A Quick and Tasty Pasta Dish

Recently I have managed to catch several of Giada and Ina’s shows on the Food Network. I really haven’t seen either of them in a while, so I really enjoyed seeing what they were cooking. Giada had one episode for quick and easy meals for a busy day. Well, Russ and I have lately wanted to eat at home more and I am always looking for a quick, easy, and tasty new meal. She made a one-dish meal of Ravioli with Arugula, Tomatoes, and Pancetta. I decided to make it the next night since I knew I had a lot to do during the day and wouldn’t have a lot of time for cooking that night.

To make the pasta dish you start by slicing the pancetta into small pieces and frying it in a skillet until it is crispy. Once it is done drain it onto a plate with paper towels. Meanwhile start the water for cooking the pasta and add the ravioli once it has come to a boil (I always salt my pasta water). Next add olive oil and the tomatoes (which are drained). I also added a couple cloves of diced fresh garlic. Then add the basil and arugula. The grocery store didn’t have just arugula, so I went with baby spinach instead. Gently toss the spinach as it wilts, so that it mixes in with everything else. Next add salt, pepper, and butter. Once it has all cooked together for a few minutes add the pancetta back in and then the cooked ravioli. Add a little more butter and carefully toss the pasta into the tomato / arugula mixture. Serve immediately.

This was a very simple and quick meal to put together. It only has a few ingredients yet the flavor is fantastic. It really exceeded my expectations. I told Russ that I obviously thought it would be good (or I wouldn’t have tried it), but I certainly had not thought it would be as flavorful as it turned out to be. I love the combination of spinach, tomatoes, and basil. We also both enjoyed the cheese ravioli which I haven’t bought since I was in graduate school. I also imagine that if you have children you could serve them some of the ravioli with just the tomatoes or with just Parmesan cheese on top if they are not interested in the spinach etc. All in all this was a tasty dish that will definitely be repeated in our house. Russ rates it an 8. (The picture of Cash is from the beach earlier this summer. He is a beach bum!)

Don't Faint... I think I am back to blogging!

So, to say it has been awhile since I last posted is probably a little bit of an understatement. It has essentially been nine months… I have been cooking though, but I have also been busy with taking a few classes for my certification, sleeping during most of my first trimester, among other things. Thankfully I am now done with classes and have most of my energy back. I wish I had posted over the last months because I know I made several dishes that we loved including some new cookie recipes for Christmas, new Indian dishes… and I don’t remember the names to even post the recipes. Alas, I hopefully to pick back up with cooking, baking, and blogging now.

The most recent season of The Bachelorette finished up on Monday night and we had quite the meal to celebrate the end of a mediocre show (this season was fairly boring until the end) and several weeks of yummy meals and fun times with good friends and their pups. Seth and Elizabeth out did themselves with a surf and turf entrée consisting of petite fillets, grilled shrimp, and homemade crab cakes. Emily and Dowe did tasty sides of baked potatoes (with all the fixings) and asparagus. Russ and I followed up this fancy meal with a rather plain, but still yummy dessert. Since I am back to blogging I am also finally finding time to catch up on other food blogs that I enjoy reading, including Smitten Kitchen. I knew that I wanted to do something that involved the fresh Mentone blueberries Russ and I picked with his family the other weekend. I didn’t want to do the obvious blueberry cobbler though. I remembered seeing a blueberry dessert on Smitten Kitchen recently and went back to find where she made Blueberry Boy Bait. It is apparently based on an older recipe that a young girl submitted to a contest and won. She named it because of its effect on boys. Well, since we are watching The Bachelorette it sounded like the perfect fit.

To make the Blueberry Boy Bait you combine the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder and salt) together in a bowl. Using an electric mixer you beat the sugars and softened butter together until they are light and fluffy. Next you add the eggs one at a time while the mixer is still going. Next you lower the speed of the mixer and add 1/3 of the flour of mixture until it is combined. Then add half the milk followed by half of the remaining flour mixture, the remaining milk, and lastly the remaining flour mixture. Once it is all combined you fold in ½ cup of blueberries. Pour the batter into a greased baking dish. Then combine the sugar, cinnamon, and another ½ cup of blueberries and sprinkle it evenly over the top of the batter. Put it in a 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center. Let it cool and then cut it into squares and serve.

This was a simple, but tasty summer cake. It really would work just as well (maybe even better) as a coffee cake in the morning as opposed to dessert. It was not an over the top cake, but for the ease of preparation and amount of time it is winner for simple blueberry cake. The only change I would make next time is either increasing the cinnamon in the topping by a pinch or adding a little cinnamon to the batter. It really is perfectly fine without upping the cinnamon, but I love a little spice in my cakes. It would be an easy coffee cake to take for a weekend trip with friends. Overall I was pleased with the dessert and while Russ didn’t feel any strong effects from it he did like it and rates it an 8.