Week 7 Day 1 – Roses are Red, Violets are Blue, Beans are Green and healthy too!

Valentines Day... a day that has evoked so many different emotions in me over the years. I didn't have alot of boyfriends or date much in middle or high school so Valentines was always a dreaded holiday. Everyone's sweet little boyfriends would send them balloons or flowers to school and and everyone one would Ooo and Ahh over them. I was lucky if I got something from my parents. Sigh... But in College things were better. I believe there was only 1 V-day in college that I didn't have a date. I think I remember that day was celebrated with other bitter and angry girls who had recently been brutally rebuffed by someone of the opposite sex. Lots of man hatin' going on. But in 1998 I started dating the man the would be my Valentine for the rest of my life. Since then, I have thoroughly enjoyed February 14th. Flowers, candy, romance...What's not to love? Okay... enough with the gushy love stuff...on to the food!

Monday of Week 7 was V-day. My husband is great and says Valentines is for girls so he doesn't want me to get him a gift. Score! I am horrible at picking out gifts for him anyway. So I figured the least I could do is cook him in an awesome dinner! I wanted to go easy on myself since I was a pampered Valentine so I took some help from the good people at Fresh Market. I bought 3 (already prepared and ready to bake in a 350º oven for 25min) Stuffed Chicken Cordon Bleu breasts at the meat counter and added some fresh green beans and boxed rice pilaf for sides. The dinner was delicious and I only spent about 25 min total in the kitchen! Happy V-day to me!

Some of you may think this was a cop-out meal, but I don't believe it is. People think there are only 2 options for dinner sometimes. Home cooked or Dinner out. But really, there are so many delicious options in the middle. I think it is important to give yourself a break sometimes and take a little help from the grocery store. This meal was healthy, economical, and, if I do say so myself, pretty fancy!

Oh and since it was February 14th, we also enjoyed some yummy petit fours (also from Fresh Market) and Chardonnay after the kiddos hit the hay. AND here is a picture of the beautiful Ardent Sparrow necklace Steve gave me! He knows me so well. I give Valentines Day 2011 an A+!