hard to find a sitter that really wants to babysit five kids! so, i may have to borrow your at home date night idea...
have a good day!

Amy said...

sounds yummy and it's so nice to have some time for each other...good for you!

Becky said...

Mmmm, everything looked delicious!

That's a great idea, too...having date night at home, with a separate dinner.

Suburban Correspondent said...

Hang in there! One more year, and you've grown your own babysitter! Larry and I can do a 10-dollar date, too - split a fajita burrito at Chipotle, head over to Starbucks and pick up two kid-size hot cocoas. Then we hang out at the neighboring bookstore. It feels good to get out of the house.

Thanks for stopping by my blog!