Chocolate Covered Strawberry Panini

Ingredients:
2 slices white bread
4 small strawberries sliced
about 2 tbls nutella


Directions:
1. Spread nutella on one slice of white bread
2. Place sliced strawberries on the other slice of white bread.
3. Sandwich the two slices together
4. Place the sandwich in a george foreman grill for about 3 minutes. (or you can use a frying pan, just toast over medium heat until crispy and brown on both sides)
5. Let cool for a few minutes, or just cut and enjoy.

Buffalo Chicken Ravioli with Blue Cheese Alfredo

For the pasta dough:

2 cups flour

2 tsp salt

3 eggs+1 for egg wash

2 tbls water

2 tbls olive oil

Directions:

1. Sift flour and salt together, form a well in the middle of the sifted mixture.

2. Beat eggs then add to the well.

3. Slowly work the egg mixture into the flour, then add the water and oil slowly until dough is slightly sticky.

4. Knead the dough for 8-10 minutes

5. Wrap in plastic wrap and put in the fridge to rest for 30 minutes.

For the filling:

1 pound ground chicken

3 cloves minced garlic

1 tsp rosemary

1 tsp thyme

salt and pepper

olive oil

1/4 cup blue cheese

1/3 cup ricotta

1/8 cup hot sauce (or to your liking)

Directions:

1. Over medium high heat cook minced garlic, rosemary, thyme and olive oil until fragrant.

2. Add the ground chicken to the pan, then salt and pepper to your liking, continue cooking the chicken until brown and thoroughly cooked.

3. Combine blue cheese, ricotta, hot sauce and chicken mixture in a bowl. Set aside.

4. Roll out the pasta dough into a rectangular shape that is thinner than a nickel and you can see a piece of paper through it.

5. Cut the dough into ravioli sized pieces

5. Place teaspoonfuls of the buffalo chicken mixture onto the dough leaving enough room to seal them

6. Beat an egg and brush the edges of each ravioli then cover with more dough and press edges together.

7. Bring a pot of water to a boil and salt generously

8. Boil ravioli (no more than 7 at a time) for about 4 minutes

9. Remove cooked ravioli from water and set aside.

For the Blue Cheese Alfredo:

1/2 cup blue cheese

1 pint of heavy cream

1 clove garlic

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Heat olive oil in a sauce pan

2. Grate garlic into the oil and cook until fragrant

3. Add heavy cream and bring to a boil, then reduce to about half

4. Add blue cheese and stir until melted.

5. Add the cooked ravioli to the blue cheese alfredo and plate

6. Take a picture and post to facebook so I can see :)

Side note:

After preparing I wished I had extra blue cheese to top the whole pasta dish with, but I'm also a huge blue cheese fan, so use that note as you wish.

Bring heavy cream to a boil then reduce to about half

Pesto Pasta Fresca

Ingredients:

2 cups of pipette pasta

1 bunch of basil

1/4 cup of olive oil

3 cloves garlic

5-8 stalks of asparagus

handful of cherry tomatoes

salt and pepper

Fresh mozzarella (cut into bite sized pieces)

Directions:

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil for the pasta.

2. For the pesto: blend basil, garlic and olive oil in a food processor (or with a hand blender)

3. Halve the tomatoes and cut asparagus into one inch pieces, sprinkle with salt and pepper then place under the broiler until asparagus is tender.

4. Cook the pasta in the water until desired tenderness.

5. Strain pasta, then add pesto, asparagus and tomatoes, let stand for 10 minutes for flavors to mingle and to cool a bit.

6. Add the mozzarella and plate.

7. Post a picture on facebook so I can see :)

Lamb with Asparagus and Tomatoes

Ingredients:

Lamb chops (2-3 per person)

Asparagus

Cherry tomatoes

4-5 cloves of garlic

4tbls rosemary

olive oil

Salt

Pepper

Basalmic Vinegar (optional)

Directions:

1. Mince garlic and rosemary, add to a bowl with 1/4 cup of olive oil.

2. Salt and pepper both sides of the lamb, then spoon half of the olive oil mixture over the lamb (other half is for the veggies).

3. Halve the cherry tomatoes and cut the bottom inch off of the asparagus.

4. With the remaining half of the olive oil mixture add a couple tablespoons of basalmic vinegar, then toss in the tomatoes and asparagus.

5. Let the lamb and veggies marinate for an hour.

6. Heat up the broiler in the oven put the veggies and the lamb onto a cookie sheet and broil for 2-3 minutes.

7. Turn the lamb over and rotate the veggies for even cooking, then broil for another 2-3 minutes.

8. Insert a meat thermometer into the thick part of the lamb, lamb should be about 125*F. Continue cooking the asparagus and tomatoes 1-2 more minutes or until desired tenderness.

9. Let the lamb rest for 10 minutes then plate.

10. Post a picture on facebook so I can see how you did :)