EASY BITES! Ravioli with Asparagus and Zucchini

"Happiness for me is largely a matter of digestion."
~Chinese writer Lin Yutang


EASY BITES!

Ravioli con Asparagi e Zucchine ~ Ravioli with Asparagus and Zucchini


Difficulty: EASY/MEDIUM
Preparation's Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 4


Recipe ...

Ingredients & Qty
Ravioli(*): 1 package, (250g/8.82oz);
Green Asparagus: 10 Spears;
Green Zucchini: 1 piece, (long variety, not too thick);
Olive Oil: For frying;
Salt & Pepper: To taste;
Chili pepper: To taste;
Double Cream, (33% min): 100mL/3.52fl-oz;
Parmigiano: 50g/1.76oz, (grated);

Utensils, Etc
Stockpot: 1 medium/large;
Non-Stick Skillet: 1;
Paper Towels: 1;

Directions
~ Pre-cook the Ravioli, following the package instruction; (**)

~ RINSE the Asparagus, TRIM the Ends, (the chewy part).
~ CUT each Spear in the size you need, (matching the size of Ravioli). Set-Aside.

~ RINSE and SLICE the Zucchini, (medium/thin disks). Sprinkle a bit of Salt and Set-Aside.

~ Pre-Heat the Skillet with little Olive Oil, you’ll be using the same Skillet for the following preparations:
> Stir-Fry, (Saute’), the Zucchini. Set-Aside on Paper Towel to Absorb Extra Oil.
> Stir-Fry the Asparagus; Add the Pre-Cooked Ravioli and the Zucchini Disks;
> Add Salt, Pepper and Chilli to taste.
> Off the Heat, Stir-In the Double Cream and Parmigiano.

~ Serve Immediately.

NOTES:
- (*) Ravioli “Ricotta and Basil”
- Tasting Portion: 3 ravioli

BUON APPETITO!

Useful Links!
Cook Pasta; by Linda Larsen, About.com

Photo: Ravioli Asparagi e Zucchine from "Italic Cuisine" by OCK Style





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Cooking Personality and Must-Haves

Food on the SFGate.com

5 rising stars and their must-haves in the kitchen - The San Francisco Chronicle names five Bay Area chefs to watch and finds out what they can't live without. Lisa Eyherabide, for one, of Gitane in San Francisco, says it's the Portuguese copper-hinged steamer, called a cataplana.
Michael Mina, Loretta Keller and Charles Phan all have at least one thing in common: In the early stages of their careers they were singled out as Rising Star Chefs in The Chronicle.
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... Rising Star Chefs 2009; by Michael Bauer


Food on Philly.com

Remembering when American food was regional - A new book, "The Food of a Younger Land," recalls the time before the Interstate highway system, when food in America was truly regional. Mint-julep in Kentucky, hog-killing weather in North Carolina and more.
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It is an enterprise in need of eternal update, the business of drawing the line after which - in the case of good eating - the Good Old Days ended, ushering in an era of the anti-natural, the weirdly industrial, the ruined Red Delicious, the frozen cheesesteak, or insert your own horror (you know you have one!) here.
Things started going to hell about 7,000 years ago, ...
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Health on the NYTimes.com

Quiz zeroes in on cooking personality.
In today’s Well column, “Who’s Cooking? (For Health, It Matters), I write about how different cooking personalities can influence the entire family’s eating habits. Cornell University researchers studied nearly 800 family cooks and determined five distinct types. So what’s your cooking personality? Take the Well quiz to find out. ...
Full Story: What’s Your Cooking Personality?; By Tara Parker-Pope


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Easy Bites! Love's Frittata

Enjoy yourself. It's later than you think. ~Chinese Proverb


EASY BITES!

Frittata dell'Amore ~ Love’s Frittata


Difficulty: EASY
Preparation's Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 4
...

Ingredients:
Asparagus: 4
Strawberries: 4;
Free Range Eggs: 4;
Parsley: To decorate;
Salt & Pepper: To taste;
Olive Oil: For frying;

Utensils, Etc:
Bowl: 1 Medium;
Fork: 1;
Heart’s form: Special skillet;
Paper Towels: 1;

Directions:
~ RINSE and CHOP the Parsley. Set aside.

~ RINSE the Asparagus, TRIM the Ends, (the chewy part).
~ CUT each Spear in the size you need. Set aside.

~ RINSE and TRIM the Strawberries.
~ SLICE each in 2~3 slices, depending on the size of the strawberry. Set aside.

~ Pre-heat the ‘Special-Skillet’ with just a little bit of Olive Oil.
~ Keep it HOT but NOT smoking.

~ In the Bowl LIGHTLY-BEAT the Eggs with the fork.
~ INCORPORATE the Salt and Pepper.

~ POUR in the Hot Skillet as much Egg-mix as needed to obtain an even frittata.
~ PLACE the Asparagus and the Strawberries on the Eggs-mix.
~ Reduce the Heat and Cover with a lead.
~ Sprinkle some Parsley just off the heat.

NOTES:
- Can be served Hot, Warm and at Room-Temperature.
- Basic difference between a ‘Frittata’ and an ‘Omelette’: LIGHTLY-BEATEN eggs for ‘Frittata’, usually with a fork; WHISKED eggs for ‘Omelette’.
- Frittata are very much alike Spanish Tortilla.

BUON APPETITO!

Unlocking the Mysteries of Umami

Life consists in penetrating the unknown, and fashioning our actions in accord with the new knowledge thus acquired. ~Leo Tolstoy

Food and Drink on The TimesOnline.co.uk

Umami, known as the "fifth taste," has become something of a quest for chefs around the world. At umami summits in London, New York, San Francisco and Kyoto, chefs explore the concept, which is derived from the Japanese word for "delicious."
It's found in breast milk, Marmite and mushrooms, and the Japanese have known about it for years. Now the rest of us are catching up.
Yoshihiro Murata is holding up a length of kombu, a dried seaweed. The Japanese chef is explaining how he makes dashi, the stock at the heart of Japanese cuisine. His audience, mostly top British chefs, is gripped. Dashi, you see, unlocks the key to umami - the “fifth taste” after sweet, sour, salt and bitter. ...
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Full Story: UMAMI News






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Food Finders, Cheeses and Summer Cocktails

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It's one of the divine pleasures of warmer days: backyard barbecuing or sunning at a patio bar, a cocktail in hand.
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We asked a handful of cocktail gurus — those known for reinventing the classics and those who approach drink-making like mad scientists — to make us a new summer drink. Not the mojito — the nojito.
Almost 30 cocktail recipes poured in, and ...
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Do Men and Women Cook Differently? Kitchen Tips & Trics!

Tips on usaweekend.com

It took top chefs years to figure out these helpful tips. You can put them to work immediately!
It's extremely reassuring to know what the experts do to overcome common kitchen challenges. If they can make life in the most important room in the house easy, painless and delicious, we want to know how. So we've asked noteworthy chefs, editors and authors to share some of their most ingenious kitchen solutions.
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From recalled tomatoes to calorie counts on menus, food and health was a big part of the news in 2008, and it looks to again have a high profile in 2009. Here are five food-related topics and trends to watch for this year.
Custom Foods
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~ New Ideas in Health, Wellness, Fitness, Beauty, Design, and Cuisine - SpaFinder, the global spa resource, announced 'Top 10 Spa Trends To Watch In 2009.





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New Web Sites for Food Lovers and Big-Time Barbecue

FOOD & DRINK on WSJ.com

Traffic to the top 35 food Web sites increased 14% in December over the previous year, and the number of Web sites devoted to food keeps growing. Several new sites are worth checking out.
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... A Guide to New Food Sites; By PERVAIZ SHALLWANI
Photo from cookstr.com


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A Portuguese Town’s Spit-Roasted Claim to Fame.
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Skin Deepfrom the NYTimes.com

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Healthier Eating and Korean Lunch, ...

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"Food to a large extent is what holds a society together and eating is closely linked to deep spiritual experiences." ~Food anthropologists Peter Farb and George Armelagos

Delightfully yours, Food Meditations

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Wellness on Glam.com

If there is a way to eat healthier without kissing all “bad” foods goodbye, we’re so there. There are ways to stay healthy without dieting, after all. Here are five few quick tips to staying healthy ...

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The new vegetarian on the Guardian.co.uk

Serve warm or at room temperature - and taste before serving, because lentils tend to "swallow" flavours ...

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Looking for more recipes? Check The Recipes Hunter collection...

Korean Candy Chicken

Join the new Food Styling and Photography Club on Facebook to improve your skills in food photography and food styling, learn something about cooking and enjoy the visual.

Worlds of Flavor and Cooking Tips!

Cashew chicken has Missouri roots on The NYTimes.com

Chinese and American cultures come together in cashew chicken, a dish invented in Springfield, Mo. "When I moved here in the 1950s, people kept telling me about fried chicken," inventor David Leong said. "I did what they wanted. I gave them fried chicken with Chinese oyster sauce and cashews."
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How do you get your charlottes, pannacottas and cheesecakes to stay firm? Either by using classic gelatine or agar agar, which is all the rage at the moment. Here’s some useful info, advice and methods of use for these two setting/gelling agents.
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Food and Travel on BootsnAll.com

Linda Waltenberger discovers that Chacala, Mexico on the Pacific gives us beach lounging at it's finest; good food, drinks and whale watching (with binoculars).
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Full Story: Chacala, Nayarit, Mexico
Photo: Chacala Map; on VillaCelesteChacala.com

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~ Life's Too Short for Diets - 'Why deprive yourself just when you really need cheering up?





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