Spinach, Artichoke, Cheese, and Pork Ravioli

If you guys could not tell already, I am a HUGE fan of meal prep.

This meal does require a tiny bit of effort but is delicious! This meal can be made in advance and then  stored in the freezer until you are ready to eat them.

Ingredients:
1 Package of Wonton Wrappers
1 Package of Spinach
1 Can of Artichokes
1 Small Container of Ricotta Cheese
1 1/2 Cup of Mozzarella Cheese
1 Can of Tomato Sauce
1/2 lb of Ground Pork
1 Teaspoon of Garlic Powder
1 Teaspoon of Onion Powder
1 Teaspoon of Paprika


Cooking Instructions:
1. Start by placing the spinach and artichokes into the food processor.

2. Once the spinach and the artichokes have been finely chopped - add the mozzarella and the ricotta cheese (add as much or as little cheese as you would like).

3. Once the spinach, artichoke, and cheese mixture is complete - cook the ground pork to the pan. While the pork is cooking, add the onion powder, paprika, and garlic powder.

4. Once the meat is done cooking. It is time to start assembling the ravioli! You will need the wonton wrappers and a small bowl of water.

5. Take one wonton and place some of the spinach, artichoke, and cheese mixture in the middle of the wonton. Then add some pork on top.

6. Once the mixture is on the wonton, use your finger to put water around the edges of the wonton.

7. Then fold the wonton in half and make sure all of the edges are sealed.

8. REPEAT until all of the ravioli has been made.

9. In regards to meal prep, I separate the ravioli into portions. I put about 8 ravioli each in a plastic bag.

10. Store the ravioli in the freezer.

11. Once you are ready to eat the ravioli, start to boil the water in a pot and remove the ravioli from the freezer.

12. After the water has come to a boil, add a tiny bit of olive oil and salt into the water. This will help prevent the ravioli from sticking to each other.

13. Place the ravioli into the hot water. They should only need to cook for 3-4 minutes.

14. While the ravioli is cooking, start heating up the tomato sauce.

15. Once the ravioli is cooked, use a colander to drain the water.

16. Then combine the ravioli and tomato sauce together and top with mozzarella cheese and VOILA RAVIOLI!!!!

COME ON! How good does that look?!

SO YUM!

Cinnamon Sugar Muffins

These seem simple but are moist and SO delicious.

Just ask Mary!

                    

Ingredients:

Muffins: 

1 1/2 Cups of All-Purpose Flour 

1/2 Cup of Brown Sugar 

2 Teaspoons of Baking Powder

1 Teaspoon of Cinnamon 

1/4 Teaspoon of Baking Soda

1/2 Teaspoon of Salt

3/4 Cup of Milk 

1/3 Cup of Canola Oil

2 Large Eggs

Crumb Topping:

1/3 Cup of Brown Sugar 

1/3 Cup of Sugar 

1 Teaspoon of Cinnamon 

1/4 Teaspoon of Salt 

1/2 Cup (1 Stick) of Unsalted Butter, Melted

1 1/2 Cups of All-Purpose Flour

Cooking Instructions:

1. Start by combining all of the dry ingredients together (flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt). 

2. Start adding all the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Then mix them all together.

3. This is an extra step but I separate the egg yolks from the egg whites. Then I whisk the egg whites till they look foamy. This will make the muffins taste light and moist. 

NOTE: If you choose to separate the egg whites - make sure to fold in the egg whites as gently as possible. It is crucial not to over whip the eggs once they have been added to the batter. 

4. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. 

5. Once the muffin batter has been created. It is time to create the crumb topping. 

6. Start by melting the stick of butter. 

7. Then combine all of the ingredients together.

8. Once the topping has been created, it is time to start putting the batter into the cupcake tins. 

Start with the batter. I use a measuring cup to put the batter into the tins. 

9. Once the batter has been placed in the tins - it is time to add the topping. There isn't really a trick to this - i just sprinkled it on and made it sure it was on different parts of the muffins.

10. Cook for about 9 minutes. Stick a tooth pick in the muffins to make sure they are fully cooked. If they are fully cooked - then the toothpick will come out clean and no batter will be sticking to it. 

11. Let the muffins cool then enjoy!!! 

Chicken Potstickers

I don't know about you guys but I LOVE pot stickers. While the store bought ones can be delicious - I decided to make my own.

It is slightly time consuming but not terrible if you put on a movie or TV show.

When I come home from work, the last thing I want to do is spend 30 minutes making dinner. Pre-making almost 60 pot stickers makes dinner a breeze.

I can practically put the pot stickers on the stove to cook, change into my pajamas and come back and they are done. It is great!

Ingredients:
1 Pound of Ground Chicken
3 Ounce of Shiitake Mushrooms (At the grocery store I go to they sell them in a pack of six which is perfect)
2 Cloves of Garlic
2 Tablespoons of Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce (I use gluten free)
1 Tablespoon of Sesame Oil
1 Tablespoon of Freshly Grated Ginger
1 Teaspoon of Rice Wine Vinegar
1/4 Teaspoon of White Pepper
1 Package of Wonton Wrappers (mine had 40)
1 Cup of Cabbage (optional)

Cooking Instructions:
1. Start by cutting up the mushrooms and lettuce. Once I hand cut the mushrooms and the second time I put them in the food processor which was definitely faster.

2. Put the ground chicken into a bowl.

3. Combine the meat, mushrooms, and lettuce.

4. Make the marinade by adding garlic, white pepper, rice wine vinegar, grated ginger, and soy sauce into a small bowl.

5. Put marinade into the bowl with the meat and vegetables.

6. Now it is time to assemble the pot stickers.

7. Get a small bowl and fill it with water - you will use it to seal the wonton wrappers.

8. Start by placing a spoonful of the meat and veggie mixture (slightly larger than a quarter) into the center of the wonton wrapper.

9. Dip your finger in the water and run it along the far edges of the wonton wrappers.

10. Then fold the wonton wrapper in half and squeeze the edges together.

11. To store pot stickers you are not eating. Place in the freezer. I portioned out the pot stickers to about 6-7 pot stickers per plastic baggie. That way they are portioned out and keeps them from sticking together.

12. To cook the potstickers, place in a fan on medium heat with some olive or avocado oil. They should cook for about 7-10 minutes.

13. Enjoy with some soy sauce!!!

YUMMY YUMMY!

Recipe from Damn Delicious

MorROCKIN Chicken

This dish is seriously yummy. Super quick and easy to make. It may appear bland but I PROMISE it is anything but.

Ingredients:

2 Chicken Breasts

1 Teaspoon of Paprika

1 Teaspoon of Ground Cumin

1 Teaspoon of Garlic Powder

1 Teaspoon of Cinnamon 

1 Teaspoon of Ground Ginger

1 Teaspoon of Ground Coriander

1/2 Cup of Stock (I used chicken)

1/4 Cup of Honey

2 Teaspoon of Molasses

1 Medium lemon (zest and lemon)

Cooking Instructions:

1. Start by creating the marinade. I like to let my chicken marinade over night but a few hours will work as well. 

2. When you are ready to cook your chicken, preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

3.  Cook the chicken in foil with the marinade for about 15 minutes. (Make sure to check to see if the chicken is full cooked - it should not be pink on the inside).

4. After the chicken is fully cooked, enjoy! It comes out moist and delicious. The cinnamon has a really interesting effect on the taste - very unique but tasty. 

This dish would be great with a number of different side dishes such as roasted broccoli or broccolini. 

NOTE: This dish is from Bare Root Girl

Addictive Beef and Broccoli Pasta

I practically worship this dish - it is SO delicious! I have already made this dish multiple times and it is amazing every time. People have told me that I should open a restaurant and put this dish on the menu. My boyfriend has made this dish for his roommates and they LOVED it.

Ingredients:
2 heads of broccoli
Beef (I use flank steak)
Pasta (I use gluten free rice noodles)
2 Tablespoons of Red Wine Vinegar
3 Teaspoons of Minced Garlic
1/4 Cup of Honey
1/4 Cup of Soy Sauce (I use gluten free)
1/4 Cup of Vegetable oil
1 Tablespoon of Parsley
3 Tablespoons of Cornstarch
2 Tablespoons of Sesame Oil
1/3 Cup of Brown Sugar
1/2 Teaspoon of Grated Ginger
1 Cup of Broth (I use chicken but Beef would work as well)

Cooking Instructions:

1. Start by making the marinade for the beef. Add the red wine vinegar, honey, garlic, soy sauce, parsley, sesame oil, cornstarch, ginger, and brown sugar.

2. Cut up the beef into small bite size pieces.

3. Place the beef in the marinade and into a plastic baggie. I typically marinade the beef over night.

4. The next day. I start by pre-heating the oven to 425 degrees.

5. Cut the broccoli into small pieces. Toss the broccoli in some olive oil (or in my case avocado oil), garlic powder, and paprika.

6. Put the broccoli on a sheet pan and place in the oven for 15 minutes. I like my broccoli to be somewhat brown and crispy.

7. While the broccoli is cooking, start boiling the water for the pasta.

8. Once the water is boiling, place the pasta into the water and cook for about 13 minutes or until the pasta is cooked to your liking.

9. Also, while the broccoli is cooking, I cook the beef in a pan. Make sure to save the sauce!

10. After the noodles are done cooking, put them back in the pot and pour in the sauce. Make sure the sauce is all over the noodles.

11. After the sauce has been well incorporated, add the broccoli and the beef.

12. ENJOYYYYY!!!!

I seriously think about this dish all the time - it is so yummy! So when I make it, I always make sure to make extras for lunches for the next few days!

NOTE: I did find this recipe on Chelsea's Messy Apron

Death by Chocolate

If I have to die early, death by chocolate is the way I want to go and these muffins are the definition of chocolate perfection.

Chocolate chocolate chip muffins - can't go wrong with that. double the chocolate double the fun is what I always say. These muffins are seriously yummy. I mean look at that - how good does that look?!

Ingredients:

One 4-Ounce Bar of Semi Sweet Chocolate (I used chocolate chips)

1 Stick of Unsalted Butter

3/4 Cup of Sugar

2 Large Eggs

1 Teaspoon of Pure Vanilla Extract

1/3 Cup of Plain Greek Yogurt (can also use sour cream)

1/2 Cup of All-Purpose Flour 

1/3 Cup of Unsweetened Natural Cocoa Powder

1/2 Teaspoon of Salt

1 Cup of Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

Cooking Instructions:

1. Start by preheating the oven to 420 degrees.

2. Mix all of the dry ingredients together.

3. If necessary, coarsely cut up the chocolate bar. Put the chocolate and butter together in a bowl. 

4. Melt the chocolate. I microwave the bowl in 15 second increments - any longer and the chocolate will start to burn. Makes sure to mix the chocolate each time after microwaving it. Keep microwaving it until the chocolate is smooth.

5. Combine the chocolate mixture and the dry mixture. 

6. Add the eggs to the mixture. 

7. Then place the batter into the cupcake tins. 

8. Cook for about 12 minutes. To make sure they are done, stick a toothpick inside. If it comes out clean then they are done. 

9. Let the muffins cool and then ENJOY :)

These muffins are so moist and delicious. They are soft and fluffy and SO chocolatey :)


*** recipe from Sally Baking Addiction

Thai For Dinner!

Thai Curry Chicken with a Coconut-Peanut Sauce

I don't know about you guys but I don't generally consider myself to be an adventurous person.

I like to look around on Pinterest for new recipes and when this one came up, I was skeptical that I would like it.

However, it was actually DELICIOUS!!!!! I highly recommend you at least giving it a try if you are on the fence.

The sauce is creamy and delicious.

Ingredients:
Chicken:
1/4 Cup of Soy Sauce
3 Tablespoons of Brown Sugar
Zest of one lime
2 Tablespoons of Vegetable Oil
3 Cloves of Garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon of Curry Powder
1/2 Teaspoon of Ground Ginger
1/4 Teaspoon of Ground Cardamom
1/2 Teaspoon of Salt
3 Pounds of Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts

Sauce:
1 Can of Coconut Milk (I used light and it tasted great)
1/4 Cup of Peanut Butter
1/3 Cup of Packed Brown Sugar
1-1/2 Tablespoons of Soy Sauce
1 Tablespoon of red curry paste
3 Tablespoons of Fresh Lime Juice

Cooking Instructions:
1. Start by making the marinade. Combine the soy sauce, brown sugar, lime zest, vegetable oil, ginger, garlic, curry powder, salt, and cardamom into a large bowl.

2. Once you have created the marinade, place the chicken and the marinade into a large ziplock bag.
I let the chicken marinade over night.

3. After the chicken has marinaded, I started by searing the chicken off in a pan. Just to get some color.

4. Then I moved the chicken into the oven for about 7 minutes on 375 degrees.

5. While the chicken is cooking, start the sauce. Add the coconut milk first. Then whisk in the peanut butter, brown sugar, soy sauce, and curry paste.

****NOTE: If you want a thicker sauce you can add some corn starch.

6. Take the chicken out of the oven. I let it rest for a few minutes before cutting it. Then drizzle the sauce over the top.

7. Bon appetite!!!

The taste is truly something different not to mention tasty.

****Recipe from Once Upon a Chef