Category Archives: Pasta

Sage Pumpkin Ravioli

Mmmm pumpkin ravioli! Can you imagine! And it’s pretty easy as I use wanton wrappers as the pasta to fill.

I originally made this a few times back when I was 15 or 16 years old and it was a huge hit. I’ve basically remembered the recipe so here you have it!

You will need…

  • 2 tablespoons of olive oil
  • 1 onion, very finely diced
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 2 slices of bacon, chopped very finely
  • 1 can of pumpkin puree
  • 5-6 leaves of fresh sage, minced
  • 1 teaspoon of dried thyme
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 package of wonton wrappers
  • 1 beaten egg (with a pastry brush)
  • A light dusting of rice or corn meal

For the white sauce…

  • 2 tablespoons of butter
  • 1 heaping teaspoon of flour
  • 1/4 cup of 10% cream
  • 1/2 cup of milk
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg
  • 3 leaves of fresh sage, minced

Now follow these instructions…

Saute the onion, garlic and bacon in the olive oil for about 5 minutes until the bacon is crispy and the onions are translucent. Add the pumpkin puree, thyme, salt and pepper and taste it. Does it need more salt or pepper? If so, add some more. Cook everything together in the pan for around 3 minutes and then add your sage. Stir for another minute and then transfer it to a bowl and let’s get ready to make the ravioli!

Seperate your wonton wrappers, you may want to make kind of an assembly line going on. Brush the edges of each little wrapper with the beaten egg and then place around only 1 or 1.5 teaspoons of the puree in the very centre of the wrappers. CAREFULLY fold the wrapper on a diagonal and seal it shut, making sure to leave no air inside or to let the filling leak out.

While you are assembling them together, rest them on a large baking sheet that has been dusted with the rice flour or corn meal so that they won’t stick!

Boil a pot of water and place around 6-8 of these babies in at a time for a medium saucepan or even more for a larger saucepan…just don’t overcrowd it. They should boil for 3-5 minutes.

Don’t make the sauce until these are cooked because the sauce needs to be served over the ravioli immedietly!

Now for the sauce…

Heat the cream and milk together in the microwave for just a few seconds so that it is slightly warm Melt the butter in a frying pan, add the flour and whisk for about a minute. Whisking constantly, add the milk/cream slowly. As you are whisking away, season the sauce with salt, pepper and the nutmeg. Taste it…Does it need more salt? Add some if so. Add the sage in at the last minute and then pour it over the pasta!

Enjoy!!!

 

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The Cooking Show: Bolognese Sauce

I have officially started a new cooking show called “The Cooking Show”. The bolognese sauce is my kick-off recipe and I hope you enjoy the video! I’m pretty much being super natural in this video and f.y.i. I make the sauce from beginning to end!

Here is the full written recipe that makes 6-8 servings. Please write to me and let me know how the sauce turned out!

Oh and p.s. 350 grams of ground beef is 3/4 pound!

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:31]

Thanks for reading and watching!

Sincerely, Yummy Laura

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Creamy Tomato Bacon Sauce

I went to dinner at a friend’s place the other night and tasetd the most delicious pasta I have tasted in a while! I asked them how they made it. They poured a store-bought bottle of ricotta and tomato sauce over pasta and added some bacon. I was shocked that something so store-bought and simple could taste that good! I figured that if something store-bought tasted this good, imagine how awesome a home-made version would taste! (P.s. I always go for the home-made stuff over the store bought.) I was right! It tasted 10 times better than the already fantastic version I had at their place!

You will need…

Ricotta cheese, canned crushed tomatoes, shallots, garlic, smoked bacon and parsley. Oh, and don’t forget the olive oil for cooking!

Begin by dicing the shallots…

And mincing the garlic…

And mincing the parley too…

Then take this…

I sliced 12 some circle rounds of the smoked bacon. It’s 150g if you can’t find the round version and only the strips…

Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large saucepan…

Add the onions and garlic…

Saute them for 2 minutes or so (they will begin to become translucent)…

Add the bacon…

Now saute this about for around 5 minutes. When the onions begin turning a nice golden brown colour you know you are ready for the next step…

Add in a 14oz can of crushed tomatoes…

And a cup of ricotta cheese…

Stir it up to combine everything together and then sprinkle in the parsley (it comes to 2 tablespoons when it is minced)…

Simmer the sauce for 10 minutes. This gives the ricotta cheese time to real get in there and melt, pumping up that creaminess!

Serve it over pasta and if you have leftovers, keep it in the fridge for a week or so!

Enjoy!

Thanks for reading!

P.s. if you come back in a few days, I am featuring this in “Leftover Madness!” (my new series!) where I transform the leftovers into a totally new dinner option!!!

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:20]

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Pasta Champignon

As I may have mentioned before, the greatest thing about not having a job right now is the fact that I can travel to the market while FBF is busy, buy whatever inspires me and cook a grand lunch for the two of us everyday. I have perfect lighting for pictures and the freshest ingredients. Can I ask for anything more?!

I had some mushrooms hanging out in the fridge from the day before and they inspired me to create a pasta dish. I had the most delicious past at FBF’s parents house and wanted to take a spin at trying my own innovation with a “pasta” inspiration. What I ate over there and what I made were not in a bit close to each other but eating pasta at his parent’s place (chez ses parents) reignited to pasta desire. FBF used to eat pasta at least once every 2 days! Who knows? Pasta is not expensive, so it may become a regular on this website. Just please be prepared for variety!

So without further ado, I present to you Pasta Champignon!

You will need:

Fusilli, extra virgin olive oil, parsley, mushrooms, 2 cloves of garlic, 1/2 onion, artichoke hearts, salt, and parmesan cheese.

Begin by preparing your ingredients. Cook the pasta for two servings to your liking. Then chop the onion…

Mince the garlic…


Slice the mushrooms. I used 7 large button mushrooms and sliced them each into 5, just to let you know…

And mince the parsley…it comes to about 2 tablespoons…

Take 5 or so artichoke heart out of their jar…

And chop these suckers up…

Now heat up 2-3 tablespoons of the oil. Don’t be shy! The mushrooms absorb the stuff like crazy! Oh and by the way, FBF would like me to let you know that that is his sexy hand in the photo…

Add the onions and cook for 1 or 2 minutes until they begin to become translucent…

As soon as these onions begin to lose their firmness, add the garlic…

Just a minute after you add the garlic, place the mushrooms in an even layer in the pan…

Season them with salt…

After 5 minutes or so add the artichokes…

Cook for another 3-5 minutes until the mushroom are completely cooked through. In the last moment, toss in the parsley…

Now throw the pasta in a big bowl, add the mushroom on top and top WITH  2 or so tablespoons of olive oil and season it with salt until it tastes perfect…

Serve in a bog bowl and sprinkle large chinks of parmesan cheese on top! Et voila! C’est Parfait!!!

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:9]

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Red Wine Pasta

Remember that chicken recipe I just made from Mastering the Art of French Cooking? If you haven’t made it yet, I seriously suggest you go and try it because it is AWESOME!

This recipe is derived from that one. There is brown butter sauce poured over the chicken. Well here, I took the same components and turned it into a red wine sauce to pour over pasta. It was awesome as well!

You will need:

  • Any pasta of your choice
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1/3 cup red wine
  • 1-2 tablespoons minced cilantro (coriander)
  • Salt and pepper

First things first, boil a pot of water and season it with a generous amount of salt (I’m using sea salt!)…

Add your pasta and cook for the amount of time the directions say…

Now mince your cilantro…

Add your butter to a pan and melt…

Swirl it around over the pan…

Let the butter brown just slightly, until it looks like this (below)…

Take the butter off the heat then sprinkle in the cilantro and add in the wine…

Swirl it all around…

Now put it back on the heat and let it simmer…

Season with some salt and pepper…

Now simmer it for 3-4 minutes longer until the red wine is a little thick. Check the picture below for the consistency…

Stir in your pasta…

And serve! Yum! It tastes so good I almost wanted to write a song specifically dedicated to this pasta. Instead I ended up making up a song about Coco the cute dog I am living with. He ran away. I continued singing the song…

Enjoy!

 

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Quick Tomato Sauce

Hello again! Today I am giving you a recipe for a quick, homemade pasta sauce. When you are rushing around, are you known for opening up one of those jarred pasta sauces? You may add a few veggies, maybe some meat, mix in some pasta, and call it a day (I do it to!). But today this will all change! I am presenting you with an incredibly easy and fast pasta sauce, made for 2 or 3 servings. You can really modify it anyway you like but I am showing you the way I made it. I just used the vegetables I had on hand, and you can to!

You will need:

  • 1/4 red onion
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1/2 zucchini
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 1/2 cups canned diced tomatoes
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon chilli powder
  • pasta of your choice

Begin by preparing your veggies. Chop the onion finely, mince the garlic and dice the zucchini.

Heat the olive oil in a pan on medium. I am using a cast iron skillet for this recipe because I believe it cooks fast with a really even temperature. In this case (every recipe is different) it provides the best results! This one has been well used!

I start with sautéing the onions for about 3 minutes until they are soft but not burnt.

Next I add the garlic and then the zucchini.

I saute this veggie mixture for about 5 minutes…In the meantime. I use my hand-blender and blend the diced tomatoes. Do not blend them too finely though. Chunks are good!

Then I add this to the pan.

In a separate bowl, I measure out the oregano and chilli powder.

I add these into the sauce. I let the sauce simmer while the pasta cooks (about 10 minutes) stirring every now and then. By the time the pasta is cooked, the sauce should have lost a lot of its liquid and be nice and thick. Season the sauce with salt and pepper at this stage.

Et, Voila! I serve it over my favourite pasta!

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