No Chef Boyardee

My mother has this thing now where if she knows I'm going to be at home, she'll buy a bunch of random things from the grocery store for me to cook. It's kind of like chopped in a weird way because usually I have to figure out what to do with the stuff. This time she picked up some chicken and cheese ravioli, some sun-dried tomato pesto, and some spaghetti sauce. With that I came up with this:


Toasted Chicken and Cheese Ravioli 


Ingredients


2 tbsp of whole milk
1 egg
1/2 cup of seasoned Italian bread crumbs
3 cups of vegetable oil (  I like Canola oil better; it's healthier)
1 16oz. jar of marinara sauce
1 16oz. package of chicken and cheese ravioli (or any other frozen or refrigerated ravioli of your choice) 

Directions


1. Combine milk and egg in a small bowl. Place breadcrumbs in a shallow dish. Dip ravioli in the milk mixture, then coat them with bread crumbs. 

2. In a large saucepan, heat marinara sauce over medium heat until it begins bubbling. Reduce to  a simmer.

3. In a separate large heavy pan, pour oil to a depth of about 2 inches. Heat oil over medium heat until a small test portion of breading sizzles and turns brown. Fry ravioli, a few at a time. Cook them for one minute on each side or until golden. (Keep a watchful eye on them because they brown extremely quickly) Drain on paper towels. 

4. Drizzle with the marinara sauce and serve. I paired mine with Garlic bread served with sun-dried tomato pesto as well as a fresh Caesar salad. 

“I have long believed that good food, good eating is all about risk. Whether we’re talking about unpasteurized Stilton, raw oysters or working for organized crime ‘associates,’ food, for me, has always been an adventure.”
- Anthony Bourdain

Bon Appétit!

Merry Christmas, Baby!

You would think that I would have planned to make something elaborate seeing as it was Christmas and all, not the case. I was just supposed to chill. I didn't have to worry about dinner because my older cousin was handling that. My aunt took care of the desserts. I was off the hook. That is, until my dad decided that he wanted me to make cheesecake, and it had to be a plain cheesecake with CHERRY topping. It's not one of my favorites, but I did for him. Even though it didn't get made until about 2a.m. on Christmas Eve, it wasn't terrible because it's a super simple recipe. I think any really good, really simple recipe is worth sharing. So, here it is:

3-Step Philadelphia Cheesecake

what you need

2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened

1/2 cup  sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla

2   eggs

1 cup thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping1   Keebler Graham Pie Crust (6 oz.) 1 can of cherry pie filling  

If you're pressed for time, use the stove top to soften the cream cheese while the oven is preheating. 

make it

Step 1:    PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add eggs; mix until blended. 

Step 2:    POUR into crust

Step 3:    BAKE 40 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool. Refrigerate several hours or overnight. Top with whipped topping and the cherry filling.

Unfortunately the picture of the final product isn't the best quality because I didn't take it myself. My mother did it with her phone so the color is a little weird. 

“Tell me what you eat, I’ll tell you who you are.”
- Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

Bon Appétit!

                                                                                                       

Southern Comfort :-)

I know Corn Chowder doesn't really sound all that appetizing to those who've never tried it, but I loved this recipe. I wasn't even planning on making anything tonight, but thanks to my dad I had to. I had made chicken for the family, but was planning on eating mine later. Unfortunately, when it was time for me to get mine, my dad had already eaten it lol. So, I figured now would be a great opportunity for me to find a new quick, simple, and pork/beef free. The good thing about this soup is that most of the ingredients are things I usually have, at home anyway (onions, celery, potatoes...). 


I didn't do a whole lot of modifying with this one, but I definitely will probably experiment with it in the near future. 

Mimi's Corn Chowder

• INGREDIENTS

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter (1/2 a stick)
• 6 tablespoons chopped onions
• 3/4 cup diced celery
• 2 1/2 cups hot water
• 2 cups cubed potatoes (1/2 inch pieces)
• 3 cups frozen corn kernels, thawed
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 dash white pepper
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 quart half-and-half cream (I personally like heavy whipping cream better)
• 
  

• DIRECTIONS

  • 1
    1. Melt butter in large saucepan. Once melted add celery and onion and saute for 5 minutes (not til brown, just til soft).

    
    

    

    
    
  • 2
    2. Add water, potatoes, corn, sugar, salt and pepper, making sure water covers everything, adding more if not covered completely. Cover and simmer until potatoes are tender, usually about 20 minutes (The time really just depends on how big the pieces of potato are)   

    
    

                

    
    
  • 3
    3. Whisk flour into 1 cup of the half and half and then stir into soup.
  • 4
    4. Add remaining half and half and simmer until soup is thickened to a creamy consistency (usually about 15 minutes).
  • 5
    5. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper if wanted. If the chowder is too thick, add some milk, if it is too thin, simmer for 5-10 minutes more.

    
    

    “One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating.”
    - Luciano Pavarotti

    
    

    Bon Appétit!

Pretty Please with Strawberries on Top!

White Chocolate and Strawberry Cheesecake 

If you've ever seen my "Sweets" album on facebook, you probably already have guessed that cheesecake is my favorite dessert to work with. It's simple to make, and there's so many ways you can change it up. My favorite way to do that is with fruit. Out of all of the cheesecakes that I 've made in the last year, this is, by far, my favorite one :-). I found a recipe for an "Orange Chocolate Cheesecake" but since I had already done something similar to that I decided to put my own spin on it. My dad proposed I make a cherry cheesecake, buuuttttt I hate cherries so I picked strawberries. Unfortunately, fresh strawberries suck in November so I had to use frozen ones. Anyways here's how I did it:

Ingredients

• 2 cups vanilla wafer crumbs (about 60 wafers)
• 6 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 
  FILLING:
• 4 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
• 4 eggs
• 10 ounces white baking chocolate, melted
• 1/2 cup of sweetened frozen strawberries (thawed and pureed)
• 
  TOPPING:
• 1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon strawberry extract
• 2 cups of sweetened frozen strawberries (thawed)
• Cool Whip

Directions

• Combine the first three ingredients; press onto the bottom and 1-1/2 in up the sides of a greased 10-in. springform pan. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes; cool completely.
• In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar, puree and sour cream until smooth. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until combined. Stir in chocolate. Pour into crust. Place pan on a baking sheet
• Bake at 350° for 1 to 1-1/4 hours or until center is nearly set. Cool to room temperature, about 2 hours. (Be careful not to let it bake too long, or it will crack when it sets)
• Combine the sour cream, sugar and extract; spread over filling. Bake at 450° for 5-7 minutes or until set. Chill, uncovered, 1 hour. Arrange strawberries on cheesecake. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours. Refrigerate leftovers. Yield: 12-16 servings.
• A little before planned serving time, put cool whip on the cake as desired.

"We are indeed much more than what we eat, but what we eat can nevertheless help us to be much more than what we are." 
--Adelle Davis

• Bon Appétit!