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"So you found a man worth cooking for and you want to fire up a meal that&amp;amp;#8217;s more than OK. The key thing to consider, says Oliver: The menu shouldn&amp;amp;#8217;t keep you stuck in the kitchen all night. &amp;amp;#8220;Yes, he&amp;amp;#8217;s coming over for good food, but mainly he&amp;amp;#8217;s there to hang out with you,&amp;amp;#8221; says the chef and cookbook author. Here, recipes that can mostly be prepared quickly and that include three guaranteed satisfiers: meat, potatoes and serious sugar. The menu &amp;amp;#8226; Pappa al pomodoro &amp;amp;#8226; Best lamb cutlets with special basil sauce &amp;amp;#8226; Baked new potatoes with sea salt and rosemary &amp;amp;#8226; Party cake Oliver&amp;amp;#8217;s tips on: Serving it up So the menu is figured out. Now how about all of those other little details that&amp;amp;#8217;ll make a guy feel like it&amp;amp;#8217;s gonna be a good night? Our expert weighs in: &amp;amp;#8226; Don&amp;amp;#8217;t go nuts with special linens. &amp;amp;#8220;That&amp;amp;#8217;s for when your grandma comes for Sunday lunch. And I wouldn&amp;amp;#8217;t bother with flowers&amp;amp;#8212;the table gets too cluttered; you can&amp;amp;#8217;t see the person you&amp;amp;#8217;re talking to.&amp;amp;#8221; &amp;amp;#8226; Don&amp;amp;#8217;t rush the dinner. &amp;amp;#8220;Let the guy get comfortable and chill out a bit. Offer him a drink&amp;amp;#8212;whether it&amp;amp;#8217;s wine or beer or a soda&amp;amp;#8212;and chat while things look after themselves in the kitchen.&amp;amp;#8221; &amp;amp;#8226; And the cleanup? &amp;amp;#8220;Leave the dishes for later. It would certainly be a more relaxed evening if the hostess just chucked everything in the sink to soak.&amp;amp;#8221; The recipes Pappa al Pomodoro Total time: 25 minutes Serves 2 &amp;amp;#8220;For this delicious tomato and bread soup, I added roasted cherry tomatoes, but it works well with just canned tomatoes,&amp;amp;#8221; says Oliver. &amp;amp;#8220;Be sure to use a good-quality, stale, country-style loaf of bread!&amp;amp;#8221; It can be made the day before. &amp;amp;#8226; 1/2 lb. ripe cherry tomatoes &amp;amp;#8226; 2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely sliced &amp;amp;#8226; Large bunch fresh basil, leaves picked, stemsfinely chopped &amp;amp;#8226; Extra-virgin olive oil &amp;amp;#8226; Sea salt &amp;amp;#8226; Freshly ground black pepper &amp;amp;#8226; 1 14-oz. can plum tomatoes &amp;amp;#8226; 1 large handful stale bread Preheat oven to 350&amp;amp;deg;F. Prick cherry tomatoes; toss in a bowl with 1 sliced garlic clove and 1/4 of the basil leaves. Drizzle with olive oil; add salt and pepper; put in a roasting pan and bake about 15 minutes. Heat a splash of olive oil in a large pot and add remaining garlic and basil stems. Stir, saut&amp;amp;eacute;ing for a minute until softened. Add plum tomatoes, then fill can with water and add. Break tomatoes up with a spoon; bring to a boil; simmer 10 to 15 minutes. Tear bread into thumb-size pieces; add to pot. Mix well; season with salt and pepper to taste. Tear in remaining basil leaves, reserving a few for garnish; let soup sit on low heat for 10 minutes. By now, roasted tomatoes will be done; pour into soup (including all juices, basil, oil and sticky bits). Stir; soup should be a porridgy texture, so adjust with some water if necessary. Remove from heat; add 3 to 4 tbsp. olive oil. Garnish with a little basil. Best Lamb Cutlets With Special Basil Sauce Total time: 10 minutes Serves 2 &amp;amp;#8220;This dish is fantastic tasting, and you can have it ready in just under 10 minutes,&amp;amp;#8221; says Oliver. Use either wild mushrooms that are in season&amp;amp;#8212;like trumpet, chanterelle or porcini; more readily available mushrooms, such as shiitake, chestnut or oyster are OK too. Save time by making the sauce the day before. &amp;amp;#8226; 6 lamb cutlets &amp;amp;#8226; 1 small handful fresh thyme leaves &amp;amp;#8226; Extra-virgin olive oil &amp;amp;#8226; 7 oz. mushrooms, brushed clean and torn &amp;amp;#8226; 1 small handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, torn into large pieces &amp;amp;#8226; 1/2 fresh lemon &amp;amp;#8226; Sea salt &amp;amp;#8226; Freshly ground black pepper &amp;amp;#8226; 1 handful pine nuts &amp;amp;#8226; 1 large handful fresh basil &amp;amp;#8226; Balsamic vinegar These cutlets are excellent cooked on a grill; otherwise, use a preheated, ridged griddle pan. Slap cutlets with the heel of your hand to flatten them slightly. Then put thyme and a splash of olive oil in a blender and pulse a few times; rub mixture on both sides of cutlets and set aside. Cook mushrooms (on both sides) on hot griddle until no longer moist; put in a large bowl. Then put cutlets on grill or in pan. For -inch-thick cutlets, cook 3 to 4 minutes on each side until golden (medium), then put them in the bowl of mushrooms. Drizzle with more olive oil. Add parsley, a squeeze of lemon juice and a sprinkle of salt and pepper; toss and set aside. Then make a quick sauce. Process pine nuts in a blender until creamy; place in a bowl. Then pulse basil in blender a few times and add to pine nut mixture; loosen with a splash of olive oil so sauce easily drops off the end of a spoon. Add a few shakes of balsamic vinegar for a zingy taste. Give the lamb and mushrooms a final toss. Serve sauce on the side. Baked New Potatoes With Sea Salt and Rosemary Total time: 45 minutes Serves 2 &amp;amp;#8220;These bundles of flavor fill you up just enough to stop you from being hungry but not so much you&amp;amp;#8217;ll want to flop on the sofa,&amp;amp;#8221; says Oliver. Save 20 minutes by boiling potatoes earlier. &amp;amp;#8226; 1 lb. small potatoes &amp;amp;#8226; Extra-virgin olive oil &amp;amp;#8226; Sea salt &amp;amp;#8226; Freshly ground black pepper &amp;amp;#8226; Leaves from 2 sprigs fresh rosemary Preheat oven to 425&amp;amp;deg;F. Wash potatoes and boil until almost tender. When done, drain and drizzle with a touch of olive oil; roll in sea salt, a little pepper and rosemary leaves. Put potatoes in a roasting pan; bake in oven for 25 minutes, until golden. Or wrap in aluminum foil and throw on the grill for the same amount of time. Party Cake Total time: 45 minutes Serves 6-8 &amp;amp;#8220;Most guys love desserts,&amp;amp;#8221; says Oliver, so why not bake a little something? You can make this a day in advance and have it ready to go. &amp;amp;#8226; 3 rounded tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder &amp;amp;#8226; 1 cup sugar, plus extra for cream &amp;amp;#8226; 3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp. butter &amp;amp;#8226; 3 large eggs, preferably free-range &amp;amp;#8226; 1 1/3 cups self-rising flour, sifted &amp;amp;#8226; 1 rounded tsp. baking powder &amp;amp;#8226; 1 handful sliced almonds &amp;amp;#8226; 1 cup minus 2 tbsp. heavy cream &amp;amp;#8226; 1 large handful raspberries &amp;amp;#8226; 1 large handful strawberries, sliced Chocolate topping &amp;amp;#8226; 6 tbsp. plus 2 tsp. butter &amp;amp;#8226; 3 3/4 oz. semisweet or bittersweet chocolate &amp;amp;#8226; 1 cup confectioners&amp;amp;#8217; sugar &amp;amp;#8226; 3 tbsp. milk Preheat oven to 350&amp;amp;deg;F. Line bases of two 8-inch round cake pans with greased waxed paper. Mix cocoa powder with 4 tbsp. boiling water until smooth. In a separate bowl, beat sugar and butter until fluffy; add cocoa mixture, eggs, flour and baking powder. Mix well; fold in nuts. Divide mix between pans. Bake 25 minutes. Cool; flip pans to remove cakes. Melt topping ingredients in a bowl over simmering water. Stir until blended; let cool. Whip heavy cream to soft peaks; sweeten with sugar to taste. Then, remove paper from cake layers; spread cream over one layer; top with berries. Place second layer on top; press down. Run a knife around edge of cake to smooth; drizzle with topping. For more recipes, see Oliver&amp;amp;#8217;s newest book, Jamie&amp;amp;#8217;s Italy."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.glamour.com/magazine/2007/05/jamie-oliver-guy-fantasy-dinner>