Most sides are a bit of an afterthought. I tend to just whip something up really quick to give my dish more color, or to make me feel like I’m being healthy because there is some green on my plate. But this Wilted Spinach with Garlic Vinaigrette side dish is so good, I’d be happy to have just this for dinner. I am not the biggest fan of mustard in general, but the small amount of Dijon mustard really ups this side from good to great.
Ingredients
1 ½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 garlic cloves, minced (or thinly sliced, whatever makes you happy)
6 cups baby spinach leaves
¼ cup sliced red onion
To prepare the vinaigrette, combine the first 5 ingredients in a bowl (up to salt) combining with a whisk. Heat the vinaigrette in a sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Gradually add the spinach (it will shrink up a lot!) and toss to combine. Remove from heat when wilted (1-2 minutes).
The spinach ended up stealing the show when I made it (I had a pasta/chicken dish along with it). It was a very quick and easy side; I cannot wait to make this again!
I’m not the biggest fan of sandwiches in general. PBJ, BLT, Turkey and Cheese… they just don’t cut it. I recently saw the last 3 minutes of a cooking show where they were making Salmon BLTs and couldn’t get the idea out of my head. It seemed easy enough (I didn’t catch their actual ingredients and preparation) so I tried it out for myself. Apparently these types of sandwiches usually come with mayo or some other condiment, but I left that out. There was still plenty of flavor!
As much as I love cooking, sometimes I am just too exhausted at the end of the day to whip together a tasty meal. But why should my taste buds be punished? So I always keep a few different types of ravioli in my freezer for a quick meal. Tomato sauce on meat or cheese ravioli is great, but I tend to lean towards mushroom, pumpkin, butternut squash, or spinach fillings. So here is a short list of a few different sauces (besides tomato) that you can cook in the time it takes to cook the ravioli.
White Wine Sage Sauce
(great with mushroom ravioli)
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 clove minced garlic
1 tablespoon dried sage
1/2 cup white wine (whatever you have open, I have been using a Pinot Grigio recently)
Optional ingredients:
Truffle oil
Panko bread crumbs
Parmesan cheese (grated or shaved) Note: This is for one serving, so multiply as needed!
To make, add the olive oil to a saute pan. Heat over medium-high heat, and add the garlic and sage. Let cook for one minute. Add the white wine, and turn the heat down to medium-low. Let simmer for a few minutes until it reduces. Remove from heat and pour over cooked ravioli. I really enjoy adding a little drizzle of truffle oil and then topping the ravioli off with panko and parmesan cheese. The truffle oil enhances the flavor of the ravioli and the panko adds a bit of a light crunch to the dish.
Brown Butter Sage Sauce
(great with pumpkin or butternut squash ravioli)
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon butter
4 sage leaves
Lemon juice, to taste
Parmesan cheese, to taste
Note: This is for one serving, so multiply as needed!
To prepare, melt butter in a saute pan until a light brown color appears (about 3 minutes). Add the sage leaves and cook for one minute more (to help the leaves get a little crispy). Remove from heat and add a few drops of lemon juice. Add some Parmesan cheese and mix. Pour over the ravioli and serve.
Brown Butter Sage Sauce with Dried Cranberries
(great with pumpkin or butternut squash ravioli)
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon dried sage
1-2 teaspoons dried cranberries
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste
Note: This is for one serving, so multiply as needed!
To prepare, melt butter in a saute pan. Add the sage and dried cranberries and cook until a light brown color appears (about 3 minutes). Remove from heat. Add salt and pepper and mix. Pour over the ravioli and serve. Note: If you have walnuts, they would be fantastic in this dish, I just didn’t have any. Toast the walnuts in the oven at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes. Add the walnuts to the melted butter when you add in the sage and dried cranberries.
Roasted Walnuts – more of a topping than a sauce
(great with cheese or spinach ravioli)
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove chopped garlic
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste
1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley
Parmesan cheese (grated or shaved), to taste
Note: This is for one serving, so multiply as needed!
To prepare, heat the oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and walnuts and cook until the walnuts are slightly toasted, stirring frequently (about 5 minutes). Add lemon juice, salt, pepper, and parsley. Remove from heat and pour over ravioli. Top with the Parmesan cheese.
