Celebrating Love In All Its Forms: Palentine’s Day
Valentine’s Day can be a controversial holiday. For some, it’s a day to celebrate romantic love. For the skeptics, it’s little more than an elaborate marketing ploy. For single folks, it can be an unwelcome reminder. Regardless of how you feel about February 14, the day before it has a different energy. Palentine’s Day (more commonly called Galentine’s Day, but we like the more inclusive version!) is a day to celebrate love in all its many forms — friendships, unconventional relationships, and even self-love.
Palentine’s Day is also a fun day for foodies! We exchange the lobster tails and expensive steak dinners typical of Valentine’s Day for sweet treats and brunch foods. To celebrate the day, I spent it in the kitchen with my soul sister, Liz. Together, we cooked up a sweet meal packed with loving energies. Whether you’re cooking for your best pals or treating yourself, we hope you’ll enjoy this feast.
Attract the sweetness of love
This Palentine’s Day feast centers around three dishes: yogurt parfaits, gluten free red velvet cinnamon roll French toast, and a caramelized onion, roasted red pepper, spinach, and goat cheese frittata. Our goal was to pack the meal full of all the intentions you need for healthy relationships. A dash of boundaries, a heaping tablespoon each of luck and abundance, and more. Get a breakdown of everything below.
Red Velvet Cinnamon Roll French Toast
Close your eyes and picture a tray of freshly baked cinnamon rolls. Imagine the sweet, spice-laden scent wafting through your kitchen. How do you feel? If you’re like me, you’ve got the warm fuzzies. That’s because the ingredients’ intentions are full of comfort.
- Cinnamon: Abundance, love, luck
- Vanilla: Love, joy
- Butter: Nurturing, smooth relationships
- Brown Sugar: Attraction, comfort
- Cocoa powder: Friendship, self-love
Yogurt Parfaits
There are as many versions of yogurt parfaits as there are people who love them. For the purposes of this meal, we opted for the happy, loving, abundant energies of berries, granola, and honey.
- Yogurt: Lifting depression, creativity
- Honey: Love, happiness, attraction
- Strawberries: Love, fertility
- Blueberries: Protection, beauty
- Oats: Prosperity, abundance
Vegetable and Goat Cheese Frittata
For many people I know, a meal isn’t a meal without meat. I feel that way about vegetables. With all the sweetness of the other two dishes, I wanted something savory and veggie-packed to round out the meal. Both the flavors and intentions in this frittata blend exceptionally well together. And although there are some strong romantic and fertility-boosting energies here, you’ll also find strength, abundance, and protection. It’s also worth noting that love, desire, and passion aren’t limited to the bedroom, or an experience with a partner. You can also attract passion and desire for hobbies, self-care, or any number of platonic pursuits, too.
- Eggs: Fertility, protection
- Balsamic Vinegar: Abundance, fertility
- Red Onions: Fertility, passion
- Roasted Red Peppers: Love, desire
- Spinach: Love, fertility
- Goat Cheese: Fertility, strength
The Recipes
I am not a baker by trade, and I eat gluten free by necessity. To make my French toast, I started with a recipe from a blogger I trust: Mama Knows Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls. The recipe card below notes the substitutions I made to MKGF’s cinnamon roll recipe — and how I turned it into French toast. I’ve also omitted a parfait recipe, as most of us don’t need a recipe to layer our favorite ingredients between dollops of yogurt.
I hope you enjoy these recipes, friends, and happy Palentine’s Day! Let us know what your favorite treats are for the occasion in the comments.
Gluten Free Red Velvet Cinnamon Roll French Toast
Ingredients
- 1 recipe Mama Knows Gluten Free cinnamon rolls (to make red velvet, replace 2 Tbsp flour with cocoa powder, and add red food dye to desired color)
- 5 eggs
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 tsp cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat a griddle to 325 degrees, or start warming up a large frying pan.
- Whisk together the eggs, milk, and cinnamon.
- Slice each cinnamon roll in half horizontally.
- Dredge the cinnamon roll slices in the milk and egg mixture.
- Once your griddle or pan is up to heat, brush with oil and place as many slices as will fit on one layer. Cook 3-5 minutes on each side.
- Top with your favorite toppings: whipped cream, strawberries, butter, and/or maple syryp!
Notes
The cinnamon rolls will be best if you make them the day before you plan to make them into French toast.
Caramelized Onion, Red Pepper, Spinach, and Goat Cheese Frittata
Ingredients
- 1 red onion, diced
- 1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 8 eggs
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1 roasted red pepper, diced
- 3 cups baby spinach, chopped into small pieces
- 6 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 tsp dried dill
- 1/4 tsp dried rosemary
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- In an oven-safe pan, heat 1 Tbsp olive oil on medium heat.
- Once the oil is warmed, add the red onion with a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Cook on medium-low heat, stirring often, until onions soften and begin to brown slightly, around 12-15 minutes.
- Add in the balsamic vinegar and continue to cook for another 3-5 minutes.
- Spoon onions out into another bowl, take the pan off the heat, and clean.
- While the onions cool off, whisk eggs and milk together in a medium bowl.
- Add the roasted red peppers, spinach, half of the crumbled goat cheese, and seasonings to the egg mixture. Mix well.
- Once the onions have cooled slightly, mix them into the bowl with the frittata mixture as well.
- Return the cleaned pan to the burner and coat with the last 1/2 Tbsp of olive oil and heat on medium. Add the frittata mixture to the pan and cook until the egg just starts to set around the edge.
- Place the pan in the oven on the middle rack and cook 15 minutes. After the 15 minutes, sprinkle the remaining goat cheese evenly across the top and finish cooking for another 5 minutes.