Swanky bargains for a posh Valentines night in
Bargains from discount supermarkets and cheaper stores mean you can whip up something truly impressive in the kitchen for your Valentine's Day celebrations - at a fraction of the cost you might expect. We have identified eight great bargains worth giving a go.
See also: The 10 weirdest Valentine's Day gifts: get it right for free
See also: The worst ever Valentine's Day presents
See also: The best-value Valentine's gifts
A study by Iceland found that we tend to be put off the idea of high-end luxuries, partly because of the cost. Some 25% of people said they wouldn't cook lobster for Valentines Day because of the cost. However, they estimated it would cost an average of £22 - when you can actually get swanky food for far less.
1. Lobster
Iceland is charging £5 for its lobster tails for Valentine's Day - for 200g of Canadian tails - which would make for an impressive yet affordable option.
2. Chateaubriand
This is a pricey cut of steak, which has been matured for at least 21 days. Iceland is offering a Chateaubriand ready-meal (with the beef prepared in a red wine sauce), and Morrisons is offering steaks that are big enough for two, for just £15. The impressive discount becomes more obvious when you consider that to buy them in a restaurant would set you back £60.
3. Oysters
Morrisons is offering a deal until the end of 13 February (so buy them as close as possible to the end of the day). They usually go for 60p each, but it's offering them for £1.50 for 6, or 25p each, so you can impress on a shoestring. The big advantage of course is that once you get them open, there's no cooking to worry about. Just serve them on ice with some lemon and you're done.
Of course, you may not feel confident with these high end items. In fact, the Iceland study found that fewer than 39% of people even know what Chateaubriand is - with a third thinking it was a French tourist attraction. There's also the worry of having to prepare fancy and unfamiliar food, so we have tracked down a few posh items that you would struggle to get wrong.
4. Champagne from Aldi
Its Veuve Monsigny Pink Champagne has been on sale since 5 February, and will set you back just £14.99 for a bottle. Posh pink fizz is bound to go down well with almost anyone on the day.
5. Champagne from Lidl
Another pink Champagne for £14.99. The Henri Delattre Champagne seems to have been bottled especially for the day
6. Iceland posh meal deal
You can get lobster tails for two, Chateaubriand with red wine and a luxury desert for £20.
7. Tesco Valentines meal deal
You can get two mains, two sides, two desserts and a bottle of Champagne for £20 - saving £14.95 on the usual price. The swankiest combination may well be beef wellington with potato dauphinoise and green vegetables, followed by a white stilton heart with Prosecco glaze and strawberry confetti, and accompanied by Louis Delaunay Champagne
8. Posh cocktails
The scope for serving cocktails with dodgy names is endless, but if the aim is to serve up an aphrodisiac, a scientist and a mixologist have created Cupid's Mimosa for Schweppes, using gin, white cacao liqueur and tonic.
It is apparently handy for stimulating a neurotransmitter and trigeminal receptors - plus it should get you both a bit merry while you're at it. If you're doing it on a budget, you could try it with Lidl's Castelgy London Dry Gin at £9.99. De Kuiper Creme De Cacao for £11.39 and Aldi tonic for 37p.
If you're feeling the love, the recipe is:
35ml – gin
15ml – lemon juice
15ml – white cacao liqueur
5ml – Lillet Blanc or rose
35ml – tonic water
Method:
Build gin, lemon juice, white cacao and Lillet Blanc or rose in the base of the glass. Fill glass with cubed ice, stir and then top with tonic water. Garnish with a slice of blood orange, a few cardamom pods, and a rose petal.
