Garlic Spinach Ricotta Ravioli

                  This was my first time making ravioli and it turned out absolutely delicious, and gorgeous as well I mean holy crap look at that picture. Making pasta dough is probably one of the easiest things to learn as a skill. By the time you have mastered this, you could make fresh pasta anytime you want, if you have the necessary ingredients. I decided to put in a bit more work today just to see if I could actually make these, and I COULD! Gentlemen, if you want to impress your lady friends, make this. Trust me....anyway i'll have to upload a post on how to make pasta dough soon but if you know how to already then lets get started.  

Ingredients for Dough

1. 2 eggs

2. 1 cup of flour

3. tbspn of olive oil

4. pinch of salt

Ingredients for Filling

1. 2 cups of spinach

2. 1 1/2 cup of ricotta cheese

3. 2 cloves of garlic 

4. Pepper and salt 

Directions

1. Whisk your eggs and then add it to your dry ingredients. Add your olive oil and your pinch of salt. Mix until a kneed-able dough is formed. If you're unsure when you finish or not, cut open the dough. If there are gaps you are not done. If there aren't any, you're finished! Now I used a pasta roller in order to form my thin sheets but there are other ways to form ravioli too

2. Remember to dust your dough so it's a bit malleable. Roll out your dough until its however thin you want it to be. Use a cup or something circle to cut the dough and make your circles. They can be 2 to 2.5 inches big

3. For your filling, get a pan. Nice and hot, drizzle your olive oil and cook your spinach. Cook for only 1 minute. Next chop up your spinach and garlic. Get a bowl, and mix your spinach, garlic and ricotta cheese together. Get your plastic wrap, and let it sit in the fridge for 15 minutes

4. Once your filling is done setting, take it out of the fridge. Use a spoon to put your filling into your circular pasta dough. Pretend like you're making dumplings, its the same concept. Once you're done filling and folding your dough, get a pot and bring it up to the boil. They will literally cook for 2 minutes and then you're done!

Ravioli doesnt actually take a lot of time unless its you're first time doing it. So prep ahead of time before your mate comes over. One of the best comfort foods I've ever made, and perfect for a cold winter day. Absolutely Delicious.  

Green Onion Pancake

          One of the favorite Chinese dishes that I grew up with was this. It is such a savory and crispy flat bread filled with green onion and garlic goodness. I just had to make it to relive my childhood.  Surprisingly, this is actually really really easy to make. This recipe only requires three ingredients. Right, so lets get started.

Preptime: 10 min
Cooking time: 10 min






Ingredients
1. 1 green onions/scallions
2. 1 cup of flour
3. 1/2 a cup of flour
4. Pinch of salt 
5. Chinese Five spice (Optional)
6. 2 Cloves of garlic (Optional)


Directions
1. Combine your flour and water until a dough is formed. Just like pizza or bread dough, this requires kneading as well. So knead the dough until the gluten becomes less stretchy. The way you can check if you're done is by cutting the dough. If there are gaps inside, you're not done. If there are no gaps at all, you're finished.


2. Cut up your green onions, and roll at your dough into a circular shape. During this time you can add salt or any kind of spices you want to your dough. Take your chopped scallions, and put it on top of the rolled out dough. Next you're gonna start rolling it up like construction paper. 










3. Once you're done rolling it up horizontally, you're going to roll it up vertically. It's going to turn out into a shape of a snail shell. 

4. After you get the snail shell, push it downwards. You can use a rolling pin to roll it back out into a circular form. As soon as you're done rolling it out, get a nice pan on medium to high heat and drizzle some vegetable oil. 




5. Lay your pancake into the pan and cook each side for 3 to 4 minutes. Cook each side until you get a nice golden color on both sides. Now that you're finished, just get some soy sauce, vinegar, and sesame oil as a sauce. 

Now you have a simple vegetarian Chinese flat bread! Easy to make and it only requires 3 ingredients too! Great to make for midnight munchies or even for snacks



Fast.Easy.Delicious  

Garlic Herb Crusted Salmon with Cream Pea Puree

                Like I said before, anyone can turn really cheap frozen foods into something that's absolutely delicious. If you really really want to impress someone like I don't know...a date...make this dish. Too bad I made this for myself, oh well more for me. 

Anyway, I wanted to incorporate peas into some kind of sauce. Peas are a bit naturally sweet but I found a way to maintain that pea flavor while still adding a bit of umpf and acidity to it. As I mentioned before this is Costco Salmon, the frozen kind. You don't need the best ingredients to make great dishes, just use your creativity and take a go at it. Alright, here we go. 

Prep Time: 5 minutes 

Cooking Time: 18 minutes

Ingredients

1. Salmon Fillet

2. 2 cloves of garlic

3. 3 mushrooms

4. Parsley 

5. Peas

6. 1 cup of Heavy Cream

7. Fish or Chicken Stock 1 1/2 cups 

8. 3 Tbspn White Wine Vinegar 

9. Bread/Panko crumbs

Directions

1. Mince up your mushrooms and your garlic. Remember to season with salt and pepper. Get your pan and on a medium heat, cook it down so the garlic gets nice and brown. You're cooking out the mushrooms so it can lose the liquid that's stored inside to become a bit crisp.

2. Take your garlic and mushrooms out of the pan and chop up some parsley. Combine your garlic, mushrooms, parsley and breadcrumbs so you can make the crust for the salmon. 

3. Get your Salmon, and season with salt and pepper. Cook in the pan on medium - high heat for 2 minutes on each side (You'll see why so short soon). Take the pan off the heat and add the crust on top of the salmon. Get your oven to 350 degrees F and finish it off in the oven for about 8 to 10 minutes

4. Get a boiling pot. Add your chicken stock and peas. Bring that up to the boil. Next add your white wine and cream. Let it reduce to the consistency you want. Take it off the heat, and put it in the blender. Since it's nice and hot it won't go lumpy. Blend that shiz and it'll turn into a nice puree/sauce. Now just serve it up!

          Sorry this was a bit complicated, but it is definitely worth it at the end. The salmon came out nice and moist, while the acidity of the pea sauce just complimented the salmon so well. Remember you can make the best out of your ingredients, it just takes a bit of effort.

NotSoFast.PrettyEasy.AbsolutelyDelicious

Mango Banana Fritters

This was my first time making these fritters ever, and to be honest, they came out amazinggg. They were packed with so much flavor and it was so easy to make. A lot of 
recipes online for making fritters either use too much ingredients or they just look like straight up pancakes. Also the recipes online make it so dense and not enough lightness or fluffiness in the middle. I literally had to guess on the measurements since I didn't want ot make a crap ton of fritters. Here is my full proof plan on how to make the most delicious, crunchy on the outside, light and soft on the inside - Mango Banana Fritters

Ingredients
1. 1/2 a cup of flour
2. 1 teaspoon baking powder
3. A pinch of salt
4. 2 teaspoons of white sugar
5. 1 Banana
6. Diced Mango's (just a little)
7. Vegetable Oil 









Directions

1. Get a bowl and sift your 1/2 cup of flour into the bowl. Add your sugar, salt, baking powder, and cinnamon. Next get a fork/spoon and your banana. Peel the banana and mush it
as if you were trying to make mash potatoes. Once you've mushed your bananas, throw them in with your dry ingredients. Combine together to form something that looks like a pancake mix. Mix into you want it to a nice, and smooth consistency. If you're wondering about the mango's, don't worry, they don't need to be mushed up looking like the bananas. 

2. Once you're done mixing your batter, get a clingfilm and wrap the top. Put it in the fridge for 15 minutes so it can set. Once 15 minutes has passed, take it out and you're ready to fry them up.

3. Get your pot and fill it up with vegetable oil. Fill it up enough so that when you put your fritter in, it won't touch the bottom; otherwise it would stick and you wouldn't want that. Get a nice big spoon and just scoop up the batter. Place it in the oil and Fry. They'll fry for 2 minutes each. What you're looking for is a nice golden brown.


My fritters came out a bit darker than it's supposed to since I left it in for a bit longer. But nonetheless, they still came out freaking amazing. Just imagine you biting into a nice crisp fluffy fritter of sugary goodness. Make this to impress your friends, or if you were craving a midnight dessert/snack :)

Fast. Easy. and Simply Delicious  

Pancakes with Caramelized Strawberries

I literally didn't have anything in my fridge this morning except eggs, milk, and strawberries. I knew that wasn't gonna satisfy/fill me up. So I I figured I could make one of the most popular breakfast items, freaking pancakes. They're so light and fluffy and the one egg I had left could make 8 flaps out of them. I'm gonna show you how to make your own light, fluffy pancakes, along with an amazing caramelized strawberry sauce.
Here is what you're gonna need

 Ingredients
1. 1 cup of Flour
2. 1 teaspoon of baking powder
3. 3/4 cup of milk
4. 1/4 cup of sugar
5. 1 teaspoon of vinegar 
6. Some strawberries
7. Pinch of salt
8. Small amount of butter...sorry






Making the Pancakes

Directions
1. First get two bowls. Measure out all your dry ingredients and put them through the sifter. Don't forget to add in your salt as well. In your other bowl, pour in your milk, vinegar, sugar, and your cracked egg. Whisk until they're all mixed well. Now throw in your dry ingredients into the other bowl and whisk. Whisk until you get a nice smooth texture

2. Get your pan and drizzle in some olive oil. Remember to evenly coat the pan with oil but not too much since you don't want oily pancakes. Ladle in your pancake mix however big you want it. It'll cook for 1 minute on each side. See that was easy! Now time for your strawberries

Caramelized Strawberries

Caramelizing Strawberries are actually really easy to make and once you actually got through this process, next time you can easily make your own caramel for any breakfast or desert that you want! So here's what you're going to do

1. Get your sugar and spread it out on your pan. Turn the gas on medium and just let it sit there...seriously, don't do anything, just wait till all the white is gone

2. Once you like the color, take the pan off the heat

and throw in your strawberries, give it a nice mix and

then add in your knob of butter. Let it melt and 

mix together. If it gets too sticky, add in a bit of water

so the caramel isn't as thick. Once you're done with 

the caramel, SERVE THAT BABY UP!

This was way better than what Ihop serves, seriously. Super light and fluffy pancakes with melt in your mouth, caramelized strawberries. The caramel wasn't even sticky it was just the right texture for these freaking awesome pancakes. I hope this picture makes your mouth water cause it definitely did for mine! 

Sorta Fast. Easy. Simply Delicious 

Honey-Lemon Chicken

Chicken is one of the most popular meats in the world and most of the time people tend to overcook it. I wanna share one of my many favorite ways of keeping it moist, but also giving it a nice flavor to it. The best thing about this dish...it only uses 4 ingredients. This dish is great for families or just when you have a large group of people over at your home/apartment. 

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time:  15 minutes

Ingredients
1. Chicken Thighs
2. 1 Lemon finely sliced
3. 3-4 tbsp of Olive oil
4. 3 tbsp on Honey
5. Parsley

Directions

1. Bring your heavy skillet up to medium to high heat. Season your chicken thighs with salt and pepper on both sides. Once your pan becomes nice and hot, drizzle in your olive oil and lay the chicken skin side down. You want to get some nice crisp browning on your chicken skins. Make sure to shake the pan so the chicken doesn't stick. Cook each side for about 6 to 7 minutes. If you cut up your chicken thighs into smaller pieces it'll cook even faster

2. Once the first side is done cooking turn the thighs over. Get your Lemon and finely slice it up. Throw in your lemon slices and squeeze in some fresh lemon juice to give it some acidity. Get a cup of water and pour it in the pan. Let it simmer for a few minutes. The water helps the chicken so it doesn't become dry.

3. In the last 2 minutes of cooking throw in your chopped parsley and drizzle in your Honey to give it a nice sticky and tangy flavor. Toss it around so the chicken thighs can get a even coating of that honey lemon sauce. Lastly season it up with some salt and pepper. Now serve that baby up!

Not Fast. Easy. and Simply Delicious

Rigatoni with Peas and Bacon

It was such a cold day one afternoon, right in the middle of November, so I decided to make some
pasta again. Rigatoni is somewhat of a thicker pasta compared to the other ones and usually goes nice
with a tomato-ee/acidic sauce, but I wanted to incorporate my left over bacon with this dish so maybe next
time. This is so fast to make, you barely need to chop up anything for this dish. Peas are the overlooked type of greens and are barely ever used. They're high in Vitamins K and C, and contains a pretty good amount of antioxidants. They're EXTREMELY low in fat and only cost 1 dollar for a huge packet at your neighborhood market



















Prep Time: 2 minutes
Cooking Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

Rigatoni
2 strips of bacon
1/2 cup of peas
2 garlic cloves
1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup of milk
Salt and Pepper

Directions

1. Fill your pot with water and bring it to the boil, remember to add some salt and olive oil in the pot
so your pasta does not stick together. Cut up your bacon strips into strips and mince up your garlic. Get a nice skillet and turn up the heat to medium - high. Remember since we're cooking with bacon we don't need to use a lot of olive oil since bacon has some natural fat already.

2. As your water pot comes up to the boil, throw in your rigatoni and let it boil for about 8 minutes. At this time throw in your bacon strips and minced garlic in the pan. Since the bacon strips are thin and cut up they don't need as much time to cook and crisp up. Once 5 minutes has past  throw in your peas, milk, and cream. Reduce your cream sauce down until you got the texture you want it to be.

3. As your Rigatoni is done boiling, drain it and throw it in with your creamy sauce. Give it a nice mix so your pasta and absorb and coat itself. Don't forgot to season with Salt and Pepper. Garnish it off with some parsley and Parmesan cheese. Serve it up!

Fast. Easy. and Simply Delicious

Lemon Salmon and Cucumber Salad

You'll be surprised about this fillet of salmon. It's not fresh, its COSTCO packaged! Yup, the college life is definitely hard when you have no money or time, but that doesn't make it an excuse to prohibit you from eating good food. I've been using frozen packets of salmon for over 3 years now, I still prefer the fresh ones...but this still turns out just as good. This whole dish literally takes 15 minutes to make which is freaking amazing when you're in a hurry 




















Ingredients for 1 serving

1 four ounce fillet of Salmon
1 cucumber
1 lemon
1/4 a cup of Non-fat Greek yogurt
2 gloves of garlic
Salt and Pepper

Prep time: 5
Cooking Time: 10


Directions

1. Get a nice pan and turn the heat up to medium high, wait a little until the pan gets nice and hot to drizzle in your olive oil. Season your fillet with Salt and Pepper on both sides and then lay your Salmon into the pan. Cook one side of the fillet for 4 minutes

2. During this time as the salmon is cooking, crush 2 cloves or garlic. Don't even bother mincing your garlic, once you've crushed the garlic cloves and thrown it in the pan, it'll infuse with the olive oil and give it a nice flavor. Once the 4 minutes of the salmon are up, turn it over and cook it for 3.5 minutes

3. Get your cucumber, and peel it into ribbons, or you could just cut it up into small circles...whatever you fancy. In a bowl, get your cucumbers, greek yogurt, and lemon juice and mix it together. Season with salt and pepper; now you have a simple and easy cucumber salad

4. At this time your fillet should almost be done. Get your other half of the lemon and squeeze some of the juices in. Now you have yourself a nice delicious salmon with a tangy cucumber salad.

Fast. Easy. and Simply Delicious

Bacon, Leek and Mushroom Tagliatelle

It's that time of year where the season of comfort food is upon us. This creamy and rich Tagliatelle is one of my favorite dishes I love to make while in college. The best thing about it is, its super easy. Inspired by my love for bacon, I'm here to share my simple recipes that you can make while you're in college

Ingredients for 2 portions:

Tagliatelle ( Or any of your favorite Pastas)

Sauce:

1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves of garlic
3 strips of bacon
1 leek
6 mushrooms chopped 
1 cup of heavy whipping cream
Salt and Pepper to Taste 

Prep Time: 5 Min
Cooking Time: 15 Min

Directions
1. Set a heavy skillet on the stove on medium heat, wait till it's nice and hot.
Cook and sweat off your pieces of bacon for about 4 minutes. Add in your chopped garlic; cook and stir for about 30 seconds. Add in your chopped leeks and mushroom and cook for 2 minutes. 

2. Pour in your heavy whipping cream and have the heat remain at medium heat. I'm sure within this time you're boiling pasta and you don't want the cream sauce to reduce too fast. Season for salt and black pepper until it's too your liking

3. Fill a pot of any size with lightly salted water and a drizzle of olive oil. Wait until your pot has begun to boil and cook your pasta over medium heat. Cook until its nice and firm which will take about 6 - 8 minutes. 

4. Drain your pasta and throw it in with your cream sauce. By this time your cream sauce should have reduced into a nice texture. Mix your pasta and serve your pasta in bowls or plates. Garnish with some parsley and Parmesan cheese. 

enjoy.