Dinner Recipes for Two

Staff Picks

Roasted Branzino with Lemon and Thyme

Whole-roasting works well for any one-to-three-pound round fish such as snapper, perch, cod,Arctic char, bass, sea bream, and haddock. Add five to eight minutes to the roasting time for two-to-three-pound fish.

Sauteed Baby Bok Choy

Large bok choy can also be used: Just trim the stem ends and cut the heads into 2-inch pieces. Try serving alongside our Soy-Honey-Glazed Arctic Char.

Crispy Roasted Cauliflower

This healthy snack you can make ahead and have a container handy when you are on-the-go.

Lemon-Herb Sardine Salad

Get your dose of healthy oils with this lemony sardine mix over lettuce.

Pizza with a Sunny-Side-Up Egg and Herb Garden Pesto

This pesto pizza can also be served for breakfast.

Sriracha Shrimp

A hot, dry skillet cooks shrimp that are lightly coated in mayonnaise to a beautiful golden brown in mere minutes.

Pan-Sauteed Sole

We used lemon sole, a flaky, mild-tasting white fish. At the market, look for flat fish such as sole or flounder; Pacific-caught are the most sustainable. Tilapia works well, too. Serve it with steamed new potatoes and sauteed spinach.

Cinnamon Poached Apples with Toasted Walnuts

A snack you make ahead such as this one will help you feel satiated until your next meal.

Steak and Shrimp with Parsley Potatoes

This classic surf and turf is easy to make at home. Spooning hot butter over the beef is a steakhouse trick that helps it cook evenly and enhances its flavor.

Late-Night Pasta

Make a quick, family-friendly meal with Gotham Bar and Grill chef Alfred Portale's take on classic spaghetti carbonara.

Soy-Honey-Glazed Arctic Char

Salmon can be used in lieu of char.

Dan Dan Noodles

Making chili oil from scratch is easy and adds a delicious complex flavor to this dish, but you can use regular hot chili oil instead in a pinch.

Inspiration and Ideas

Open-Face Tuna Melt

Cooked under the broiler, mayonnaise souffles like magic and takes on a lighter texture with a crisp brown shell. There's no better way to top a tuna melt!

Caesar Salad for Two

There's no need to dine out when you crave a classic Caesar salad -- make this rendition at home, with all the bells and whistles.

Sauteed Sole with Lemon

Roasted Portobellos with Kale

Steamed Halibut

Pizza with Anchovies, Red Onion, and Oregano

Rib-Eye with Jalapeno Butter

For the perfect steak, like this rib-eye for two, be sure to bring the meat to room temperature before grilling and season liberally with salt and pepper. The jalapeno compound butter served with the steak has a rich, subtly spicy flavor. This recipe comes from Martha Stewart's Grilling: 125+ Recipes for Gatherings Large and Small.

All Dinner Recipes for Two

Baked Sweet Potato with Greens

Top your baked sweet potato with a Swiss chard and onion mix with avocado slices.

Quick-Braised Red Snapper

You can cook a whole fish in a flash if you use a wok. In this riff on the classic Chinese-restaurant dish, red snapper and scallions are braised in a fragrant garlic- and ginger-infused oil.

Brothy Mussels with Oven Fries

Our take on moules frites amps up the white wine-steamed mussels with cherry tomatoes and garlic, and best of all, calls for making the fries in the oven.

Mushroom-Leek Pizza

Pitas can be more than just pockets! Let the flatbread shine with this quick and unconventional meatless recipe.

Honeynut Squash, Leek, and Brie Gratin

A bright salad of crisp lettuces and an assertive vinaigrette is the ideal accompaniment for this rich vegetarian gratin.

Fondue for Two

For a romantic Valentine's Day dinner or a cozy date night in, serve a pot of this rich, gooey mix of Gruyere and fontina. It's the perfect partner for all kinds of dippers: roasted potatoes, bread cubes and sticks, fennel, apple, salami, you name it.

Flat-Iron Steak au Poivre

Flat-iron steak is a relatively inexpensive cut with great flavor and lots of marbling. It usually comes in one large piece that can be grilled whole like a flank or cut into individual steaks, as it's done here.

Broccoli and Cheese Pizza

This classic combo, with red onion and olives, goes great on your pizza.

Black Forest Upside-Down Cakes

Bake these restaurant-worthy cakes and prepare to be adored.

Pumpkin Grilled Cheese

What to do with that unfinished can of pumpkin puree? Use it as a rich and creamy way to take a grilled cheese from good to gourmet.

Grilled Salmon and Bok Choy with Orange-Avocado Salsa

Citrus and fresh herbs add clean, fresh flavor to the salmon, so you don't need to use much (if any) salt. Cilantro lends zing here as well.

Latin Lover

Pineapple and coconut rum bring the taste of the tropics north.

Chicken Scallopine With Arugula and Lemon

These thin chicken cutlets take about 5 minutes to cook and make for a hearty match to crisp arugula and curls of parmigiano-reggiano cheese.

Roasted Vegetables with Quinoa

Roasted Brussels sprouts and butternut squash are the stars of this quinoa-based dinner. Tahini sauce comes in handy.

Parchment-Baked Black Bass

Black bass is what we used, but firm-fleshed mild fish (striped bass, for example) and fine-textured weakfish and tilapia swap in well. These Asian flavors are complemented by brown or white rice and steamed bok choy.

Skillet Steak with Pink-Peppercorn Butter

One generous rib-eye makes the perfect steak dinner for two. Here, it's pan-seared in a cast-iron skillet and finished with a piquant pink peppercorn-and-Meyer lemon butter.

Spaghetti 101

It's a simple dish but it's easy to get it wrong. Here's how to do it right.

Millet Bowl with Black Beans and Vegetables

This hearty meal is full of clean, flavorful ingredients, including millet, an under-appreciated grain that is more nutritious than rice.

Baked Salmon with Coconut Broth

This Thai-infused salmon dish uses coconut milk, lemongrass and chiles, which results in a delicious dinner soup.

Spaghetti and Meatballs for Two

Pasta and meatballs in tomato sauce twirl together onto a fork and then dance with your taste buds. All the elements work in concert: The spaghetti is slightly firm in contrast to the tender meatballs, made with beef and pork, and crushed red pepper flakes add fire and spice to the familiar sauce.

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