Want your valentines to be homemade? Well, you could break out the red construction paper and doilies, OR you could whip up one of these delicious dishes. Their red (and sometimes pink) colors make them a shoo-in for the most romantic meal of the year.

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Vodka-Steamed Lobsters with Tomato-Butter Sauce

Steaming the lobsters with vodka, sugar, and salt gives the meat a subtle sweetness. The flavorful cooking liquid then becomes the base for a buttery dipping sauce.

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Sparkling Pomegranate Cocktail

Ruby-red pomegranate juice and sparkling wine: a simple combo with stunning results.

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Phyllo Chips with Strawberry Dip and Vanilla Ice Cream

This easy and sweet twist on chips and salsa, with a rosy-red strawberry dip, makes a playful ending to a Valentine's Day dinner.

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Sear-Roasted Halibut with Blood-Orange Salsa

Nothing brightens up a winter meal like citrus. In this dish, the sear-roasting method allows the halibut to form that gorgeous crust while keeping the inside moist, and since the fish's flavor is mild, it's the perfect vehicle for the blood orange salsa that's bursting with sweet, citrusy flavor.  

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Raspberry Fool

Puréed and strained raspberries give this luxurious whipped dessert a gorgeous, bright pink color and a lovely tanginess to balance the sweet yogurt-cream base.

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Lamb Chops with Pomegranate-Red Wine Sauce

Though the lamb itself is deeply flavorful, the sweet-tart sauce is the real reason you won't want this meal to end. The sauce cooks in just minutes and its components: pomegranate juice, wine, broth, balsamic vinegar, thyme, and honey, marry beautifully to dress up otherwise simple chops.      

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Red Velvet Cake

Red velvet cake is a dessert that everyone oohs and aahs over—it’s tall, dark, and handsome, with deep crimson cake layers and a thick coating of cream cheese frosting above, around, and between.

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Ruby Salad with Crumbled Feta

Beets, shredded red cabbage and red onions lend their crimson color to this beautiful salad.

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Orange-Brown Butter Tart

Who says diamonds are a girl's best friend? Use blood oranges and sweet pink Cara Cara oranges to top this tart for a jewel-like presentation.

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Red Berry Ice Cream Bombe

Dress up store-bought ice cream and sorbet with this easy four-ingredient dessert: just layer raspberry sorbet with strawberry and vanilla ice creams, and top with a simple strawberry sauce.

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Sweet Ruby Cocktail

Ruby port and amaretto liqueur make this a great post-meal warmer: It’s sweet, complex, and rich, but very easy to make.

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