Spinach & Mushroom Ravioli

Well I may be a little late with my posting.  But like I promised here is my recipe and experience making spinach & mushroom ravioli with a bacon mushroom sauce.  This recipe is really easy to make but will take some time stuffing each ravioli.  Personally for me doing that little extra work to hand stuff the ravioli, make the meal that more enjoyable.
 Here are the ingredients you will need for the ravioli:
4 ounces white mushrooms, sliced
1 package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
15 oz container ricotta cheese
1 package of lasagna pasta sheets ( not dry)
2 large eggs
2 oz cup shiitake mushrooms, sliced
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

So lets get the ravioli put together and then worry about the the sauce.  First saute the mushrooms.  Heat 1/4 cup of the olive oil. When almost smoking, add the mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Cook until all the liquid has evaporated from the mushrooms.  While the mushrooms are cooking, cook the spinach according to instructions( I used microwavable frozen spinach).  After the spinach is done cooking, squeeze it dry, eliminating all water.  The mushrooms should be about done so take those off the stove. Mix the mushrooms and spinach together and place in a food processor.  I current do not own a food processor so my hand-stick blender did the trick here. Pulse until a coarse texture is achieved.  Next, in a large mixing bowl separate the egg yolks from the whites, but still saving the whites. Add your spinach mushroom mixture and container of ricotta cheese to the bowl.  Season this mixture with salt and pepper.
 Now it is time to create your assembly line for the ravioli.  The pasta sheets I used were pretty long, so I decided to cut each sheet into thirds.  Take one pasta square, and place about a tablespoon of mixture into the center.  Take the egg whites and lightly brush the outer edges and then fold the sheet by grabbing two corners and touching them diagonally.  Press the edges then lightly together to create a seal.  I got a little fancy, and took a fork to create small indents like in my picture above.  While assembling the ravioli, grab a large pot and boil some water.  Once the water is boiling and the ravioli are complete, place a few raviolis in at a time.  If to many are placed in the pot they can tend to stick together.  My pot allowed me to place four at a time without becoming to crowded.  Let them cook for about 6-8 minutes.  When cooked remove from water with slotted spoon and serve with sauce.

Here is what you will need for the sauce:

4 slices of cooked bacon
3 cloves garlic, smashed
1 cup white mushrooms
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
4 tablespoons unsalted butter


Start out by melting the butter.  Once the butter begins to sing, had the cup of mushrooms, bacon and smashed garlic cloves.  Cook the mixture for about 5-7 minutes on medium heat, stirring frequently.   Then add about half of the chicken stock.  Cook the liquid down about half way until adding the rest of the stock.  As the sauce cooks, it should begin to thicken.  If a thicker sauce is preferred, flour can always be added.

 

I hope you enjoy this recipe,and please don't avoid it because it takes a little of work.  The little extra work makes the meal just that more enjoyable.

Coming Soon!!

Hey everybody!

So I have now spent the last two days in the kitchen and you should see a new post tomorrow on the spinach, mushroom ravioli with a bacon mushroom sauce I cooked yesterday.  Then look forward to my post on roasting my first duck.

Breakfast Brewers Tailgate

So this past Sunday me and couple of friends decided to go to a Brewers tailgate sponsored by a local bar.  I had an idea that I would cook breakfast for my friends before we headed to the bar for our bloodys and beers.  I decided on making a strata from a recipe that my mom had shown me. This dish is really easy to make, but you have to keep in mind that the strata will have to set over night.  If you don't know, a strata is a combination of bread, sausage, and egg that is made the night before and baked in the morning.

So my recipe called for English muffins but if you prefer to use traditional bread, stick to a thick style white.  It will soak up the egg mixture better.  This dish allows you a lot of flexibility in ingredients that you want.  I used breakfast sausage, bacon, yellow bell pepper, mushrooms, cheddar and mozzarella cheese.  But feel free to experiment with different combinations, its part of the fun of cooking.

You will need:

2 pkgs. of 12 oz breakfast sausage
6 English muffins, cut into 1 in cubes
1/4 cup butter melted
6 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded
6 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/4 cup yellow bell pepper, chopped
6 oz of mushrooms, sliced
12 large eggs
2 cups of milk
1/4 tsp. salt
8 oz. bacon
*You can use whatever color bell pepper you like, it just so happened yellow bells were on sale.  Red bell peppers however give this dish nice color though.

So start by cooking your breakfast sausages and bacon either in the microwave or on the stove top.  While those are cooking you can prepare your English muffins.  Start my cutting your 6 muffins in to 1 in. cubes.  Once that is done, grease a 9x13 baking pan and spread half of your muffin cubes throughout the pan.  Once your sausages and bacon are done cooking, begin to cut the sausage into 1/4 in. slices.  Spread half of the sausage along side the English muffins.  Crumble the now cooked bacon and sprinkle about half (4 oz) on top of the muffins and sausage.  I like to next cut up my mushrooms, bell pepper and spread those throughout the pan as well.  Top this first layer with 3 oz. of both the cheddar and mozzarella cheese.

So that is layer one, and repeat the same process with the remaining muffin cubes and sausage.  Topping the second layer off with the rest of your cheese and bacon.  Then drizzle 1/4 cup of melted butter over the pan.  After that is assembled crack 12 eggs and mix with 2 cups of milk.  Season this mixture with salt and pepper if you prefer.  After the egg mixture is thoroughly beaten pour it over the strata.
Congrats you just prepared your delicious breakfast strata.  Now the hard part..... Waiting!

Cover the strata and refrigerate until morning.  When your ready to bake the strata remove it from the fridge 30 minutes before it goes into the 350F preheated oven.  Bake for 30-45minutes or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.  Let the it stand for 5 minutes and enjoy.

This truly was a great dish so I hope you try it out and maybe even experiment with your ingredients.  I just wish the Brewer game would had turned out as awesome as this breakfast strata (they lost 11-10). 

High Five!!

You just got done working out and you are feeling great.  Nothing like a good burn on a beautiful summer day.  One problem... it is so hot outside you can't stop sweating.  No matter how much water it seems you drink you still sweat.  If you are like me it is even worse with no a/c.  However I have found one trick that has really helped me out and involves making something in the kitchen(this is a cooking blog after all). The answer, a fruit smoothie.  Well it is sort of a smoothie/frozen treat.  The frozen smoothie lowers the core body temperature faster than just drinking ice water.  This works way better than just drinking water and sitting in front of a fan.  It also can have a lot of nutritional value depending on what you put in it and is super easy to make.
For this you will need a hand-stick blender.  You can pick one up relatively cheap at a department store.

1/3 cup Fresh frozen blueberries
1/3 cup Fresh frozen raspberries
3 to 4 Fresh frozen strawberries
1/3 cup milk (I use 2%)
3 to 4 spoonfuls of Plain yogurt
 *All of my berries were fresh non frozen from my grocery store.  I like to freeze the berries because it eliminates having to add ice which can be difficult for the hand blender to break up. 

Just add all of your ingredients into a measuring cup (mine came with my blender).  Blend the mixture until smooth and your done(literally takes 2-3 minutes). Obviously you can use whatever fruit you have, I just prefer berries because they are quick to throw in my measuring cup and require no prep time. Also if you take powder protein, throw that in if you like.    Remember I like to make this because not only is it delicious but it really helps my body cool off after a workout.
Enjoy and have fun creating your own concoctions! 

Why do you cook?

The other day, a women was passing our break room at work while I was eating lunch. As she was passing by she asked what smelled so good.  As soon as my lunch caught her eye she said "Of course, How come you always have such amazing lunches".  Well in the simplest terms, because I love to cook and I love eating what I make.  The ability to create new dishes and experiment with recipes is just so enjoyable.  For me the process of cooking is as enjoyable as eating what I've made.  However there are other reasons.  For instance, I work 12 hour days and have a weird schedule overall.  So to come home and get in the kitchen and cook is usually not something I want to do after work.  I would rather come home and heat up leftovers and enjoy something I made the previous day.  So today being an off day, of course I was in the kitchen. 

With eggplant, mushrooms and zucchini on sale, I found a recipe to make a Italian giambotta.  This was super easy to make and didn't take a long time to make.

Olive oil (small amount about a tablespoon)
6 ounces of fresh mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1 medium onion, diced
2 banana peppers sliced
1 medium eggplant, sliced
2 medium zucchini, sliced
2 ripe tomatoes, thinly sliced
2 red potatoes, sliced
Salt and pepper
 

In a skillet, heat a small amount of olive oil. Add onions and saute until translucent. Add all the remaining vegetables. Season with salt and pepper.  Bring to a simmer stir well and cover the pan. Let cook on a low flame stirring often. Remove cover and continue to cook vegetables until tender.

For my main course, I found a interesting recipe for Chicken with mustard mascarpone marsala sauce.  I had never heard of mascarpone cheese and decided it was a great opportunity to try a new ingredient.

 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast/thighs,

cut up into medium sized chunks

Salt and ground black pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

3 tablespoons butter

1 cup chopped onion

6 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced

2 tablespoons minced garlic

1 cup Marsala wine

1 cup mascarpone cheese

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

12 ounces fettuccine

So to start off season your chicken with salt and pepper.  Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the chicken and cook just until it is lightly browned on each side. Transfer the chicken to a plate and cool slightly.  In the same skillet melt 2 tablespoons of butter over medium-high heat, then add the onion and saute until tender. Add the mushrooms and garlic and saute until the mushrooms are tender and the juices evaporate.  Add the wine and simmer until it is reduced by half. Stir in the mascarpone and mustard. Return the chicken and simmer, uncovered, over medium-low heat until the chicken is just cooked through and the sauce thickens slightly.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the fettuccine and cook until al dente, stirring occasionally. Drain. Toss the fettuccine with 1 tablespoons of butter and season, to taste, with salt and pepper.  Plate your noodles and layer your chicken and sauce over.

I used spinach fettuccine, which was delicious, but use whatever kind of fettuccine you are in the mood for.

Well I hope you enjoyed today's blog and try one or both of these delicious dishes.

Love to Cook!

Welcome To Amateur Cooking!!
  I have created this blog to share my love of cooking. I am not a professional writer so I apologize if this blog is not always grammatically correct.  I am just someone that loves to cook and wants to share what I am cooking.

So this last weekend, I decided to fire up my Weber grill and do some serious grilling.  The picture below isn't your normal beef burger, but a lamb burger.  And o man was it good. I topped the burger off with a warmed raw onion, mozzarella cheese, spinach and my home made barbecue sauce.
 First off the meat is super easy to make.
 Just some ground lamb seasoned with salt, pepper and some parsley flakes.  Nothing to fancy for me because I love the taste of lamb and never want too hide its flavor. Cook on the grill the burger to your preference.  Put some raw onion slices on the grill for only a minute just to warm it up. Top the burger with the raw onion and then some sliced mozzarella.  Drizzle the barbecue sauce on top and place a few leaves of spinach and your ready to eat.  Enjoy!!



Barbecue Sauce:
2 cups Ketchup
1 cup water
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
5 tablespoons light brown sugar
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon of Cajun seasoning
1/2 tablespoon onion powder
1/2 tablespoon ground mustard
1/2 tablespoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

In a medium saucepan, combine all ingredients.  Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.  Cook uncovered, stirring frequently, for about an hour.  The sauce will thicken up if you store it overnight.