Brown Butter Ravioli with Sun-Dried Tomatoes & Toasted Pine Nuts

Hello all you wonderful, wonderful people! I'm officially back from my mini-bloggy-vacation and I couldn't be more excited! I've missed you all and I've missed this... you know, this... sharing delicious food, talking about delicious food and making lots of delicious food! But, now that i'm back I feel like it's important to start everything off with a BANG! Which is why today I'm bringing you a recipe that is so simple, so delicious and just, well, it's mouthwateringly amazing... But, we'll get to that in a minute!

First I want to start off by saying that I am both happy and sad that the holiday season is over. My favorite time of the year has come and gone and even though it was amazing, I still can't help but feel a little sad that my house feels empty without all of my cozy Christmas decorations making it feel so warm and festive. I miss watching movies next to the Christmas tree and snuggling on the couch under our Christmas blankets, watching Christmas movies... but, I'm also glad that It's a new year and I feel like big things are coming! I'm hoping 2015 is going to be a year of awesome food, fun adventures, big opportunities and, hopefully some amazing memories will be made!

Just because Christmas is over and all Joy is lost doesn't mean there aren't other fun holidays to look forward to. Like, for instance, we've got Valentine's Day coming up in less than a month! I actually adore V-day, especially now that I'm married.  I love putting together the parties for my daughter's class, I love helping her create her Valentines to hand out to her friends and I love having a special dinner with my hubby and enjoying the delicious chocolates (See's Candy *cough**hint*) that he gets me every year.

  

So now that we're all excited for Valentine's Day to get here and are in no way sad about the fact that Christmas is over for a whole year, I thought I could share a recipe that would actually be a great way to celebrate love day with your loved ones! It's fancy enough to be a celebratory dinner, but easy enough to make that you won't be standing in the kitchen all night cooking! Hooray!

Be warned, as soon as we finished eating this yummy dish we immediately wanted more. It's super addictive! It makes a great lunch, {meatless monday} dinner, or would be great as a side dish! I hope you love it as much as we did. Actually, I know you will. You have to. You must!

Brown Butter Ravioli with Sun-Dried Tomatoes &

Toasted Pine Nuts:

{Print Recipe}

Ingredients:

• 1 (24 ounce) bag of small, round, cheese-filled raviolis
• 1 stick of unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons
• 3 tablespoons of pine nuts
• 3 tablespoons chopped, sun-dried tomatoes
• 2 large cloves fresh garlic
• 3 tablespoons basil chiffonade
• Sea salt & freshly cracked black pepper

Directions:

In a small, dry skillet over medium heat, place pine nuts and continue tossing until golden brown. Remove from skillet and set aside.

Now, to make your brown butter... In a large pot or dutch oven, over medium heat, place butter and allow it to melt fully. Once melted, butter should soon begin to foam and bubble. Stir butter continuously so it browns evenly. Once it's starting to turn a nice brown color (not too dark, more like golden brown) add in your fresh garlic and sun-dried tomatoes. Cook for 2-3 additional minutes, while continuously stirring. Remove from heat and stir in fresh basil and about 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper.

Meanwhile, cook ravioli according to package directions. Drain and toss in brown butter mixture. Spoon onto plate, drizzle with some of the extra brown butter sauce, sprinkle about 2 teaspoons of pine nuts over the top and finish with a little sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper. {Being able to see the sea salt and cracked pepper on the ravioli really does make the dish look fabulous!} 

Garnish with a couple of basil leaves on the top and serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Chicken Alfredo Flatbread

So, on Saturday Night... after our daughter was in bed, hubby and I decided to make something fun and new. I was super excited because we were going to whip up a batch of homemade flatbread, which is something I've never made before, but something that I absolutely love eating when we go to restaurants!

One of my favorite things about my dear, sweet husband is how much he loves to come in the kitchen and help me cook. We like to make a night of it and treat it as almost an "at-home date night." They are actually my favorite nights. I'll take cooking with him over sitting at a restaurant any day! Especially when we're making something yummy like Chicken Alfredo Flatbread! 

The best way I can describe this recipe is... Mega Super Crazy Delicious. Yeah, that's the best way to describe it for sure. I think homemade flatbread is going to be my latest addiction because I'm already wanting to make it again! Plus, the roasted mushrooms, tomatoes, bell pepper and garlic are out-of-this-world amazing. I hope you like it as much as we did!

Chicken Alfredo Flatbread Recipe: {Print Recipe}

Ingredients:

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (cooked and sliced)

4, 10" flatbreads *recipe below*

1 cup alfredo sauce

8 ounces fresh mushrooms

1 red bell pepper

10 ounces cherry tomatoes

3 cloves fresh garlic (minced)

8 ounces fresh mozzarella (sliced)

12 fresh basil leaves

Olive oil

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Spread mushrooms and minced garlic on a greased baking sheet.

Cut tomatoes and bell pepper in half, remove seeds from bell pepper and place on baking sheet. Roast in preheated oven for 14-15 minutes, or until bell pepper is beginning to char slightly and tomatoes have softened. Remove from oven, slice bell pepper into strips and set aside. Do not turn off the oven.

Spread about 3 tablespoons of alfredo sauce on each flatbread. Place about 4 slices of chicken breast on top and 1/4 of the tomatoes, mushrooms and bell peppers. Place 1/4 of the fresh mozzarella on each flatbread and top with a couple fresh basil leaves.

Place in oven and cook for 8-12 minutes, or until flatbread is crispy and cheese is nice and melty.

Flatbread Recipe (from Food Network)

1 package active dry yeast

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1-3/4 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup water

oil

Combine yeast, salt, flour and sugar in a food processor. Pulse to combine. Slowly pour in water, while pulsing, until dough forms a ball. Remove from food processor and knead about 5-6 times, or until dough is smooth.

Place in an oiled bowl, cover with a towel and place in a warm area to rise.

Once dough has doubled in size, divide into 4 pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and use a lightly greased rolling pin to roll dough out into a 10" piece. 

Place dough on a griddle over medium heat. Once dough is beginning to bubble on the top and the underside is beginning to brown, flip. Repeat on other side.