labor day dinner

After a crazy couple of weeks, we took advantage of the three-day weekend to check off a bunch of to-dos that have been on the list for a bit too long.

While I did my fair share of cleaning and organizing, Stefan did a lot all of the heavy lifting:

Putting up black-out curtains in our bedroom (I've seriously never slept so well),
purchasing and assembling this IKEA cabinet to safely store our new collection of wine glasses,

hanging up lots of art (including our fabulous S&K Wine Shop sign from Nana & Pops),
installing this new, super-mod lamp,

and even making us lunch.

prosciutto and triple cream brie on baguette

strawberry balsamic salad

diet coke

So I decided to spoil him with his dinner of choice:

Homemade Spinach Ricotta Whole Wheat Ravioli:

Dough:

3 cups whole wheat flour

3 eggs

1 cup water

Form a crater in the flour, crack eggs into in, slowly add water as you knead until dough is fully integrated: not too sticky, not too dry.

Filling:

Big bag of fresh spinach (ours was 9 ounces, but any amount will do)

1/2ish lb fresh whole milk ricotta

A few generous sprinkles of freshly shaved Parmesan

1 tablespoon-ish heavy cream

1 egg

Salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste

Most recipes will tell you to boil your spinach but doing so will make your greenery loose much of its goodness.  Instead, saute it with a splash of olive oil until wilted.  Let cool and then chop before mixing with other ingredients.

Ravioli Making:
Roll dough until 1/4 inch thick (the thinner the better!),
cut into the shapes of your choosing (a top and bottom for each ravioli),
brush the bottom ravioli half with water along the edges (your "glue"),
plop a dollop of filling in the middle,
sandwich your other half on top,
and pinch shut with a fork.

Let raviolis dry for 1 hour.
You can then stick them in the fridge or freezer (ziploc bag or plastic wrap is perfect) until ready to cook,
or cook them right away.

Boil until raviolis float to the top (2-3 minutes).
Serve with sage butter, Parmesan and fresh black pepper.

Our raviolis ended up being a little heavy on the dough.

So much so that my dinner mate trimmed the outer part and went just for the centers.

Next time I'll work a little harder on the rolling out part...

Mango Lime Sorbet:
2 mangos
1/2 lime
Strawberries for topping

Place chopped mangos and 1/2 lime's juice in Vitamix (or blender of your choosing).  Blend until smooth.  Place in freezer for a few hours or until at desired consistency.  Serve topped with freshly chopped strawberries!

xoxo
KK