Valentine’s Day Treats PLUS Steak & Italian Potatoes with Triple Chocolate Cheesecake

All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt.

Charles M. Schulz

SBean is so excited! This is her last year in elementary school which means it is our last year of handing out classroom Valentines! The last few years have been difficult because of Covid protocols but this year, we are able to pick out a cute Valentine craft for all of SBean’s grade 5 friends! I wanted to keep it a packaged treat because although some people haven’t learned from the past 3 years, I have, 😂 this was the easiest Valentine we have ever made, it was just under $25 for the entire craft which is just under $1.00 a classmate and I’m pretty sure ALL the kids are going to love it!

I printed cards from Surviving a Teacher’s Salary, bought mini cereal boxes & bamboo spoons from Superstore and double sided tape and red ribbon from the Dollarstore and TA-DA! 25 adorable Valentine’s treats for SBean’s last class Valentine Party!

Valentine’s Day is next week but I’m just not feeling it this year. That sounds awful but it’s honestly how I feel. I don’t even remember Valentine’s Day last year. I had just been diagnosed and was in the middle of my first flareup & didn’t even know what month it was let alone day or holiday. I honestly thought by this time, things would be back to normal. They are normal, my newest normal. Gawd I’m really starting to hate that saying. Normal. Dumb word. I feel awful for Ninja. Every day he shows me how much he loves me, our kids, and our family by keeping our house running. I’m an acts of service kinda girl, and he shows his love in spades! He also uses words and affirmations! He also brings me home flowers and regular Starbucks! He also cuddles up close and makes me feel safe, warm, and protected. Plus, he has been home for the last month and a half and he will even lay in bed with me when I’m not feeling well and watch Harry and Meghan! Now that’s LOVE! 😂

So here’s the thing, I want to show him how much I appreciate him, but that takes brain power! Something I don’t have anymore 😂. It feels like every bit of my energy goes into keeping my pain management down, keeping my eyelids open, and staying on my feet rather than my ass 😆. Honestly! My Sis messaged me the other day and asked if we wanted to go away with them for a weekend this summer and it gave me anxiety. Not that I don’t want to spend time with them, of course I do! But planning… The thought of socializing… Thinking about disappointing people, and myself, if I have to cancel… it’s all so much. It’s overwhelming! A year ago all of those things I just said would have sounded like excuses to me, but now… It’s my reality.

I know this isn’t going to be how it is forever. I know this! I think of how far I’ve come in the last year and I know that by next year I will have come even further. I can be angry at myself or I can accept how it is right now and hope for better down the road.

With that being said, I’ve tried to plan a low-key afternoon Valentine date for my Ninja ❤️. Nothing too crazy with some thing that I can handle and I know will make Ninja happy. Ninja is happy when we spend time together and when I’m not sad.

I don’t know how I lucked out?! Ninja is a good man. A good man that has a fantastic head on his shoulders, an impressive work ethic, is crazy good looking, has a great sense of humour, and it is interested in learning new things. I honestly couldn’t ask for a better partner. I love you so much Ninja and I’m so happy that I have you by my side even though I don’t show it or say it 😜 every day. L-O-V-E. 😘

Check out How Was Your Week, Honey? Episode #314: Losers HERE! Topics: band-aids, Dr Horton, running into people, Little Shop of Horrors, Kevin the Goose, garage project reprise, snow plow names, handling cash, concert tickets, & what we’ve been watching.

This meal is Ninja’s love language. Steak, roasted potatoes, Caesar Salad and chocolate. It is the perfect date night dinner! It has a TON of garlic which is another one of my love languages 😂. When I want to show my appreciation for Ninja, this is the meal I make. Delicious garlic butter steaks with a hint of rosemary and crispy potatoes that are soft and creamy on the inside and topped with Italian seasoning and Parmesan! I serve it with Ninja’s FAVOURITE salad (my Caesar salad dressing took me years to perfect and he could probably bathe in it if we let him 😂). For dessert, SBean and Ninja made this Triple Chocolate Cheesecake for my MIL’s birthday last month but I think this would be a decadent chocolate treat for a romantic dinner for your Valentine!

You can half these recipes if you are making a dinner for 2 but I say don’t and have steak and eggs in bed the next day 😉💕.

Rosemary Garlic Butter Steak
Adapted from Vintage Kitchen Notes

3-4 sirloin strip steaks
5 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons rosemary, plus 2 sprigs more
3 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper
A splash of red wine

Mince 3 cloves of garlic and rosemary. Add 1 teaspoon salt and mince it a little longer.

Rub the paste over both sides of each steak. For tender steaks, make sue they are room temperature.

Heat a cast iron skillet over medium/high heat and melt butter. Add oil.

Add steaks, season them with salt pepper and cook 1 or 2 minutes.

Turn it over, cook it 2 or 3 more minutes and add the wine.

Add 2 cloves of smashed garlic and a sprig or 2 of rosemary to the skillet.

Cook the steak 2 or 3 additional minutes for medium rare, remove steaks and let rest for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the wine until reduced and a kind of sauce if formed.

Slice the steaks and serve them with the sauce.

Italian Roasted Potatoes
Adapted from Rasa Malaysia

1 lb. baby potatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 dashes paprika
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
2 tablespoons butter, cut into small cubes

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Clean and rinse the baby potatoes, drain and cut into halves.

Heat up a cast-iron or oven-safe skillet and add the oil. Add the potatoes and cook until the surface turns crispy. Toss until nicely browned.

Add the garlic, Italian seasoning, salt and paprika, stir to combine well.

Turn off the heat and sprinkle the cheese on top of the potatoes.

Transfer the skillet into the oven, roast for 15 minutes. Add the butter cubes on top of the potatoes, serve immediately.

Triple Chocolate Cheesecake

Adapted from OMG Chocolate Desserts

2 cups chocolate cookie crumbs
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

2 bricks cream cheese, room temperature
1 ½ cups powdered icing sugar
3 tablespoon cocoa powder
4 eggs, room temperature
10 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

3/4 cup heavy cream
6 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 tablespoon sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, grease a 9-inch springform pan and set aside.

Mix cookie crumbs and melted butter and blend until it’s all moistened.

Press crumb mixture onto the bottom of the prepared pan and bake for 6 minutes. Remove from the oven and set on a wire rack to cool while making the filling.

Melt 10 ounces bittersweet chocolate and set aside to cool.

Mix cream cheese and sugar until smooth, mix in cocoa powder.

Add the eggs one at a time, mixing on low speed and do not overbeat it.

Add melted chocolate and mix on low speed to combine.

Pour the filling over the crust and smooth the top.

Bake the cheesecake until the centre is set and the top looks dry (about 60-70 minutes).

Cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then run a thin knife around the sides of the pan and set the cake in the refrigerator (uncovered), for at least 8 hours, or overnight.

In a medium saucepan stir together cream, chocolate and sugar on low heat until the chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is smooth.

Cool and pour over the cheesecake.

When the topping is set and cooled again run a thin knife around the sides and remove the springform pan sides.

This cheesecake can be prepared up to 2-3 days in advance just store covered in the refrigerator.

SBean’s recovery went much smoother or should I say, smoothier 😜 than I thought it would. She really turned the corner exactly 1 week after surgery. She began eating solids, doing her homework, baking, then packing for school (I wouldn’t let her go until she ate 3 solid meals), and then finally she went back to school and gymnastics by day 10 & 11! We did V-Day crafts and I started a new February challenge with my group, February is for Self Love! I took a nasty spill this week, it happens more often than I would like to admit. My balance is off most days and apparently flip flops are the Devil’s shoes because I almost took myself out wearing them 😂. The swelling went down on Day 2 but the bruises remain and it’s still a little tender. I went grocery shopping, played with Oliver, finished my January Yoga Challenge with Adriene and read 2 fantastic books! I may need to do a book review post soon!! HBear had an incredibly busy week as she started semester 2 and the musical she has been working, Little Shop of Horrors finally hit the stage! HBear took a backstage role, as a gr. 9 student she wanted to learn about backstage, tech and how a big production works. She had a BLAST being involved and meeting new people. I think next year she will try for an onstage role but we’ll have to see 😀. We went to the Thursday show and a popcorn mishap led to the fire alarm going off and waiting outside for the fire department!! 😳😂 It was a great show though and we had a wonderful time watching all the talent, hardwork and dedication that went in to making it such a success! In between ALL that, Ninja worked on the garage. My Mom and Dad created a space for themselves when they moved out here 20 years ago. We have been talking about taking down the walls for a long time but we weren’t ready. We are now and Ninja did a GREAT job! I can’t wait to see it all finished!