My “Junior Chef” Garrett told me this morning that raviolis should be for dinner tonight.  I told him, “Great! You can make them.” “Make them?” he asked. “Yep, we’ll make them completely from scratch.” 

Adding the filling

Ready for the wter

Ready to eat

Garrett says "num num num num"

Ingredients
The filling
1 lb fresh spinach
1 lb ricotta cheese, thoroughly drained
1 egg
4 oz parmigiano reggiano cheese, freshly grated
salt and pepper
pinch of nutmeg

The dough
3 cups flour
4 eggs
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 

Directions
Boil the spinach in lightly salted water. Place the boiled spinach in a cheese cloth and form a small sack. Squeeze the sack to expel as much water as possible. Chop the spinach finely

Place the spinach in a bowl. Combine the drained ricotta, egg, parmigiano cheese, salt, pepper, and a generous pinch of nutmeg. Taste and adjust the salt, pepper, and nutmeg if necessary

To prepare the pasta dough: Combine all the ingredients, mix the dough so it is very soft and moist. Use the minimum flour necessary, just enough to prevent the dough from sticking to your hands while working.
Cut the dough in two parts.
Place one of the pieces on the work surface, and flatten it with a rolling pin until it is very thin.
 Repeat the same steps with the other half of the dough, making a pasta sheet of the same size.
Set it aside, covered with a moist towel if necessary to prevent the pasta from drying too much. 

Place about 1 teaspoon of the filling on the dough, spaced 2 inches apart. 

Bring water to a boil in a stockpot. Gently drop the ravioli in the boiling water a few at a time 

Cook until the pasta is al dente (firm but not too soft or overcooked). Drain ravioli, picking them from the boiling water with a slotted spoon

Serve with your favorite sauce.   Cheers!!!

My Ortega Roast Beef Sandwich

This is my home-made version of Carl’s Jr’s, California Roast Beef Star, and I want to say thank you to the late Carl Karcher, (January 16, 1917 – January 11, 2008) for creating one of my favorite sandwiches..

Browning the meat & chile

Ready for the broiler

My Ortega Roast Beef Sandwich

Ingredients

• 1 potato bun split
• 3 ounces thinly sliced deli roast beef
• 1 whole Ortega chile
• 1 slice swiss cheese
• 1 Tbl olive oil

Directions

1. add olive oil to hot pan
2. add roast beef and chile   
3. heat raost beef  and chile till the chile browned
4. toast the bun
5. pile roast beef on one half of the bun
6. place chile on roast beef
7. place slice of swiss cheese on other half of bun
8. place under broiler for 1 minute or till cheese melts

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New Year’s Reality Check

Another year, another chance
To start our lives anew;
This time we’ll leap old barriers
To have a real breakthrough.

We’ll take one little step
And then we’ll take one more,
Our unlimited potential
We’ll totally explore.

We’ll show off all our talents
Everyone will be inspired;
(Whew! While I’m writing this,
I’m getting very tired.)

We’ll give up all bad habits;
We’ll read and learn a lot,
All our goals will be accomplished,
Sigh…or maybe not.

Oh well, Happy New Year anyway!