Pan Fried Mushroom Dumplings with Sesame Scallion Dipping Sauce

Instead of subjecting yourself to a packed restaurant with overpriced prix-fixe menus, enjoy these dumplings at home with someone you love.

Hi friends! How is everyone doing this fine Thursday? Can you believe we are already nearly halfway through February? Unreal.

I am really looking forward to this weekend: it’s Valentine’s Day, plus we are celebrating a family birthday and everyone has Monday off for Presidents’ Day. It’ll be a most welcome infusion of warmth and time with my favorite people during an otherwise cold and dreary month.

I have always loved Valentine’s Day, even when I was very single and celebrating nearly every February 14th with my college friends in the North End of Boston. We’d get dressed up, treat ourselves to a good meal (almost always at Lo Conte), laugh a ton and end the night with cannoli (Mike’s Pastry FTW). I remember those days as fondly as the years where I did have an actual date on V-Day; they were so fun and I felt really loved. And that’s really the point, right? Celebrating love in all its forms, not just romantic love.

Now, I am married and with children and while my life is still very much full of love, I can’t remember the last time I actually went out on Valentine’s Day. I’m allergic to crowds and prix-fixe menus, plus nothing beats being at home on a winter’s night, preferably in sweatpants, in front of the fireplace with a good meal. If the meal is something that we can cook together, even better. It should come as no surprise that homemade food is one of my love languages, so instead of bouquets of flowers, bottles of champagne or expensive chocolates, a meal made with love is the best way I can think of to give and receive love.

These Pan-Fried Mushroom Dumplings with Sesame Scallion Dipping Sauce can be a family dinner project (let the kids help you fill the dumplings and stir up the sauce), a fun Galentine’s dinner to make with your best friends, or a great meal to make with your partner/spouse. If you’re flying solo this Valentine’s Day, queue up your favorite Spotify playlist, light a candle and spoil yourself with a great meal. They’re crispy, savory and addictively delicious; I’d probably pair them with simply prepared brown rice and some sautéed veggies (broccoli or bok choy, to get in some green), or if you’re up for more cooking, bowls of ramen are absolutely heavenly on a cold winter’s night.