Oh So Saucesome

Hey there!

Yes, it's been a reeeaaaalllly long time since I've updated in here. Don't worry, I have in fact eaten since then. I've even cooked since then, just nothing from the project. To those who faithfully checked this thing each week (Mom?), I apologize. But here it is, an update!

Tonight I made "Spinach and Mushroom Ravioli" from the stuffed pasta section of the "Everyday Pasta, Polenta, and Risotto" chapter. I had some help with this one from a certain someone named Ryan who made all the multi-tasking much more manageable. He's also just nice to have around in general. Anyhow, here's how it all went down.

We started by dicing up some mushrooms and sauteing them with some EVOO spray. Then we threw in some spinach and let it cook a couple more minutes. As this all happened, I was laying out won ton wrappers like it was my job (and I suppose it was at that moment) to make the ravioli from "scratch."

This recipe actually has you use the won ton method unlike the pumpkin ravioli. I find this odd considering the spinach and mushroom would be much easier to find in a grocery store than the pumpkin ravioli. Just sayin'.....

Once the mushrooms and spinach were sauteed to our liking, we removed them from the heat and let them cool (and I used this time to switch over my laundry that had slowly taken over my walk-in closet of a room). The next step allowed me to use one of my new gadgets, a food processor!! Yes, I received a food processor for my 21st birthday and I was ECSTATIC. We put the mixture into the food processor and pulsed it until it was a coarse texture. It actually kind of came out looking like bright green hummus. I was supposed to stir in some mascarpone cheese along with Parmesan next, but I've grown tired of buying containers of mascarpone, using a tablespoon of it, and then having it go bad in my fridge. Therefore, I improvised with two wedges of garlic and herb Laughing Cow cheese. Similar? Taste-wise, not really. Texture-wise, certainly.

Before filling the won tons with the spinachy goodness, I brushed them with a egg wash (which they needed because apparently when you let won ton wrappers sit out for any given amount of time, they sort of dry out. Oops!). Then I put one heaping teaspoon of filling onto each, sealed it around the center, and pressed the edges with a fork. I still don't own a ravioli cutter, but did not attempt to make cool edges on these ones. I've learned that butter knives literally don't cut it when it comes to designs.

And now, for more multitasking. First, we got a pot of water boiling to cook the raviolis. As I assembled the pasta, Ryan sauteed more mushrooms for the sauce. We cooked about four raviolis at a time so they wouldn't stick together (even though they still did) and it took about three minutes for each batch. We added some sauce from a jar (what?!?!?!?!) to the sauteed mushrooms and served it over the raviolis.

It was pretty good overall, but we both agreed that there was something missing from the filling. I think it was my use of Laughing Cow over mascarpone. I'll have to work out the kinks on that one. I do have a lot of filling left over that I think will be a good dip for chips or crackers, or perhaps a good topping for toasted Italian bread? Hmmm....

The next recipe will be from the "Everyday Entrees" chapter and to be honest, I don't know when I will be tackling that one. Check back every so often and you may just be lucky enough to see something new :)

Mushrooms Are Pretty Fun Guys...

...and did I mention I love puns? All right, pictured above are the ever delicious Stuffed Mushrooms from the "Everyday Contorni" chapter of Everyday Italian. As these cooked, I read some of Giada's informative passages in the book and learned that contorni are vegetable side dishes. I also learned that stuffed vegetables came about when Italian housewives needed something to do with their leftovers. Cool, right? Traditional stuffed mushrooms from Genoa are typically stuffed with anchovies, marjoram (I have no idea what that is) and bread crumbs. Giada's recipe is much simpler than that.

First things first, Giada's recipe makes 28 stuffed mushrooms. As much as I would love to eat that many mushrooms, I don't think that would be wise...or possible. Therefore, I had to reduce the measures in this recipe to one-fourth their size. Also, I have now learned how to be resourceful in making my way to the kitchen here. I put all my supplies in one of my reusable grocery bags and walked up and down the stairs with ease. A very simple solution to my Rachael Ray problem.

When I got into the kitchen, I preheated the oven to 400 degrees and began to prepare my stuffing. I started by chopping two cloves of garlic. The recipe calls for two cloves...for 28 mushrooms. I didn't think to maybe reduce this number, so I had A LOT of garlic for five mushrooms. I then chopped some fresh parsley (thanks to my mother!) and added it to the garlic. The recipe includes fresh mint as well, but I didn't follow my grocery list so well yesterday and forgot to pick some up. Word to the wise: chop herbs BEFORE you chop garlic so they don't stick to your knife and drive you crazy. To this mix, I added 1/8 cup of Italian bread crumbs and 1/8 cup of Pecorino Romano cheese (the recipe calls for 1/2 cup of each of these).

Next, I stemmed my mushrooms. I don't know why I thought this would be easier with the "gourmet stuffing mushrooms" I had bought. It really wasn't. Mushrooms are pretty delicate so when you're trying to pop out the stem with a sharp knife, you have to be super careful that you don't rip the mushrooms apart. I was pretty successful in keeping my mushrooms intact, but there was definitely potential for it to go awry.

Now the recipe does not call for this next part, but I'm pretty sure I've seen this done in other stuffed mushrooms recipes. I took all the stems and chopped them up and added them to my stuffing since it was looking a little lax. I figured adding more mushroom to mushrooms couldn't hurt. However, I should add that trying to finely chop these stems was tedious. They kept sticking to the knife and I couldn't get them cut as finely as I wanted. In fact, it took me so long to chop these things that the motion-sensor lights in the kitchen turned off.

Once the oven was at the right temperature, I sprayed the tray with my EVOO spray and placed the mushroom caps on top. I tried to evenly distribute the filling amongst the caps and ended up getting more of it all over the tray than in the mushrooms themselves. I also realized in the process that I hadn't really combined the filling ingredients all that well and each element wasn't very evenly distributed. For a finishing touch, I divided a teaspoon of olive oil amongst the caps and put them in the oven. I then let them cook for 25 minutes as I read my Rolling Stone magazine at the table. Within about five minutes, I could smell the awesome-ness.

When the mushrooms were done, they were a nice golden brown color and smelled FANTASTIC. And believe me, they tasted just as great. That being said, there is definitely room for improvement. The filling didn't really stay together too well so I will have to find a way (other than adding more cheese) to make it more cohesive. Also, it was very garlicky. I should have cut back on that part of the recipe, but hindsight is 20/20. In the future, I would also like to see how the mint fits into the recipe. Once I got past the garlic in mine, the parsley gave it a fresh, clean taste and the combination of the bread crumbs and the cheese was salty and gooey and great. When you cut into the mushrooms, all the juice kind of spills out of them (I don't think there's anyway to really avoid that) and works well with the filling.

Bottom line: I highly recommend this dish. Especially as a starter for parties (hence why the original one makes 28). Thursday is my first venture into some Italian desserts, but I will be updating before then since I fully intend to continue cooking throughout the week :)