Valentine's Day recipes

4 strawberries

4 slices of brioche or white bread

1 tbsp sugar

40g unsalted butter at room temperature

1 tsp cinnamon

Slice the strawberries and add a sprinkle of sugar, crush them a little with a fork and set aside. Switch on your toastie maker to warm up then butter the brioche thinly. Beat the remaining butter and sugar with the cinnamon.

Put two pieces of bread, butter side down, into the toastie maker. Spread the cinnamon butter on the exposed slices then top with slices of strawberry.

If lots of juice has come out of the strawberries, leave that behind in the bowl along with a few strawberry slices to decorate. Put the two remaining pieces of brioche on top, butter side up, and close the lid of the toastie maker.

Once the toasties are done, remove them from the machine and cut each into two triangles. Leave them for a few minutes to cool a little then serve with the leftover juices and strawberry slices poured over the top.

Ribeye Steaks with Red Wine Shallots and Bearnaise Sauce - Serves 4

Red Wine Shallots:

50g butter

500g shallots

1 tsp sugar

Salt and freshly ground pepper

2 sprigs thyme

250ml red wine, eg Cotes de Rhone

Peel the shallots, trim tops and root ends.

Heat the butter in a heavy saucepan and add the shallots. Cook until lightly golden on all sides, add the sugar, a little salt, pepper and thyme.

Add the wine; reduce again until two tablespoons are left. The shallots should be tender by now.

Remove from the heat and add another ½ tbsp of butter. Check seasoning before serving.

Bearnaise Sauce:

3 tbsp white wine vinegar

A shallot, chopped

6 black peppercorns

2 egg yolks

1 tsp Dijon mustard

150g chilled butter, diced

1 handful chopped, fresh tarragon

Put the vinegar, shallots and peppercorns into a small pan with two tablespoons of water.

Bring to the boil; simmer until very little liquid is left.

Put the egg yolks and reduced liquid into a heatproof bowl and sit over a pan of simmering water, the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water. Add the mustard and whisk well. Add the butter, a little at a time, whisking gently.

The sauce will thicken, keep whisking until it is creamy and thick. If the mixture looks like it is going to curdle add a little cold water or cream and remove from the heat, whisk for one minute then continue.

Ribeye Steaks:

4x250g British ribeye steaks

A little cold pressed rapeseed oil and a knob of butter

Sea salt and black pepper

To cook the steaks, heat a frying pan or a griddlepan over a medium heat then add a good dash of rapeseed oil and a knob of butter.

When the butter is foaming, add the steaks to the pan and cook on one side for 2-3 minutes for rare or a little longer for medium, then turn and cook on the other side for the same time. Remove from the pan, rest for two minutes and serve with the shallots, some thick cut chips and the Bearnaise sauce.

Beetroot and Vanilla Cupcakes with Rose Butter Icing

Makes 12 cupcakes

For the cupcakes:

175g caster sugar

175g unsalted butter

3 large eggs, separated

175g self-raising flour

175 plain cooked (vacuum packed) beetroot, drained (hold a few drops of juice back to use as colouring) and pureed

1 tbsp vanilla extract

For the icing:

300g Icing sugar

150g unsalted butter, slightly softened

A few drops rose flower water, to taste

A few drops beetroot juice, to colour

For the crystallised rose petals:

3 organic pink roses, separated into petals

1 egg white

Caster sugar (a sprinkling)

Make the crystallised rose petals the day before you want to serve the cupcakes. They will keep in an airtight box for a few weeks.

Lay out a piece of silicon-coated baking paper on a tray. Pick through the petals and choose the 12 loveliest-looking ones and lay them on the tray. Brush gently with egg white and sprinkle all over with caster sugar. Allow to dry in a warm place for eight hours before using.

When you are ready to make the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 180C/gas mark 4.

Blend together the sugar and butter until light and creamy. Add the egg yolks, flour, pureed beetroot and vanilla and beat until smooth.

In a clean bowl, whisk the egg whites until fairly stiff. Take a large spoon of egg white and beat into the cupcake mixture to loosen it a little. Then, using a large metal spoon, fold the remaining egg whites gently through the mix, taking care not to over beat.

Spoon the mixture into 12 cupcake cases and bake in the oven for around 20 minutes, or until the cakes are firm to the touch. Remove and cool on a wire rack.

To make the icing, beat the icing sugar and butter together, in a food mixer or by hand with a wooden spoon. Add a few drops of rose flower water to taste, and a few drops of beetroot juice to colour the icing. Spread generously or pipe over the cooled cupcakes and top each with a rose petal.

Recipes from Viva Strawberries, UKShallot.com and Love Beetroot (lovebeetroot.co.uk)