Thursday, January 27, 2011

In the the kitchen

I'm having a Valentine's special dinner event at Magpie's Diner so into the test kitchen...

I made homemade ravioli, pasta and filling for the first time and definitely a keeper.

The filling is made with ground chicken thigh meat, Parmesan cheese, chopped parsley, breadcrumbs, garlic, onion, salt, pepper and nutmeg. When I make it at the shop I will saute the whole thing and then put it through the processor which I didn't do this time. Having a smooth filling will make it easier to fill the ravioli. If you want to try this make sure you make your pasta quite thin, I didn't and the ravioli took too long to cook and the filling did not really stand out.




I had every intention of taking a picture before I ate.....
but I went back for seconds.... here is my homemade ravioli on a dirty plate.







I also made a Belgian endive and sliced apple salad with a honey and Dijon vinaigrette, topped with diced beets, toasted walnuts and crumbled blue cheese. Again very good but I will make a few changes. I think a tart apple and toasted pecans will taste better. I used a gala apple which was a bit too sweet with the dressing and beet and the walnuts were not crunchy enough, but it was still very tasty.


Stay tuned for the rest of the menu....

8 comments:

Scrappy quilter said...

One day I'm coming to your diner. The food always looks so scrumptious. Hope the Valentine's special dinner turns out perfectly and you fill the diner with customers. Hugs

2 Tramps said...

Looks delicious! Great salad ingredients, too. We used to make ravioli by hand - we need to do it again. Thanks for sharing.

From the Kitchen said...

Both of these dishes sound delicious! I always welcome a substantial salad, especially in the winter. If I were near enough, I'd be headed to your diner.

Best,
Bonnie

The Hobbit said...

I'm having a mental dinner right now and it's delicious.How's that knitting coming along?

Anonymous said...

Everything sounds so good.

Dianne said...

They both look delicious! Must be rather fun "testing" recipes for your very own diner!

From the Kitchen said...

Are you still working on the Valentine's menu? What fun to try and taste! Re your question about the chocolate bread pudding: Yes, I'd think your odds and ends of bread would work just fine. The important thing is that the bread is not really fresh. Other than that, I think any bread pudding is very forgiving. Hope it works out deliciously for you.

Best,
Bonnie

Powell River Books said...

We'll miss your special dinner again. Hope it works out well and is a fun time for all, including you and Art. - Margy