Carly's Birthday Dinner

Some recipes at the bottom! No recipe for the raviolis this time, but, an important discovery: wonton wrappers! they have them frozen at Asian markets. They taste almost as good as fresh pasta dough and they are an ENORMOUS time saver.

Menu:

Bread & Antipasti (including my favorite type of olives!)



Salad with Risotto Cakes and Tomato-Basil Dressing (recipe here)



Basil, Arugula, & Pea Ravioli with Lemon Butter



Torta Caprese (a totally rich and delicious chocolate-almond cake)



Recipes


Balsamic Pears & Gorgonzola

1 tbs butter
3 pears, on the firmer side, peeled and sliced
1/4 cup sugar
few dashes cinnamon (or spices of your choice)
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

Heat up some butter on medium. Toss in your pears, add sugar & cinnamon, and saute until they soften up a bit. Add the balsamic and simmer for a few minutes, until it has reduced and become more thick & gooey (but keep it mind it will firm up a lot more as it cools). Let cool a bit, then plate with some slabs of gorgonzola and serve with bread or crackers. You could also strain the pears and put them in a salad with crumbled blue cheese and walnuts, then use the reduced balsamic to make a dressing.


Torta Caprese


9 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
1 cup butter
¼ cup cocoa powder
1 tablespoon almond extract
1 ¼ cup sugar
1 ½ cups ground almonds*
6 eggs

*on grinding almonds, if you don't already have them pre-ground: don't just put them in a food processor and grind! they will turn into almond butter... i have learned from experience. add a little bit of flour and sugar to absorb some of the oil so you can grind it up fine without it forming a paste, and stir frequently to shake up the stuff clumping at the bottom.

Preheat to 350. Line and/or grease a spring-form pan.

Melt the chocolate and butter together over a double-boiler. Take off the heat and whisk in the cocoa powder, almond extract, and sugar. Mix in the ground almonds, then beat in the eggs one at a time. Pour into the pan and bake for about 45 minutes - take it out RIGHT when its firm on top, because it will be extra delicious if it's slightly gooey in the middle (like brownies). Cool and serve with almond whipped cream or icecream. Store at room temperature to preserve the texture - it will get much thicker and drier if you refrigerate it. Enjoy!