1. Sweet Potato Vichyssoise
An impressive opener before any entree (serve this with #2, #10, or #18 on this list), this soup is guaranteed to take attention off your bad outfit. Get the recipe here.
2. Lentil “Meatballs” In Lemon Pesto
The perfect follower to a vegetable-filled starter (try #1, #4, or #16 on this list), serve over spaghetti (try #5), and have yourself a little Lady & The Tramp moment. Get the recipe here.
3. Whole Roasted Cauliflower With Whipped Goat Cheese
Start with the onion soup (#15 below), follow with this roasted cauliflower and watch as you blow the mind of the vegetarian you love. Get the recipe here.
4. Radicchio Salad With Manchego Vinaigrette
Red and a little bitter, just like your heart. This salad is the perfect preamble to the mushroom tart (#6 on this list), risotto (#12), or a special Valentine’s pizza (#18). Get the recipe here.
5. Garlic-Butter Pasta With Spinach And Parmesan
It’s like someone said, “How do we make butter even better?” Feel free to go the extra mile and make some lentil balls to put on top (#2). Get the recipe here.
6. Mushroom Tart
Speak to her heart with a tart. (Serve alongside #8 below, or after any salad.) Get the recipe here.
7. Braised Leeks + Muscovado Lentils
This dish works as a starter, or if you make a larger portion, as an entree. Just be sure to serve something carb-y with it (entrees like #10, #12, or #24 OR starters like #11 or #21). Either way, your date will say “Oooooh.” Get the recipe here.
8. Brussel Sprouts And Chestnuts In Brown Butter
Not the kind of thing you make for just anybody. Serve it alongside pretty much any entree on this list. Get the recipe here.
9. Chili Roasted Tofu With Minted Pomegranate Relish
A great follow-up to the Sweet Potato Vichyssoise (#1). Get the recipe here.
10. Pasta With Fennel, Arugula + Lemon
Because pasta is the right entree to follow any starter, but especially the chard salad (#17 on this list) or the stuffed mushrooms (#19). Get the recipe here.
11. Beet, Cheddar, and Apple Tarts
When you’re alone, the beet of your hearts might be the only sound. Follow with the Squash & Spinach Pasta Rotolo (#24 below) to keep the red theme going.
Get the recipe here.
12. Risotto With Leeks, Shiitake Mushrooms, and Truffles
So good it can follow any starter and still hold its own. Get the recipe here. (Up your risotto game with a homemade mushroom stock.)
13. Twice-Baked Goat’s Cheese Soufflés With Pear, Hazelnut And Rocket Salad
If you can master this soufflé dinner, then surely you can master her heart. Get the recipe here.
14. David Lebovitz’s Swiss Cheese Fondue
Fondue is an appetizer that brings together all of the most important things about food: cheese, bread, and dipping. (Yeah, yeah, yeah, it’s also perfect for sharing.) Get the recipe here.
15. English Onion Soup With Sage & Cheddar
Usually made with beef stock, onion soup is a rare pleasure for a vegetarian. Keep the bready cheesiness going by serving this with #23, or lighten things up a little with #22. Get the recipe here.
16. Endive and Walnut Salad
Sometimes it’s better to take it slow. But other times, you need to just endive right in. A great opener for #6, #9, or #24. Get the recipe here.
17. Chard Salad With Garlic Breadcrumbs And Parmesan
Cleverly disguise your salad by adding breadcrumbs and Parmesan. Follow this with one of the pastaa, pizzaa, or tarts on this list. Get the recipe here.
18. Valentine’s Day Pizza With Beets & Kale
If you must incorporate hearts into your dinner, please do so with flare. Serve after the leek-stuffed mushrooms (#19) or cauliflower soup (#25) if you’re in a cheesy mood. Get the recipe here.
19. Leek-Stuffed Mushrooms
Stuffed mushrooms are a food unfairly denied to vegetarians everywhere. Bring a little justice into the world, even if for only one night. (These work as a starter for any entree on this list that isn’t too mushroomy.) Get the recipe here.
20. Quinoa, Fennel, and Pomegranate Salad
Serve with the sweet potato soup in #1. Get the recipe here.
21. Wild Mushroom Crostini
Easy to make, easier to love, serve this starter before entree #10 or #22. Get the recipe here.
22. Butternut Orecchiette With Arugula, Chickpeas And Pine Nuts
Pasta + Legume + Vegetable + Parmesan Cheese = “I Understand Your Needs, Vegetarian Lover.” Great on its own on a regular night, better after #4 or #16 on V-Day. Get the recipe here.
23. Caramelized Onion, Apple and Blue Cheese Naan Pizzas
The perfect follow-up to a healthy salad starter, this is what romantic pizza looks like. Get the recipe here.
24. Squash & Spinach Pasta Rotolo
RICH and DELICIOUS. Serve with one of the lighter salads on this list. Get the recipe here.
25. Roasted Cauliflower And Cheddar Cheese Soup
Start your meal with a hot soup, end it with a hot something else. Have some pizza, pasta or a tart in between. Get the recipe here.
26. The Perfect Cheese Plate
Building a cheese platter is an art, but one worth the trouble: The right plate can be either a starter or a dessert. But come on, not both.
