What do you have planned for dinner this Friday night? Instead of splashing out on a takeaway or heading to a busy restaurant, why not rustle up your usual eating-out favourites in your own kitchen? The ‘fakeaway’ approach can be a lot healthier, as you’re more in control of exactly what’s going into your food, and you can even limit the amount of oil you’re using when you’re using Circulon cookware, thanks to our unique Total Non-Stick System®. Spend your Friday date night together in the kitchen trying out new cooking skills and experimenting with new flavours - a much better way to enjoy quality time with your other half than trying to hear each other in a noisy restaurant. It’s also a lovely way to treat loved ones to something a little bit different. Check out our ideas for transforming your Friday night dinners for good:
Recreate Restaurant Favourites
There are some dishes many of us only tend to have when we eat out, even though there’s no reason why we can’t make them for ourselves at home - in fact, cooking them yourself can make them a lot healthier, and it’s more enjoyable and satisfying too. Take bruschetta, for example - how often do you eat that at home? Follow our recipe and use one of our fast-heating griddle pans, and you’ll have a restaurant-standard appetiser within minutes.
Next, you need a slap-up main course; to really impress, forget the bolognese or stews you cook time and time again, and try something new. Our lamb tagine or venison with blueberry sauce and celeriac mash would make beautiful recipes for a romantic date night or a dinner party with friends. Use Circulon cookware with its superior non-stick finish and even heat distribution to help your food to cook perfectly, and everyone will feel like they’re eating restaurant-standard food. These dishes may need a little more time than your usual midweek meals, but it’ll definitely be worth it, as you’ll get the chance to flex your cooking skills and experiment with different ingredients to create superb flavour.
Friday Night Fakeaways
You can get so much more joy from your food if you’ve made it yourself - a homemade pizza beats a takeaway one every time, while an Indian fakeaway such as our tandoori chicken or dhal chicken will give you the opportunity to try out a different style of cooking. You’ll be able to get the spice level exactly as you like it too - you certainly don’t get that benefit when you have it delivered.
You could also take your usual Friday night traditions to the next level with homemade beer-battered fish and chips, which is a lighter meal than anything you can buy in your local chippy - especially when you use a non-stick Circulon oven tray that doesn’t require any extra oil - and the batter tastes seriously good. A non-stick stockpot will be invaluable in crisping up that delicious batter, helping to ensure your fish emerges from the pan with a perfect crunchy covering.
Save the Best ‘Til Last
At the end of a long week, dessert is most definitely deserved, and it’s the cherry on the top of an evening of home-cooked indulgence. While this might not be the healthiest part of your meal, it’s still so much more fun to make your own than order one in a restaurant - you'll feel even more like you deserve to tuck in when you’ve spent time making it yourself. Buying a bakeware set will provide you with all the equipment you need to experiment with different puddings every week, depending on how much time you have. Our Total® Non-Stick System, which guarantees easy food release, is our number one baking must-have, as it’s designed to ensure that your cakes and pastries remain intact, every time.
Go for a restaurant classic with our recipe for a homemade tiramisu, incorporate traditional Black Forest flavours in our chocolate cherry pavlova or go for something a little bit different that would be perfect for a romantic Friday night with our matcha, raspberry and dark chocolate sharing dessert. Give one of these gorgeous recipes a go on your next Friday night in. You’ll be saving yourself money by not eating out, you’ll be more in control of what you’re putting into your body, and you’ll get the chance to have a lot of fun in the kitchen too! Shop the full Circulon cookware collection here.
