Dinner for two

Whether you’re a young couple just starting a life together or empty nesters starting to downsize, Chef Belinda Smith-Sullivan’s just-for-two recipes are sure to please.

Individual Beef Wellington with Chateau Potatoes

SERVES 2

Steak

2 filet mignons, 1½-inches thick

Kosher salt

Fresh ground black pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

Dijon mustard

Mushroom Duxelles

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 small shallot, minced

1 small clove garlic, minced

4 ounces sliced mushrooms

Kosher salt

Fresh ground black pepper

1 tablespoon dry sherry or vermouth, optional

1 sheet puff pastry, thawed according to package instructions

¼ cup heavy cream

Red wine sauce or steak sauce, for serving (optional)

Chateau Potatoes

6–8 small red potatoes

Paprika or preferred seasoning

Olive oil or vegetable cooking spray

Preheat oven to 425 F. Season the filets with salt and pepper; smear with oil and let rest for 30 minutes. In a medium skillet over medium-high heat, sear filets on each side for 1 minute. Remove from pan; allow to cool and smear with mustard. In the same skillet, add butter, shallots and garlic. Add mushrooms and cook until mushrooms are tender. Add sherry and cook a little longer until liquid has evaporated. Remove from pan and let cool slightly.

On a floured surface, roll out the dough slightly and cut in half. Place half of the mushroom mixture on the dough and place a filet on top. Using your fingers or a pastry brush, brush a little water around the outside edges of the pastry dough. Wrap pastry around filet into a pocket and place on a baking sheet, lined with parchment paper, seam side down. Brush the outside of the pastry with heavy cream. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes or until pastry is golden brown.

Lower oven temperature to 400 F. Peel potatoes and cut off each end. Slice down each side until you have four even sides, then again down each pointed edge until you have 8-sided potatoes. Season lightly with paprika and place on a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Bake for one hour, turning once, until potatoes are brown and done.

To serve, smear some of the red wine sauce or steak sauce on the plate and cover with a beef wellington and the chateau potatoes. 

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Lasagna for Two

SERVES 2

6 lasagna noodles, cooked

2 tablespoons olive oil 

¾ pound ground beef

½ onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1–2 cups marinara/pasta sauce (store-bought or homemade)

1 tablespoon fresh chopped basil (or 1 teaspoon Italian herb seasoning)

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper

1½ cups shredded/grated mozzarella cheese

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Finely chopped parsley or basil

Preheat oven to 375 F. In a medium skillet over medium heat, add oil. Crumble the ground beef into skillet and brown. Add the onions and cook until tender; add the garlic and cook an additional minute. Add marinara sauce, basil and red pepper, and stir to combine. Let cool.

In individual casserole dishes sprayed with cooking spray, spread a thin layer of meat sauce. Layer pieces of lasagna noodles (cut to fit the size of the dish) followed by meat sauce, mozzarella cheese and Parmesan. Continue for two layers, if possible, and top with a layer of pasta and meat sauce. Bake for 30 minutes or until bubbly. Remove from oven and let cool slightly. Garnish with additional Parmesan cheese and chopped basil. 

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Cajun Shrimp over Dirty Rice

SERVES 2

2–3 cups cooked rice, prepared with chicken stock

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 andouille sausage link, quartered horizontally and cut into ¼-inch pieces

½ red bell pepper, diced

½ onion, diced

¼ cup chopped celery

1 teaspoon minced garlic

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon fresh parsley

½ tablespoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon thyme

Kosher salt

Fresh ground black pepper

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1–2 tablespoons olive oil

1 pound colossal shrimp 

Cajun or blackened seasoning

Chopped parsley, for garnish

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat oil. Add sausage and cook until starting to brown. Add bell pepper, onion and celery and continue cooking until vegetables are tender. Add garlic and cook an additional minute. Sprinkle flour over mixture and stir until starts to thicken. Add mixture to rice and stir in parsley, oregano, thyme, salt and black and cayenne peppers. Season shrimp with Cajun seasoning. In the same skillet, over medium heat, add oil. Sauté shrimp until no longer pink, 2–3 minutes per side. To serve, plate rice and top with shrimp. Garnish with chopped parsley.

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Salmon Cakes over Hearts Salad

MAKES 4 LARGE SALMON CAKES 

Salmon Cakes

1-pound fresh salmon filet, cooked and flaked*

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

1 small onion, finely diced

½ red bell pepper, small diced

¾ cups seasoned breadcrumbs

¼ cup heavy cream

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

¼ cup fresh parsley, minced 

Kosher salt

Fresh ground black pepper

Salad

1 romaine hearts lettuce, chopped and rinsed

½ cup hearts of artichokes, quartered

½ cup hearts of palm, sliced

1 avocado, diced

3 radishes, thinly sliced

¼ small red onion, thinly sliced

¼ cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1/3 cup olive oil

Kosher salt

Fresh ground black pepper

In a medium skillet over medium heat, heat one tablespoon oil and one tablespoon butter. Add onions and bell pepper and sauté until tender. Cool slightly. Into a large bowl, add salmon, onion and pepper mixture, breadcrumbs, heavy cream, Worcestershire sauce, parsley, salt and pepper. Stir to combine and form into four patties, about ½-inch thick. Use a large ice cream scoop to ensure even-sized patties.

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat one tablespoon oil and one tablespoon butter. Cook patties 3–4 minutes on each side until golden brown. If patties brown too quickly, reduce heat. Add additional oil and butter as necessary. Remove from skillet and keep warm.

In a large salad bowl, add lettuce, hearts of artichokes, hearts of palm, avocados, radishes and onions. In a small jar or mixing bowl, combine lemon juice, mustard, oil, salt and black pepper, and shake or whisk vigorously. Drizzle over salad and toss lightly. Serve on a large platter or divide between two plates.

*Canned salmon can be used in place of fresh-cooked salmon. Be sure to drain thoroughly before use.

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Fried Goat Cheese And Arugula Salad

SERVES 2

Vinaigrette

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Salad

¼ pound fresh goat cheese

¼ cup dried bread crumbs

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

½ teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

2 cups baby arugula (or spring mix lettuce)

1 tablespoon olive oil

To make the vinaigrette, in a bowl, combine 2 tablespoons olive oil and the vinegar and gently whisk or mix with a fork. Add the salt and pepper. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Set aside.

Shape the cheese into 2 equal rounds, each 3 inches in diameter and ½-inch thick. In a bowl, stir together the bread crumbs, salt, pepper and thyme. Spread this mixture on a piece of waxed or parchment paper. Working with 1 round of cheese at a time, press both sides into the mixture to coat it. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the arugula with the vinaigrette and toss to coat. Divide the salad on 2 salad plates. Set aside.

In a small, nonstick skillet over medium heat, warm the remaining olive oil. Add the cheese rounds and cook until lightly golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Turn the rounds over and cook until the cheese begins to melt and spread slightly, about 1 minute more. Remove the skillet from the heat. Using a spatula, quickly transfer each browned cheese round to a salad, gently sliding it on top. Serve immediately.

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Chicken Piccata

SERVES 2

2 tablespoons butter, room temperature, separated

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, plus more for dredging

2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons seasoned bread crumbs

2 tablespoons olive oil

½ cup dry white wine

¼ cup fresh lemon juice

¼ cup unsalted chicken stock

2 tablespoons drained capers

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Lemon slices

Mix 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon flour in small bowl until smooth. Roll into 2 small balls (called beurre manié). Set aside.

Place chicken halves between 2 large sheets of plastic wrap. Using meat pounder or bottom of a cast-iron skillet, lightly pound chicken to ¼-inch thickness. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Place additional flour and bread crumbs in shallow dish. Dip chicken into flour mixture to coat; shake off excess.

In a large skillet over medium heat, warm olive oil. Add chicken breasts to skillet and cook until golden and cooked through, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to platter; tent with foil to keep warm.

In the same skillet, bring wine, lemon juice and chicken stock to boil over medium-high heat. Whisk in the beurre manié, one at a time, and boil until sauce thickens slightly, about 2 minutes. (If sauce gets too thick, add more stock until sauce is desired consistency.) Stir in capers, parsley and the remaining tablespoon of butter. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Pour sauce over chicken, garnish with lemon slices and serve.

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Recipe tips

Why pound chicken breast? Pounding chicken breasts redistributes the thickness of the meat so the halves become more evenly shaped. This allows the meat to cook faster and evenly and to retain its juiciness. You can use a meat mallet/pounder, but the bottom of a cast-iron skillet is faster, easier and less likely to tear the meat.

What is a beurre manié? This is a kneaded dough of equal parts butter and flour, used to thicken sauces and soups toward the end of the cooking process. It’s the easiest and most desired way of thickening. Adding flour to hot liquids will result in a clumpy sauce. With beurre manié, you prevent this from happening because the individual flour particles are coated with fat (butter). The butter melts as you whisk the beurre manié into the sauces, releasing the flour evenly into the liquid as it thickens.

Stock or broth? The difference is in the ingredients. Stocks are made with bones and vegetables and contain no seasoning or salt. Broths are made with meat and vegetables and are seasoned. Both can be used as the base for soups and sauces. However, the gelatinous quality of stock (from the bones’ marrow) makes it better than broth for deglazing pans and is often used in place of butter or creams to make sauces. If a recipe calls for stock, broth can be substituted—just remember to adjust for the salt and seasonings already included.

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Orzo With Roasted Red Peppers

SERVES 2

½ tablespoon organic butter

½ tablespoon olive oil

½ medium onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

Half of a 7-ounce jar roasted red peppers, chopped

½ teaspoon plus 1 tablespoon kosher salt, separated

Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes

1½ cups unsalted vegetable stock

1½ cups water

½ pound orzo pasta

¼ cup coarsely chopped basil

¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, warm butter and olive oil. Add the onion, and sauté until softened and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, and sauté another minute. Add the red peppers, ½ teaspoon salt and crushed red pepper flakes to the onion-and-garlic mixture. Sauté an additional 3–4 minutes or until all ingredients are combined. Remove from heat.

In another medium saucepan, combine vegetable stock and water, and bring to a boil. Add 1 tablespoon salt and the orzo pasta. Cook according to package directions, about 7–8 minutes. Reserve approximately 1 cup of cooking liquid before draining pasta.

Add drained pasta to the pot containing the onion-and-pepper mixture. Stir with a rubber spatula, being sure to incorporate the vegetables throughout the pasta. Add the basil and Parmesan cheese, and stir to combine. If the pasta looks dry, gradually add some of the reserved cooking water until properly moistened. Serve hot. (If orzo is prepared the day ahead, reheat in the microwave.)

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Recipe tip

What’s the best way to cook pasta?

• Water: Use 1 gallon of water per 1 pound of pasta.
• Salting the water: Use 2–3 tablespoons for every gallon of water.
• Adding pasta to the water: Add all at once and stir immediately to prevent pasta from sticking together.
• Cooking time: Use the suggested cooking time as a guide, but check a few minutes before the end time. Pasta should be served “al dente,” meaning tender but firm to the bite.
• Adding oil to the water: Don’t do it! Adding oil to the water prevents the pasta from absorbing the sauce.
• Draining: Save ½ cup of the cooking liquid; you may use some to finish the pasta with the sauce.
• Rinsing pasta: Don’t rinse unless you are serving cold pasta in a salad. To prevent it from sticking or clumping together, if not serving immediately, stir in a cup of sauce.
• Amount per person: As the main course, 4 ounces; as a side, 2 ounces. For uncooked spaghetti noodles, 2 ounces is a handful with a diameter about the size of a quarter. For uncooked elbow macaroni, 2 ounces measures about half a cup.

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Chocolate Panna Cotta

SERVES 2

1½ cups heavy cream

1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin

1½ tablespoons sugar

Pinch of salt

1½ ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate morsels

Whipped cream (optional)

1 tablespoon crystallized ginger or candied orange peel, chopped (optional)

Ground chocolate or cocoa (optional)

Into a small bowl, pour ¼ cup of the heavy cream. Sprinkle the gelatin over it, and let stand until softened, about 10 minutes. Place the bowl into a larger bowl of hot water, and stir mixture until the gelatin is dissolved.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring the remaining cream, sugar and salt just to a boil. Remove the pan from the heat, add the chocolate and whisk until smooth. Add the gelatin mixture to the chocolate mixture, and stir until well blended. Pour the custard through a strainer into a glass measuring cup or a bowl with a pour spout. Divide the mixture evenly between two 5- or 6-ounce custard cups, and let cool to room temperature. Cover loosely and refrigerate until set and thoroughly chilled, at least 3 hours or up to 1 day. Garnish with optional toppings such as whipped cream, crystallized ginger, candied orange peel and ground chocolate, if desired.

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Pan Seared Fish With Tomatoes And Olives

SERVES 2

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 white fish fillets (cod, halibut, turbot)

Seafood seasoning (or salt and pepper)

½ onion, thinly sliced

1 large garlic clove, minced

½ cup quartered grape tomatoes

2 tablespoons white wine

½ tablespoon fresh lemon juice

¼ cup halved Kalamata olives

1 tablespoon chopped basil

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat oil. Season fish fillets and fry on both sides until brown. Add onion and saute 2 minutes; add garlic and cook an additional minute. Add tomatoes, wine, lemon juice and olives. Continue cooking until the fish has cooked through and sauce is reduced. Plate and serve with additional sauce and garnish with basil.

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Honey Mustard Garlic Roasted Pork Tenderloin

SERVES 2

¼ cup Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons honey

2 large garlic cloves, minced

Kosher salt

Fresh ground black pepper

1 pork tenderloin, silverskin trimmed

1 tablespoon olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 F. In a small bowl, combine mustard, honey, garlic, salt and pepper. Using a small basting brush, rub the mixture all over the tenderloin until coated.

In a large cast-iron or oven-proof skillet over medium-high heat, add oil. Sear the tenderloin on all sides. Baste with any remaining sauce. Transfer skillet to preheated oven and roast 10–15 minutes until tenderloin reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees. Remove from oven and tent with foil; let rest at least 5 minutes before slicing and serving.

Chef’s tip: Know the difference between a pork tenderloin and a pork loin. The tenderloin is the long, narrow boneless cut of meat that comes from the muscle that runs along the backbone of a pig. These usually weigh about 1½ pounds and are sold two to a packet. The loin is wider, flatter, and comes from the back of the animal. The average weight is about 6­–8 pounds.

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Bucatini Bolognese

SERVES 2

Bucatini (or your favorite pasta)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 celery stalk, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

1 pound ground beef

1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes

2 tablespoons fresh chopped flatleaf parsley

2 tablespoons fresh chopped basil

Grated Parmesan cheese

Cook pasta according to package cooking recommendations, drain (reserving 1 cup of cooking liquid) and keep warm.

In a large skillet (or small dutch oven) over medium heat, add oil. Saute onions until soft, about 8 minutes. Add garlic and cook an additional minute. Add celery and carrots and saute for 5 minutes. Crumble in ground beef and cook, stirring until meat is no longer pink. Reduce heat to medium-low. Stir in tomatoes, parsley and basil, and cook until sauce thickens, about 30 minutes. Serve bucatini in pasta bowls topped with Bolognese sauce. Garnish with Parmesan cheese.

Chef’s tip: If bucatini or Bolognese sit for an extended period before serving and get a little dried out, toss with a bit of the reserved cooking liquid.

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Beef Filets with Sauteed Mushrooms

SERVES 2

2 6- to 8-ounce beef filets

Kosher salt

Fresh ground black pepper

Olive oil

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

8 ounces bella mushrooms, sliced

Kosher salt

Fresh ground black pepper

1 teaspoon fresh thyme

Preheat oven to 400 F. Season filets with salt and pepper on both sides. In a large cast-iron skillet over medium high heat, add oil. (Open a window or turn on cooktop vent to help with ventilation.) When skillet is very hot, almost to the smoking point, add filets. Sear 2 minutes on each side. Transfer skillet to preheated oven and cook 5–6 minutes for medium-rare. Cook 1–2 minutes longer for each level of doneness over medium-rare. For example: 6–7 minutes for medium or 8–9 minutes for medium-well. Remove from oven and tent with foil for at least 5 minutes.

While waiting, prepare mushrooms. In a medium skillet over medium-high heat, melt butter. Add mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Stir to coat with butter and spread out in pan. Let cook without stirring for 5 minutes. Turn over and cook an additional 2–3 minutes until all liquid is evaporated from pan. Turn off heat and stir in thyme. 

Chef’s Tip: All meats—beef, pork and poultry—have an ideal cooking temperature, so pay close attention to recipe instructions and check cooked temperature with a meat thermometer.

Cooked steak temperatures:

• Very rare/rare = 120 to 125 F
• Medium rare = 125 to 130 F
• Medium = 135 to 140 F
• Medium well = 145 to 150 F
• Well done= 160 F and above

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Related stories

Prepping pork tenderloin—Before cooking a pork tenderloin, you’ll need to remove the silver skin membrane. A butcher can do this for you, but it’s also an easy do-it-yourself job. Chef Belinda shows us how it’s done in this how-to video.

Cast-iron cleaning—Don’t shy away from your cast-iron skillet because you think it’s hard to clean.