Jazzing Up Frozen Ravioli | Ravioli with pancetta, tomatoes, mushrooms, spinach & cream | Frozen Ravioli

While I like to make homemade pasta and ravioli on a weekend when we've got more time, we still have to eat dinner Monday - Thursday.  So to everyone's relief, this is a recipe for jazzing up frozen ravioli with a quick sauce.

I'm not sure if I ever really got the need for a really quick and easy dinner before Emma.  The evenings seem to go by in a flash - Mike gets home at 6:30, dinner at 7:00, bath at 7:30 and Emma's in bed at 8:00 (hopefully).  So, my dinner fixing window is somewhere between 6:30 to 7:00 while Mike feeds Emma her dinner of mashed sweet potatoes and pureed pears.

Start to finish this is a 15 minute meal that uses two pans - one for boiling water and the other to saute the sauce.  My dishwasher (Mike) appreciates the quick cleanup! 

Jazzed Up 
Frozen Ravioli
with pancetta, tomatoes, mushrooms, spinach & cream


1 bag of frozen ravioli (I used two different kinds- cheese & red pepper)
1/4 pound of pancetta, diced

10 mushrooms, sliced

2 tablespoons of olive oil

4 cloves of garlic, minced

1 large can of whole tomatoes, crushed by hand, include juice

1/4 cup of heavy cream

2 cups of spinach

fresh parmesan

Boil water for the ravioli.  The water should should be boiling and ready for the ravioli just as the sauce is ready. 

Start by sautéing the pancetta for 2-3 minutes until it begins to brown.  Add mushrooms and olive oil and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic, and cook for 30 seconds being careful not to burn it. Add in the crushed tomatoes and its juice. Stir in the heavy cream.  Reduce to simmer and cook for 3-5 minutes on low.  Add spinach.  Turn off the heat.

Add ravioli to the boiling water.  Cook for 2-3 minutes.  

Reserve 1 cup of the pasta water, set aside. Drain the ravioli and put it (without rinsing) into the sauce. Toss. If the sauce needs thinning, add a small amount of the reserved pasta water. Top with fresh grated parmesan cheese.

Whoopie Pies | Whoopie Pies from a Cake Mix | Fluffy Cake Cookies with Buttercream Filling

Here's another re-post of a favorite recipe... Whoopie Pies.  This post receives a ton of traffic from google for people searching "Whoopie Pie from a Cake Mix."  I guess everyone likes a good ole treat with a good ole shortcut!

Our House Project is in the home stretch... 4 months down, 3 more months to go.  That's the home stretch, right?  I know everyone is ready for Spring, but for us, Spring means getting to move in to our new home that we've been planning for 2 years and saving for 4.  Gulp.

It was 68 degrees here yesterday... and I feel like I've tricked myself into believing that spring is almost here.   I'm in pre-spring cleaning mode at the store, moving everything out to make room.  In the Sale section, I've marked down lots of products, including Valentine's Day goodies - copper cookie cutters, ribbons, baking supplies, etc.  

Almost everything 20-50%.  I'm also reactivating the $5 Shipping on orders over $50.  Go crazy.  Buy goodies for your Valentines and a couple of things for yourself ; )

Shop the Everyday Occasions Store, here.

Whoopie Pies
the new cupcake?


These light and fluffy cake cookie sandwiches are all of the rage these days.  I recently read an article (NY Times, maybe?) that claimed the Whoopie Pie was the new cupcake.  Wow.  Bold statement!

I'm not sure about the new cupcake, but I do like that they are a more 'homey' rustic dessert that seems to have a casual quality, as apposed to the 'pretty' cupcake with the swirls of icing.  In fact, they might be a more 'manly' cupcake option.  Definitely a more transportable cupcake option - even after years of catering and delivering cupcakes, it is always one of my biggest struggles!

On the 'manly' note, Mike specifically requested these this week after his first Whoopie Pie experience while visiting our friends in Maine last weekend.  I knew he would love them as his favorite cake combo is chocolate cake with white icing.  A Whoopie Pie fan was his destiny. 

Like cupcakes the possibilities are endless.  I had a friend post of my facebook wall today that she had recently heard of a Pumpkin Spice Whoopie Pie.  I can only image that with fluffy cream cheese icing.  Oh wow.  I will definitely be experimenting with that this Fall.

While looking at different recipes online today, I found many different looking whoopie pies.  For me, a great Whoopie is in the lightness and fluffiness of the cake AND the icing.  The entire thing should taste like a fluffy, chocolate and cream cloud.

I am a huge fan of anything that starts with a cake mix.  For some reason, it just seems more manageable if it starts with a box!  The result was great... and very quick to make.  Highly, highly recommended.  Oh, and what makes these even better is they are great to freeze, too.  I'm going to put them in the freezer to get out for Mike's lunches everyday. 

Whoopie Pies
from a cake mix

1 chocolate cake mix
3 eggs
1/2 cup of water
1/2 cup of vegetable oil
........

2 sticks of butter, softened
3-4 cups of powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a mixer, combine cake mix, eggs, water and oil.  Whip together for 2-3 minutes.

On a parchment paper* or Silpat lined baking sheet, scoop out batter into round mounds.  I used a small ice cream scoop that measured 1 2/3 inches in diameter.  Use the back of a spoon to round out scoops of batter into perfect circles.

*I've switched to using pre-cut parchment sheets that fit perfectly in a sheet pan... they are a dream.  They are non-stick and you can just throw them away after you use them.  I use them for everything - cookies, roasting vegetables, meatballs, etc.  I'm stocking them in my store as one of my favorite "essentials" - 200 sheets for $12... which should be a year supply.  No more washing the silpat.

Bake for 8 minutes.  Cool.

For the icing, in your mixer with the paddle attachment, whip together butter and sugar (start with 3 cups of powdered sugar, then add more if necessary for thickness).  Whip for 5 minutes until light and fluffy (the extra time makes all the difference!).  Scoop into a pastry bag (you can buy here, 20 bags for $12) with the end cut with a 1/2 inch opening.

To fill, pipe icing onto the bottom cookie (wrong side up), then top with another cookie (right side up).

You can make any size you'd like, these ended up being almost 5 inches!  

 *Again, I've switched to using pre-cut parchment sheets - one of my new favorite things.

 

Whipping the butter and powdered sugar for 5 minutes gives it a really fluffy, airy quality. 

 
 
Here is my pastry bag with the end cut off... also one of my favorite things.  They make it so much easier to control rather than just spreading with a knife.  I use disposable so I don't have to worry about washing it... I can just toss it.  Usually I have a little left in the bag, so I just put the bag in the refrigerator, then get it out anytime I need a little icing.  You can buy them here.
 

Bottom half.


...and top.  Looks like a big fluffy oreo, right?!  I think I must go have another one right now with a big glass of milk.

How cute would they looked piled in these Pink Bakery Boxes (you can find them here, 10 for $8)  for Valentine's Day!?  I can just picture them stacked in with parchment sheets in between.... maybe the sides of the icing are covered with valentine's sprinkles?!  Ok, I think I'll have to try that now.

East Hampton Weekend : Barefoot Contessa Sighting & Martha Stewart's Home

Sometimes I still can't believe we sat next to the Barefoot Contessa at dinner last year when we visited the Hamptons... I just had to share this post again!  Thanks for re-reading some of my favorite posts lately - Emma and I have been taking a little Summer break this week!  I'm working on some home projects (lots of spray paint and stripping wood involved) that I'll be sharing next week.  Oh, and I'm trying to convince Mike to build me a giant wood bed... I'm hoping he'll be able to copy the Pottery Barn Sommerset Bed.  Check back soon for all of those updates!

We had dinner and drinks at The 1770 House.  The parlor was so handsome and cozy...  For dinner, we were seated in "The Tavern" of the restaurant - the basement of the antique house was dark, cozy, and candlelit - not stuffy at all.

We happened to be seated right next to The Barefoot Contessa herself!

This is Ina Garten's (The Barefoot Contessa) favorite spots... she had this signed copy in the parlor - she's used a couple of her favorite recipes from the restaurant (1770 House) in her book (ex. meatloaf).

To our absolute thrill and shock, we were seated at the next table over from hers!  We didn't want to interrupt her dinner with Jeffrey and her friends (two other couples), so we abstained from taking any photos or saying 'hi' - even-though it nearly killed me!  I was just concentrating on acting normal - I could hardly think of anything else.

It was so interesting to see her in one of her favorite spots enjoying an intimate dinner with friends - just witnessing her was a pleasure.   Their evening was just as I imagined it would be - they had boisterous conversations, were laughing plenty, and she invited them all over for drinks at their home at around 10pm.

Cream Puffs filled with Homemade Vanilla Custard and Chocolate Sauce

You might recall that my last post was a "Lightened Up Summer Supper."  You must think I've lost it following up with this Cream Puffs post.  Sorry.  This was actually a dessert I made at my Mom's house during the feasting, so it's decadence was more appropriate at the time than it's timing here.  And let's face it... no one wants to read about a healthy dinner, right?  Not two posts in a row, at least.
Here we go...

When we were little, my sister and I lived for Potlucks at Church.

That might be an overstatement.  However, it did make getting up for Church a lot more exciting knowing that after the service a buffet of casseroles, homemade rolls, molded jello 'specialties' and a spread of cakes and pies awaited us in the basement (yes, the same basement in which we hosted Emma's Baptism Brunch).  Nothing like sweets and carbs to motivate youngsters.  And oldsters, for that matter.  (The 'youngsters' is a shoutout to our childhood Pastor that always referred to kids as 'youngsters.'  The 'oldsters' was just my endless creativity at work.)

One Potluck dessert that was particularly coveted was Mrs. Schluetter's* Homemade Cream Puffs.  *Her name has been changed for her protection, and because I can't remember it.  They were light, free-form puffs, filled with custard and dusted with powdered sugar.  And there were only about a dozen of them.  An early lesson of supply and demand.

Jill and I probably helped ourselves to seconds even before hitting the line of various Baked Mac and Cheeses and Green Bean Casseroles.  Yes, I realize that that was rude and inconsiderate of us to all of the other patrons, but only so many lessons can be learned from a Cream Puff.  And the lesson we elected was "Get while the Gettin' is Good."  (My parents are shuttering right now...)

Here is my version of these beloved Cream Puffs.  I topped them with Chocolate Sauce, but almost wish I would've dusted them with powdered sugar to have been able to really enjoy the delicate puff and homemade custard.  That Mrs. Schluetter knew what she was doing.  You can pick your poison.

Homemade Cream Puffs
with Vanilla Custard


Pâte à Choux (Puff Pastry):

1 stick of butter, cut into pieces
1 cup of water
1½ teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 eggs

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Bring water, butter, sugar, salt and vanilla to a boil.

Remove pan from heat and add flour, stirring with wooden spoon until dough separates from sides of pan.   Add 1 egg at a time, stirring until dough smooths out.

On a silpat lined (or parchment or sprayed) baking sheet, make 12 dollops. Bake for 30 minutes at 375 degrees, then 20 minutes at 300 degrees.  Remove from oven and let puffs cool. 

Vanilla Custard :

2 cups heavy cream
½ cup sugar
Pinch salt
5 large egg yolks
3 tablespoons of cornstarch
4 tablespoons of cold butter, cut into pieces
2 teaspoons of vanilla bean paste or extract

To make the pastry cream, heat cream, sugar, and salt in a saucepan over medium-high heat until simmering, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar.  Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks in a medium bowl and whisk until the mixture is creamy, about 15 seconds.  Whisk in the cornstarch until combined and the mixture is pale yellow and thick, about 30 seconds.

When the cream mixture has reached a simmer, slowly add it to the egg mixture while whisking constantly.  Return the mixture to the saucepan.  Return the mixture to a simmer over medium heat, whisking constantly until the mixture has thickened, approx. 30 seconds.  Remove from the heat, whisk in the butter and vanilla.  Place in a glass bowl and cover with plastic wrap.  Chill before filling puffs, unless you'd like to serve them warm... which is fabulous.

Lightened Up Summer Supper and Photos from Our Trip Home for the 4th of July

Sorry I've been gone so long - we're (finally) back in the swing of things after our trip back home for the 4th of July.  We came back stuffed.  When we go back to visit it seems like every meal is an event- whether it be a huge family dinner or lunch at one of our old favorites.

I mowed through baskets of chips and salsa at my favorite Mexican restaurant, we had barbeque at least twice, 2 chocolate cakes (one topped with a warm peanut butter icing...) and lots of milkshakes before bed.  Funny- before Emma was born we usually had a couple of glasses of wine before bed.  Now, it's milkshakes. 

So I didn't need to get out my old maternity 'stretchers,' we majorly lightened up dinner when we got home.  Except for the fresh mozzarella.  And the pancetta.  And the butter on the corn.

Here are some photos of our visit.  I don't have very many- I'm so bad at taking pictures when I'm 'off duty!' 

Our wedding photographer, Claire Ryser, came out to my parents' house to take photos of Emma and Sam on Sunday morning.  I can't wait to get her images.  Here is a link to our wedding photos, if you haven't seen them yet.  Claire is the absolute best- I can't say enough about her.

Do you want to know just how good Claire is?  She said she likes to wear graphic black and white clothes when she is doing a baby shoot so they find her interesting.  How great (and smart) is that.

Emma really liked the grass.  Even more than she liked looking up and smiling for the camera... which she only did for about 30 seconds the entire morning.

Gotta love a baby in a basket.

I should've taken a video of this... Mike playing peekaboo with the basket.  It was a major workout to try to get Miss Emma to giggle at 7am.

I think the poor thing was teething... finding comfort in the flowers on her dress.

Sam and Emma getting ready for their scene.

Sam has graduated to the big swing!  

And pink toenails. 

Here is Emma meeting her new cousin, Murphy.

I think she likes him.

Nevermind.

Here's a little video of Sam playing with Emma.  It might be the cutest thing I've ever seen.  Except my voice on the video.  Please ignore it - it is so annoying.  Ick!  Does everyone feel that way about hearing their own voice?!

Greek Pasta Salad

This summer I've really been into prepared salads.  I made them at the beginning of the week and keep them in the fridge so I have something easy for lunch that is a little better than a PBJ.  I copied this salad from mt local favorite, Verrill Farm. I had it for lunch one day then immediately bought all of the supplies (there) to make it for myself.

Greek Pasta Salad

1/2 pound of penne pasta, cooked and rinsed
1 cucumber, peeled sliced
3 medium tomatoes, diced
1/4 cup of red onion, thinly sliced
1/2 cup of kalamata olives, chopped
1 tablespoon of fresh parsley
4 ounces of crumbled feta
1/2 cup of olive oil
1/2 cup of red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon of dried italian seasoning
1 teaspoon of sea salt
1/2 teaspoon of black pepper

Combine cooked pasta, cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, olives, parsley and feta in a large bowl.  In a small bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar and seasonings.  Pour over pasta and vegetables, toss. 

TheDaily.com 4th of July Video featuring My Star-Spangled 4th of July Party

As my last three posts have mentioned, last weekend I created a 4th of July themed party for TheDaily.  Here is the completed video.  It was so beautifully shot and produced by their team- thanks to Beryl Shereshewsky and Kyle Walling!

Visit here to see all of the details from the Star-Spangled 4th of July Party.

4th of July Table Setting, Red White & Blue Ice Cream Cake, & Star Spangled Sangria

Last week, TheDaily.com came to my house to shoot a video for a 4th of July video.  I created this "Star-Spangled 4th of July Party" complete with a Red, White and Blueberry Ice Cream Cake, baskets of berries, a Help Yourself Bar with Star-Spangled Sangria.  For the behind the scenes scoop, visit this blog post.   To watch the video they beautifully produced, click here!

Here is the complete table with the Red, White & Blueberry Ice Cream Cake as the centerpiece.



I set the table (yes, that is my farm table that is usually on my sun porch) in our back yard under a big tree.



Here is the Help Yourself Bar featuring Star-Spangled Sangria with Mason Jar glasses.  Here is a link to the DIY instructions for setting up this bar and easy patio decorations.

I made the stars for the sangria out of a red apple cut with a cookie cutter... it really couldn't have been easier.   Here is the recipe for the Star-Spangled Sangria. 

As you can see, I used navy tin plates that had a shiny silver edge - great for outdoor entertaining.  Down the table I used mason jars filled with rock salt and flags for a little height and festivity. 

On the table I tucked baskets of blueberries, cherries and strawberries amongst the flags for a seasonal touch... and who doesn't love an edible centerpiece. 

Speaking of edible centerpieces...

This ice cream cake is three layers with strawberry and blueberry soaked cake inside- it truly is red, white and blue.  And delicious.  And easy.   Here is the recipe! Watch the video for the step-by-step instructions! 

Click below to continue reading after the break!