traditonal pork and spinach ravioli

Ingredients
*Makes just short of 16 dozen raviolis

10 cloves garlic, smashed
3 tbsp olive oil
1 package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and thoroughly drained
2-4 shallots, thinly sliced
1 lb. ground pork
1/2 cup parmesan
4-6 oz. marscapone cheese

Instructions

Make the filling:
1. Heat oil in large saute pan. Add garlic for about 2 minutes. Using slotted spoon remove garlic before browning.
2. Add shallots to pan with 1/2 teaspoon salt and a couple grinds fresh pepper. Saute for about 5 minutes. Using slotted spoon remove shallots from pan. Once cool, mince garlic and shallots on a cutting board.
3. Add pork to pan with more salt (about 1/2 tsp.) and more pepper. After browned, drain meat in colander to remove excess fat.
4. Turn off heat. Return meat to pan. Add all other ingredients to pan. Mix thoroughly to combine and melt cheese. Let the mixture cool before proceeding.
5. When cooled, make tiny balls (maybe 1/2 tbsp. big) with the filling so that you can easily plop them in the ravioli mold when needed. 

Assembly
*I use my KitchenAid Stand Mixer fitted with these Pasta Attachments to make the ravioli pasta sheets. It's much easier than rolling them out by hand.

Prepare the pasta sheets:
Using a dough scraper cut the dough ball into fourths (keep any unused pieces wrapped in plastic wrap to prevent the dough from drying out). Taking one fourth at a time, roll out the dough into a long, thin rectangular pasta sheet (until setting #5 if using the KitchenAid pasta roller attachment). You will continue to make pasta sheets in this fashion, only as needed though. Do not roll out all of the sheets ahead of time, otherwise you will dry out your dough which will make sealing the raviolis challenging.

Make the ravioli:
Lay the prepared pasta sheet over a ravioli tray. Take the prepared filling balls and gently flatten them out with your index finger and thumb, creating small flat discs. Place them in the middle of each ravioli mold. Lay another pasta sheet over the filling. Using a rolling pin, seal the two pasta sheets together. Suggested method of rolling: first roll one short end, then the other short end, then one long end, leaving one long end open so that any air can escape. Roll over the top lightly to press out any air, then crimp the last long end. If you crimp the interior too much (i.e. roll too hard), they won't drop out of the tray in one piece. After you've sealed the sheets together, turn the tray upside down and gently help the raviolis out onto a parchment-lined tray or cutting board. Finally use a pastry crimper to ensure all sides around the ravioli are sealed. On a slight angle gently run the pastry crimper along all sides of the raviolis. At this point, I recommend popping them in the freezer for 10 or so minutes. After some time in the freezer, the individual raviolis will easily break apart. If you aren't cooking them immediately, place the raviolis in a freezer bag and store in the freezer. *Incorporate any dough scraps into your next pasta sheet.

Cooking the ravioli:
1. Gently boil the fresh raviolis for 4 minutes.
Tip: lower the raviolis into the boiling water using an Asian strainer rather than throwing/dumping them in the pot. This helps prevent water from splashing and the fragile raviolis from breaking open.
2. When the raviolis have finished cooking, using the strainer again, remove them and place in a colander to remove any excess water.
3. Serve with a basic marinara sauce and top with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

* Serving Suggestions:
Dinner: 1.5 dozen per person
Lunch or Holidays: 1 dozen per person

italian wedding soup

Ingredients

For the meatballs:

3/4 pound ground chicken
1/2 pound chicken sausage, casings removed
2/3 cup panko breadcrumbs
2 teaspoons minced garlic
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
1/4 cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra for serving
3 tablespoons milk
1 extra-large egg, lightly beaten
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the soup:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup minced yellow onion
1 cup diced carrots (about 3 carrots), cut into 1/4 inch pieces
3/4 cup diced celery (about 2 stalks), cut into 1/4 inch pieces
10 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup white wine
1 cup small pasta, like tubetini, stars, or orzo
1/4 cup minced fresh dill
12 ounces baby spinach, washed and trimmed

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

2. For the meatballs, place the ground chicken, sausage, bread crumbs, garlic, parsley, Pecorino, Parmesan, milk, egg, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a bowl and combine gently with a fork. With a teaspoon, drop 1 to 1 1/4-inch meatballs onto a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. (You should have about 40 meatballs. They don't have to be perfectly round.)
3. Bake for 30 minutes, until cooked through and lightly browned. Set aside.
4. In the meantime, for the soup, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat in a large heavy-bottomed soup pot. Add the onion, carrots, and celery and saute until softened, 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Add the chicken stock and wine and bring to a boil.
6. Add the pasta to the simmering broth and cook for 6-8 minutes, until the pasta is tender.
7. Add the fresh dill and then the meatballs to the soup and simmer for 1 minute. Taste for salt and pepper. Stir in the fresh spinach and cook for 1 minute, until the spinach is just wilted. Ladle into soup bowls and sprinkle each serving with extra grated Parmesan.

*Adapted from Ina Garten

wilted spinach

Ingredients 

1 1/2 tbsp. olive oil

1/2 tbsp. white wine vinegar

1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard

1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1/8 tsp. salt

3 garlic cloves, minced

9 oz. baby spinach

1/4 cup red onion, sliced

Instructions

1. Combine the first 6 ingredients in a small bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Heat vinaigrette in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

2. Add onion and garlic; saute for 2 minutes.

3. Gradually add spinach; toss until just wilted.

* adapted from Cooking Light

mushroom, bacon, and spinach risotto

Goey, cheesy risotto with bacon---yum!

Ingredients

4 cups chicken stock
6 bacon slices, chopped
1 cup chopped shallots
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced
4 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
4 ounces oyster mushrooms, sliced
1 cup uncooked Arborio rice
1/3 cup Madeira wine or dry sherry
4 cups baby spinach
1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated fresh Asiago cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Ingredients

1. Bring chicken stock to a simmer in a small saucepan (do not boil); keep warm over low heat.
2. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add bacon to pan; cook 8 minutes or until crisp, stirring occasionally. Remove bacon from pan with a slotted spoon. Add shallots, oil, thyme, and garlic to drippings in pan; cook 6 minutes or until shallots are tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in mushrooms; cook 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add rice, and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in Madeira; cook 1 minute or until the liquid is nearly absorbed, stirring constantly. Stir in 1 cup stock; cook 4 minutes or until the liquid is nearly absorbed, stirring constantly. Add remaining stock, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until each portion of stock is absorbed before adding the next (about 25 minutes total). Stir in spinach; cook 1 minute. Remove from heat; stir in cheese, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle with bacon.

* from Cooking Light

breakfast sandwiches

Ingredients

4 small onions, thinly sliced

1 tbsp. unsalted butter

1 tbsp. olive oil

1/2 tsp. light brown sugar

salt

pepper

4 slices of thick-cut bacon

2 cup baby spinach

4 fried eggs

4 English muffins, sliced in half

extra sharp cheddar cheese

cooking spray

Instructions

1. Caramelize the onions: Melt the butter and oil in a 12-inch skillet over high heat. Stir in the onions, brown sugar and 1/2 tsp. salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are deeply browned, about 40 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the water and season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from pan when done.

2. Add the spinach to the oily skillet. Add 1/2 tbsp. of water to the pan and cover and cook until just wilted, about 2 minutes. Remove spinach.

3. Add the bacon slices to the skillet. Cook until lightly browned. Remove from pan and drain on paper-towel-lined plate. Empty grease from pan.

4. Spray the pan with cooking spray. Fry your eggs.

5. Toast or grill your English muffins.

6. Assemble your sandwiches: cheese first, then egg, then bacon, then onions, then spinach. Grill in panini maker until cheese has melted.

green apple and goat cheese salad

Ingredients

baby spinach leaves
1 Granny Smith apple
1/2 cup walnuts, toasted
1/2 cup goat cheese

For the vinegarette:
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. cider-vinegar
1 tsp. Dijon Mustard
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar, and mustard. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Core the apple and slice into matchsticks.
3. Toast the walnuts.
4. Assemble and enjoy!

spinach and feta chicken

Ingredients

2 chicken breasts

1 red bell pepper, sliced

1 box of frozen spinach, defrosted and any excess water squeezed out

1 cup feta cheese

olive oil

Instructions

1. Place chicken breasts in a baking dish.

2. Layer the following ingredients on top of the chicken in this order: spinach, red bell pepper, then feta cheese.

3. Drizzle olive oil over the chicken breasts.

4. Cover and bake for 60 minutes at 350 degrees F.

Emeril's chicken and rice soup

This is the perfect soup for a sick day!

Ingredients

2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 3/4-inch dice
1 tbsp. Emeril's Original Essence or Creole Seasoning
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 cups diced onions (small dice)
1 1/2 cups diced carrots (small dice)
1 1/2 cups diced celery (small dice)
1 tbsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. dried basil
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper
2 quarts low-sodium chicken broth, plus more if needed
1/2 cup uncooked long-grain white rice
1 (5-oz) bag pre-washed spinach

Instructions

1. Place the chicken in a medium bowl, season with the Essence, and set aside.
2. Heat the olive oil in a 6-quart (or larger) soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions, carrots, and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the garlic, basil, salt, and crushed red pepper, and continue to cook for 1 minute.
4. Add the chicken and cook for 3 minutes. Add the broth and the rice, cover the pot, and bring to a boil over high heat. Remove the cover, reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook until the rice is just tender, about 12 minutes.
5. Stir in the spinach, and serve immediately.

*Adapted from Emeril

ziti with spinach, cherry tomatoes, and gorgonzola sauce

Ingredients

4 oz. uncooked ziti
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. crushed red pepper
5-10 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 cup  half-and-half
6 tbsp. Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
1 bag of fresh spinach

Instructions

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting fat and salt; drain.
2. Heat olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add cherry tomatoes, salt, crushed red pepper, and minced garlic to pan; cook 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Stir in half-and-half and Gorgonzola cheese; cook 2 minutes or until slightly thick, stirring constantly. Stir in spinach and pasta; cook 1 minute or until spinach just wilts, tossing occasionally.

*Adapted from Cooking Light

tomato, broccoli, spinach and feta cheese pizza

Ingredients

1 large tomato, thinly sliced OR 1 container of cherry tomatoes, halved
1 box of frozen broccoli, defrosted and drained well
1 box of frozen whole leaf spinach, defrosted and drained well
1 cup feta cheese
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup pizza sauce (I recommend Rao's Pizza Sauce)
1 prepared pizza crust

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Thaw spinach and broccoli, squeeze out any excess water.
3. If you are making you own dough, I recommend pre-cooking the dough until it is light brown so that the crust doesn't get mushy when you add the toppings.
4. Spread pizza sauce on crust. Then sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Then add broccoli, spinach, and tomatoes. Then sprinkle 1 cup of feta cheese on top of it all.
5. Cook until cheese melts and the crust is golden brown, takes about 15 minutes.

pasta with prosciutto and spinach

Ingredients

1 package fresh cheese tortellini
1 tbsp. pine nuts
1 tbsp. olive oil
10 garlic cloves, finely minced
1 (6 oz) package of spinach
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/4 lb. Boar's Head prosciutto, thinly sliced

Instructions

1. Toast nuts in a large nonstick skillet on medium heat; stirring occasionally. When toasted place nuts aside in large bowl.
2. Cook pasta. Drain and transfer to bowl.
3. Heat oil in pan over medium heat. Add garlic to pan; cook 2 minutes. Add spinach to pan; cook until just wilted. Add spinach mixture, cheese, and remaining ingredients to bowl; toss well.

*Adapted from Cooking Light