Homemade Ravioli Stuffed with Mushroom, Spinach, and Cheese

Homemade pasta is not as easy as it seems! But somehow the head chef, Mr. I, and the sous chefs (Mr. K and I) did it.........

Mr. I started out by mixing wheat flour, all-purpose flour, and olive oil - pretty simple so far.

Next we made a hole into the pasta and cracked the eggs into it...

The flour was (very slowly) folded ontop of the egg to create a thick dough mixture. A bit of water was used when needed...

A rolling pin was used to smooth out and flatten the dough. This looks easy but took a lot of man power!
The flattened out dough was sprinkled with flour and ready to make ravioli out of...

A ravioli press was used to make the pasta shapes, by placing a sheet down and rolling over to seal once stuffed with filling.

Mr. I made the topping/filling which included: ricotta cheese, shredded 5-cheese blend (mozarella, romano, parmesan, provolone, and asiago), mushroom, and spinach.

The sauce was made with: tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, cheese, olive oil, garlic, mushrooms, and various seasonings.

Mr. I made the dish fancy by serving it on a bed of spinach drizzled with olive oil. The stuffed ravioli was extremely filling and tasty, and much more satisfying than eating store made pasta. But also time consuming and tiring, so make sure you have the energy! Mr. I, Mr. K and I all enjoyed every bite of it. Thanks Mr. I for letting me post your creative pasta dish!

craftbar

Apologies for my limited posting this past week. The hard part about having a day job like mine is that sometimes they want it to be a night job too :(  Thankfully, my guest blogger is willing to step up and help me out so expect some entries from her.

While GMTT was here, Mr. M planned several dining experiences.  Although he made my day by telling me we were going to Red Rooster, he changed it up and instead we ended up at Craftbar (yes, I know, my life is so hard one celebrity chef restaurant for another).  While I enjoyed eating at Colicchio & Sons last year, since I started watching Top Chef, I’ve decided I’m not a fan of Mr. Colicchio’s attitude.  Regardless, his food was good last year so I suppose this would be tasty too.  Meh.  I was late to dinner because I had camera issues.  The photos in this post were thanks to GMTT’s camera which has a slightly more active flash than mine. Apologies.

We were joined at dinner with Z&Z. It was so great to see them after so long.  I wanted to order dessert as my appetizer but the most appealing item on the menu, the Apple Crisp with Brown Butter Ice Cream was no longer available.  I pouted while the rest of the group ordered appetizer.  

Z (female) ordered the Baby beet goat cheese salad with pistachio and candied citrus.  She found it to be “beety” I had a taste and it was fine but truthfully didn’t compare to the salad from Motorino.  Z (male) ordered the Wagyū Beef Tongue served with Horseradish Aïoli.

He found it to be really good and the horseradish aioli was not really spicy but the flavor enhanced the beefy taste.  GMTT and Mr. M ordered the Spanish Octopus small plate.

It was served with chorizo, cranberry bean and lemon greek yogurt.  Within an instant, all I saw were empty plates so this must have been delicious.  Soon after, our entrees began to arrive.  Mr. M ordered the Berkshire Pork Belly with Fried Egg, collard greens and anson mills polenta.

It looked interesting and he definitely enjoyed it.  Z (male) ordered the Duck Confit which was served with a white bean cassoulet and a duck egg.

The egg looked spectacular because it was breaded outside, however I came to find out it was runny inside so I’m glad I didn’t order that.  The skin was crispy and the cast iron presentation was a bonus.  The rest of us ordered the Red Snapper with Sofrito Braised Salsify and Habanero Lime Vinaigrette.

I was slightly underwhelmed by this dish.  The snapper was fine.  That’s right, I said it, just fine.  I must admit that the salsify was really tasty and possibly the most delicious part of the meal.  Expanding my range of acceptable vegetables is probably the best decision I’ve made.  I was pretty glad when the main course was over because it was time to focus on dessert.  Since my desire for Apple Crisp was so overwhelming, I strongly encouraged the group to order three desserts.  I wasn’t really in a chocolate mood so the Chocolate Custard Tart with Malted Milk Chocolate Ice Cream didn’t really appeal to me.

However, it was so delicious that I kept going back.  The Butterscotch Pot de Crème was PHENOMENAL. 

No, seriously, it was like crème brulee amplified.  However, my absolute favorite that almost led me to forget all about the Apple Crisp was the incredible Brown Sugar Cake served with a Poached Seckel Pear and Ice Cream that is invisible thanks to the flash on the camera. ugh.

I did a little dance in my chair each time I took a bite.  It was very sweet and definitely a sugar cake, but that was exactly what I needed.  The desserts were key because they made sure the dining experience ended on a high note. 

While I understand the inherent awesomeness of Colicchio, I just wasn’t that blown away by craftbar.  I’m sure part of that is based on the lack of diversity on the menu (really, Tom? Do you have to put pork in everything?!) It probably satisfies some people but I don’t recommend this restaurant for someone with dietary restrictions.  The freshness of the ingredients is highlighted by their every changing menu.  I certainly respect that.  The music was also pretty awesome – any restaurant that plays Stevie twice during the meal gets some ambiance points.  I’m not sure that I would go back to craftbar without giving the menu a once over to see if there’s something that calls out to me.  There are far too many restaurants in New York for me to compromise.

Hungry yet?

Motorino Pizza - East Village

GMTT came to town! It’s been way too long since we hung out, but I knew it’d be a delicious weekend.  GMTT, Mr. M and I went to Motorino Pizza to kickoff the weekend.  There was still quite a bit of snow on the ground but it was soooo sunny that I almost thought it was spring.   GMTT loves pizza so it’s no shock that this is where we ended up.  Considering it’s a pizza place, the appetizers were surprisingly delicious.  I was a big fan of the Spicy Octopus.

It was mixed with fingerling potatoes, celery, chili oil, capers and red onions.  Yummm!  GMTT also ordered the beet salad special.

Another pleasant surprise! I’ve come to appreciate beets so I was quite pleased with this appetizer.  I definitely stayed away from the yolk though.  The pizza was also incredible.  I ordered the Margherita (shock).

Tomato sauce, mozzarella and basil. Simple and divine.  The crust was perfect.  Thick but not heavy. I reluctantly shared one slice but otherwise scarfed it down.  Mr. M ordered the Brussel sprout and pancetta.

A basic pizza with mozzarella, garlic and pecorino.  No tomato sauce though – so obviously not as good as mine.  GMTT ordered the Cremini and Spicy Sausage.

Mozzarella, garlic, thyme and pecorino.  Based on the empty plate, I’m pretty sure it was good.  Motorino’s first location is apparently in Brooklyn.  I’m glad there is a Manhattan location but maybe some day I’ll head to the Brooklyn one just to see what the original is like.

Hungry yet?

Kittichai

I’ve had my eye on Kittichai for quite some time.  I remember at the Malaysian Night Market all I wanted to do was get a small taste of something delicious.  I felt the same way during restaurant week yet I never made it down there.  Finally, last week my borella agreed to go with me J I was so excited, I must have memorized the menu by the time we got there.  It’s definitely quite the scene.  There’s something about the Thompson Hotel that makes me smile.

We were pretty quick to order and I must say the waiters were quick to deliver.  We started with the Coconut Chicken lettuce wraps with chili-lime hoisin glaze and mango salsa.

Umm wow.  This was the first time in a long time that food made me speechless.  Seriously.  The coconut chicken was a perfect blend of spices with a spicy finish.

I usually don’t order lettuce wraps but doesn’t that look amazing?  It was the perfect appetizer.  I really do wish we had ordered more.  It wasn’t long until our entrées arrived.  I ordered Duck two ways.

The duck breast was pretty good but I actually don’t enjoy the fatty part of the duck so that wasn’t so great.  The Spiced Orange Curry on the other hand was AMAZING! 

Fingerling potatoes added to the depth of the curry and left me feeling like I ate a very hearty meal.  The curry is definitely spicy. The orange was subtle which worked really well with the duck.  I will say that I didn’t appreciate the onions that I found in there because I bit into them thinking they were potatoes – blech.  My borella ordered the Coconut Braised Short Ribs.

They were dressed with kaffir lime leaf, mint and fresh coriander.  It was definitely a hefty portion.  It was the first time in a long time that he actually thought they served him enough food.  Of course, it helped that we also ordered the Jasmine rice sans pork sausage.

The cashews were better than I thought they would be.  They enhanced the flavor of the rice rather than serving as a distraction which is what I expected.  The dessert menu was lacking or perhaps I was just so satisfied with the meal I didn’t want to ruin it with a dessert I didn’t really want.

Kittichai is the truth.  I know many think it’s overrated, but I find it to be fabulous.  The service was stellar, the atmosphere was fantastic and the food was incredible.  I can’t wait to go back!

Hungry yet?

New Year, New Look

Happy New Year Readers 

I must admit I didn't think I'd make it this far. Like many other hobbies I thought I'd do this for a little while then drop it when something more interesting came along.  Food blogging started as a way to casually document for my friends the things I cooked and restaurants I explored.  Slowly it turned into more.  I've reviewed over 120 restaurants, answered reader questions about where to eat for a particular occasion and improved my foodography skills.  With that in mind, I decided to finally buy the url! So now you can just go to www.yourvicariousexperience.com (go ahead and change your bookmark) I'm still using the blogspot interface for now but who knows what other changes the year will hold! I'm excited for 2011 and the many dining adventures it holds.  Thanks for reading and I hope you'll continue to live your vicarious experience through my dining adventures.

Hungry yet?