The first course was a surprise; Charlie refused to tell me what he was preparing with the tomatoes and asparagus I saw him pull out of his grocery bag. While I did some prep work so my dishes were mise en place, Charlie put together a cheese plate with Mt. Townsend Creamery’s Seastack and Fromage, some water crackers, and dried cranberries. This was a freebie course – an oversized amouse bouche so to speak.

When I was finished rolling pasta, I sat and enjoyed a glass of sparkling wine from O.S. Winery in anticipation of the first course. Charlie brought to the table a ramekin filled with asparagus risotto set on a plate with a tomato and asparagus salad dressed with lemon vinaigrette. He served it with a Portuguese white wine we picked up from our local wine shop, West Seattle Cellars. How could I possibly follow this act?

I hand made ravioli for the pasta course. I completely botched the first go round, but luckily had prepared enough filling for a second try. I baked a salmon fillet from the Loki Fish Company and mixed it with Mt. Townsend Creamery’s Fromage, lemon juice, and dill. The finished raviolis were dressed in a dill butter sauce.

For the meat course, Charlie put forth one of his Chef signatures. Marinating a t-bone steak for hours, letting it come to room temperature, then grilling on each side for a calculated amount of time to achieve the perfect doneness. He served it with a red wine and balsamic reduction that I was mopping off the serving plate. The dish was accompanied by a glass of Cuillin Hills Cabernet Franc.

I chose an old standby for dessert, the same one I made last Valentine’s Day – Chocolate Decadence. I couldn’t resist the heart-shaped cake oozing from the middle with chocolate. I topped it off with a dusting of powdered sugar and a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream.

Sharing the kitchen with my husband, showing off our cooking skills, spending hours eating and drinking wine; we should do this more often. I wonder how Chef and Cook will celebrate Valentine’s Day next year?