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Homemade Ravioli with Fresh Herbed Ricotta Cheese
I discovered wonton skins a couple of months ago. I of course have been watching chefs on food television using them to make home made raviolis for a while now. I have always thought, “what a great idea- and so easy”, but for whatever reason, I have never done it myself. I made dumplings at home for the first time- a huge hit with Sia- she loved them. Actually, I was packing lunch for camp last week and she saw the store bought dumplings being cooked and asked me if I could make the homemade ones- what better compliment can I get!!
After the dumpling success I was very excited to make homemade raviolis. A few days ago I took the leftover wonton skins out of the freezer and went to the store to buy fresh ricotta cheese. I love being able to buy the fresh variety- the already packaged ones are absolutely fine- but you can’t beat the fresh kind.
Around the same time, I was watching ‘Live with Regis and Kelly‘ and Regis was talking about eating a ravioli dish with sage. Well, I thought- “I have sage in my herb garden”. That is how this recipe came about. I mixed a few different fresh herbs in the ricotta mixture including the sage. I added an egg to bind the mixture and lots of parmigiano reggiano cheese- you really can’t go wrong with any of these ingredients. I served the raviolis in a light tomato sauce- will be talking about it this Wednesday in ‘The Local‘.
The raviolis were absolutely delicious!- I am not exaggerating- the filling was soft and creamy; the wonton skins were perfect used as pasta. For the first time, we ran out of the main entree- everyone gobbled it up and wanted more. Sia gave it a thumbs up!! The adults washed the raviolis down with a yummy merlot- it was a great dinner…
Great Leftover Recipe: Shrimp and Arugula Quesadilla
The weather has been very kind to us lately- I guess we deserve it after the spring we have had. We decided to keep my daughter home from camp one day and visit a lake. Everyone was responsible for packing their own food, snacks and fruit, etc. I thought of cherries and nectarines for fruit; gogurts and fruit leather for snacks- but was having trouble deciding on the lunch part.
My daughter has been into quesadillas lately- which is good since she doesn’t like to eat sandwiches. So- quesadillas came to mind- cheese for her but what about me?? The left over shrimps from the shrimp rolls came to mind.. hmm.. I thought of chopping those up with the grated Mexican cheese blend- perfect- but what about veggies?? I thought of packing a salad but the idea of lettuce on a warm day wilting away didn’t seem very appealing. I instead thought of adding a bit of arugula right into the quesadilla.
Now, ideally I like to dip my quesadilla into something spicy- like a tomato salsa or guacamole. I didn’t have any made and I was too lazy to go buy some and pack tiny containers- too complicated. I used my favorite hot sauce instead- the sriracha sauce. I love using this particular one, it has great flavor with the heat. It has a bit of garlic and sugar paired with the tang and saltiness- perfection in my book! The combination was yum- the quesadilla tasted great room temperature- the shrimp gave it nice substance while the greens gave it a nice crunch- yup they were still a bit crunchy. The hot sauce put it over the top- it was delicious! I devoured the entire quesadilla in less than a minute and wished I had made another one. We ate sweet and juicy nectarines and thoroughly enjoyed the day.
A great picnic or pool item to pack along- no reason to have the not so healthy and not so tasty food you tend to get at those places.
Refreshing Recipe: Corn Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette
I started making this salad a few years ago. I think it was taken from Michael Chiarello at the food network. I made it for barbecue parties and it was always appreciated by my guests. I recently remembered it while talking to my neighbor who was planning on making it for a July 4th barbecue party. Although the salad is delicious- it is a bit time consuming- especially the dressing.
Later that week, I was making the shrimp rolls and grilled potatoes and I needed to make a salad with the meal. I thought of the corn salad- and came up with an easier recipe. I had the greens and fresh corn in the fridge- so it was just a matter of coming up with the dressing. I used the juice and zest of a lemon, lime and an orange- whisked olive oil, honey with salt and pepper. Very simple yet the flavor was unbelievable- summer in a bite!
The original salad included pecorino cheese, but I decided to eliminate it since I wanted a lighter salad. The cheese does taste really good in the original salad- so by all means, go ahead and add it. I would definitely stick with pecorino- for it’s extra strong flavor.
The salad is great at a barbecue with burgers or ribs but it is also goes very well with a piece of poached chicken or fish. It is a very healthy salad especially because the dressing doesn’t have very much olive oil. Definitely a summer must in your barbecue repertoire…
Great Summer Recipe: Grilled Shrimp Rolls and Grilled Potatoes
I first had a lobster roll at our local Irish pub a few years ago. They have it in the summer months and serve two hot dog rolls full of lobster salad with a side of chips (fries). Their hot dog rolls are toasted and slathered with butter- absolutely delicious!
I liked them so much that I decided to make them at home- I used shrimp instead of lobster- for two reasons: one- shrimp is cheaper; two- everyone in my family loves shrimp. I poached the shrimp and added mayonnaise and fresh herbs to it. I served the shrimp salad in hot dog buns and we ate it with some oven fries- it was great!
I remembered the lobster rolls this summer while I was in town and passed the pub. I immediately went to the fish store and bought fresh shrimp. I had hot dog rolls and the other ingredients at home. Instead of poaching the shrimp, I thought of grilling them. I tossed them with salt and olive oil and quickly cooked them on the grill- it took all of five minutes. I then proceeded to make the mayonnaise dressing with a little dijon mustard and lots of basil and chives from my herb garden. I tossed the big shrimp pieces into the creamy dressing and placed it in the grilled hot dog buns. The shrimp salad was scrumptious- I think it would be great served on a bed of lettuce- tasty lunch… Since I love my potatoes- I grilled thick wedges and added a little spice to them. They were crispy and healthy at the same time. I also made a fresh corn salad with some greens and a delicious citrus vinaigrette (the recipe will be up tomorrow). I adapted this recipe from a corn salad I have been making for a few years. This version is a lot easier and very delicious.
My husband and I enjoyed the meal with – yup, you guessed it- a delicious Malbec Rose! For my daughter, I kept a few grilled shrimp aside and served them with some greens and fresh corn. She enjoyed the meal as well- devoured the shrimp and the corn.. had a little difficulty with the greens- but ate them anticipating ice cream at the end of the meal…
Lentils with Mint- Pudina Dal
To me there is nothing more comforting than a big bowl of well made dal (lentils). It is equivalent to Chicken Soup here- real comfort food.
In India the lentil variety is mind boggling. I am sure there are plenty of them I have never tasted. As part of my Indian pantry, I have at least 8 to 10 different kinds on hand at any given time. They are very reasonable to buy and great to make in a cinch. Some of the lentils have a tough exterior and need longer to cook- I have my trustee pressure cooker to do the job. A slow cooker works really well also- red kidney beans (rajma) and black lentils (whole urad dal) are ideal for slow over night cooking.
A well balanced Indian meal usually includes a vegetable- saag paneer or aloo gobi; a dal- masoor; a meat dish- keema or chicken. The dishes are served with homemade yogurt and freshly made rotis (bread) or rice. Obviously the dishes vary according to household and region but the staples remain the same- dal, roti and yogurt.
My parents are visiting from India- that means we will be getting fabulous Indian food. My Mom is a great cook- that is where I get my obsession of food.
While she was unpacking her suitcase, she brought out a big container wrapped carefully in plastic wrap and all sorts of plastic bags. Out came one of my favorite mutton dishes- achari gosht. The word achari means pickled and gosht is mutton. She used to make this dish whenever we would go for a picnic or on a long train ride. The meat is cooked in pickling spices, and mustard oil and finished with vinegar; plus it does not have any water- all of these factors help with a long shelf life. It is absolutely delicious- I know what you are thinking- why didn’t she just make it here?- well, the goat meat you get back home is far more superior than here and a lot tastier- I will post the recipe soon.
Anyway, my point was that we ate the mutton dish that very night. I decided to make dal as an accompaniment. I mixed the masoor dal (pink lentils) with moong dal (yellow lentils). I wanted to keep the dish simple since the mutton dish was the star of the evening. I added a few garlic cloves and cooked the lentils with salt and turmeric. I added fresh mint from my backyard. The mint gave the dal a really fresh and light flavor- it was amazing. The whole meal was delicious and very enjoyable- brought me back to my childhood. My daughter enjoyed it as well!
This dal is perfect with any dish or just by itself with a bowl of fluffy white rice.
Baked Omelet with Fresh Herbs
Fresh Herbs and Pistachio Pesto served with Zucchini Pasta
Pesto (basil) symbolizes summer for me- the color, taste and smell is all warm weather goodness. I usually grow a lot of basil in the back yard to make abundant pesto and freeze for the winter. I am then able to use it year round- although it tastes best in the summer.
I love using basil pesto in pastas, salads and on meats. Of course, I also use it to make my super easy and fast meatballs. It is instant boost of flavor in any dish. It is definitely a staple in my fridge. I think my favorite way is to pair it with shrimp and pasta- the flavor of pesto and the crustaceans go fabulously well.
The other day my friend Nancy, called to tell me about a pistachio pesto she made for her family. She served it with pasta and zucchini. I had just been to the farmers market and bought some fabulous looking summer squash. I decided to make the pesto for a get together- I was planning on making a boneless leg of lamb. I thought I could make the pasta with grated zucchini and serve it to the kids- the rest I would add the pesto for the adults- perfect! I love when I come up with a fabulous menu.
Nancy emailed me the recipe and I made it with the fresh herbs growing in my backyard. I tweaked the recipe a bit- the original asked for parsley and mint- I added tarragon to the mix. I also switched the parmesan cheese with pecorino since it (pecorino) has a stronger flavor and I like it better. The last thing I added was lemon juice and zest- to give it an extra boost of goodness. The pesto was absolutely delicious! I used it all up in the pasta- I will definitely be making more soon to serve on top of salmon.
There are so many different ingredients to make pestos these days. I think the pistachio one is definitely going to be part of my repertoire. I am now motivated to research some other ones- possibly with sun dried tomatoes!