We had a really busy weekend last week and only had one night for dinner where it would be just the two of us, so I wanted to plan something, that would be romantic but casual and fun. I whipped out the Joy Cook. We love the Joy Cook. Diane and Todd, from WORC, gave it to us as a parting gift when we were heading to Palm Springs – we were so excited then, that we used it immediately. It reminds me of Benihana but only better. You get to sit around the table and cook your own meal. Then it is even more fun to roll all the cooked little morsels in thin rice paper to make spring rolls.

We started the meal with a cool cucumber salad with a creamy ginger soy dressing. I got this idea, also from WORC. I did not have any red onion on hand, so to give the dish some extra color I grated some fresh carrots over the top. I like to use the whole carrots with skin on, not the baby ones. I prefer the very fresh taste they leave behind in a salad. The ginger dressing is really fantastic – light and nutting and a little spicy thanks to the fresh ginger. The perfect combination for the cool crisp cucumbers and the sweet carrots!

JOYCOOK time!!! We grilled up marinated beef steak, some shrimp and very thin and tender asparagus. Unfortunately, do can not find any of the great Viet herbs that Diane and Todd use, so I just used what I had on hand, red leaf lettuce from our garden, some basil and mint. The combination with the beef and shrimp was really nice, especially with the grilled asparagus, since it picked up the juicy little fat drippings left from the meat. The sauces we used for dipping were a lime and chilli, a soy and kumquat and the rice vinegar with soy and chillies!

Not only a romantic evening but spicy and delicious, just the way romance should be!!