Bridal Shower Food & Recipes

The word ravioli usually means pasta stuffed with creamy ricotta and topped with tomato sauce. We had this client once who loved blueberries and wanted us to come up with a creative way to serve them as a dessert. Well, when our culinary team whipped up and served a batch of blueberry ravioli the client was sold. These are really uniquely delicious and a great spin on a classic recipe.For Raviloi:Ingredients 1 egg, beaten 3 cups flour Water Directions Mix one egg, 3 cups of flour and enough water to make a dough. Do not overwork dough or you will get tough ravioli. Roll dough to 1/16 of an inch (as thin as you can get the dough without ripping it). Cut into 3-4 inch circles using a cookie cutter. In the center of the circle, place a heaping teaspoon of blueberry filling. Moisten the edge of half the circle. Fold the dough in half over the moisten edge and pinch to seal (you can also crimp edges with a fork). Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Drop about 5 ravioli into the boiling water (careful not to have edges tough or the ravioli will become glued together. Cover and boil for 5 minutes or until they float. Remove ravioli with a slotted spoon an put in a large bowl. Pat with butter and sprinkle with sugar. For Filling: Ingredients 6 cups fresh blueberries 2 tablespoons sugar Directions Mix fruit and sugar. Fill ravioli immediately before juice is drawn out of fruit.

When one thinks of crepes one often thinks sweet no savory. Crepes are awesome! We offer Crepe stations at our parties and fillings often include crispy prosciutto with basil scented ricotta, Hoison Duck, and yes Lemon scented Spinach and Feta Crepes. Don't be intimidated by making crepes. If you follow the directions below it will be a snap. Let me inspire you go go out of your comfort zone and make this fabulous dish.For Filling:Ingredients: 3 bunches fresh spinach 1 onion, finely chopped feta cheese, crumbled 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese 1 carton ricotta cheese 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg the juice from 1/2 a lemon salt (to taste) freshly ground black pepper (to taste) 1 egg, lightly beaten Directions: Cook Spinach then drain and pat with towels. Add finely chopped onion, Feta, Parmesan, Ricotta, lemon juice, nutmeg, salt and pepper. For Crepes:Ingredients: 1 cup all-purpose flour 1 pinch salt 2 eggs 1 1/4 cups milk 3 teaspoons butter, melted oil (for frying) Directions: Sift flour and salt into a bowl. Add eggs and a little of the milk. Beat well. Add the remaining milk and lastly the melted butter. Heat oil in crepe pan (or use spray). Pour about 3-4 tablespoons of crepe mixture into pan - enough to cover the base of the pan thinly and evenly. Cook over high heat for about 1 minute or until mixture looks as though it is setting on the top and the underneath is lightly browned. Turn crepe over and cook the other side for about 1/2 a minute. Remove from pan and place on piece of waxed paper. Place wax paper between crepes as you remove each one from the pan. Final Step - To Stuff:Place even amounts of Spinach mixture in the center of each crepe. Fold crepe, place in Pyrex dish (sprayed with non-stick spray) and cook at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Feel free to add lemon garlic and oregano flavored chicken to this dish!

Zucchini Rollers are their name. Culinary Bliss is their game. Grilled zucchini poppers stuffed with either pesto scented ricotta or goat cheese, combined with julienne vegetables and greens, then drizzled with Lemon Thyme vinaigrette.

Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes are a delicious and healthy appetizer that you can whip up minutes before company arrives. They were quite the craze 20 years ago..and now they are making a comeback. Let me inspire you to try stuffing them with chive scented goat cheese.

Ingredients - For Cucpakes: 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened 2 cups sugar 4 large eggs, at room temperature 1 ½ cups self-rising flour 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour 1 cup milk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract For Buttercream Icing:1 cup (2 sticks), unsalted butter, softened8 cups confectioners' sugar½ cup milk2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Recipe and photo courtesy of CRUMBS Bakeshop. Makes 6 giant cupcakes.Ingredients - For Cupcakes: ¾ pound unsalted butter (at room temperature) 2 ½ cups sugar 5 eggs 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract 1 ½ teaspoons almond extract 3 cups flour 1 teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon kosher salt 1 cup buttermilk Red food coloring For Frosting:1 pound butter1 pound cream cheese2 pounds powdered sugar½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Recipe courtesy of Terri Wahl. Image courtesy of Food Network.Ingredients:For Cupcakes:15 1/2 ounces all-purpose flour 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda 1 1/4 teaspoons salt 1 1/4 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil 13 ounces granulated sugar 1 1/4 cups buttermilk 3 eggs2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons red food coloring 1 1/4 teaspoons vinegar (white or apple cider can both work) 1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract 1/8 cup water For the cream cheese frosting:1 1/2 pounds cream cheese, room temperature 1 pound butter, room temperature 2 pounds powdered sugar, sifted 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Recipe of Ingrid Hoffman. Photo courtesy of foodnetwork.com.

*Recipe and photo courtesy of Foodnetwork.com.

From my book Fete Accompli!Recipe courtesy of The Cliff Recipes by Paul Owens.Tuna Tartare Ingredients:12 ounces finely diced sushi-grade tuna2 tablespoons lemon juicePinch of chili powderSalt and freshly-ground black pepper to taste1 teaspoon toasted black sesame seeds1 teaspoon chopped fresh cilantro, plus a few leaves for garnishOlive oil to tasteAsian vinaigrette (recipe follows), for drizzlingChili oil, for drizzlingSesame-soy emulsion (recipe follows), for drizzlingFresh chives, choppedTomato, seeds removed, dicedInstructions:Gently toss the tuna with the lemon juice, chili powder, salt and pepper, sesame seeds, chopped cilantro, and olive oil. Taste for seasoning and spiciness and refrigerate.To assemble the dish, place a 2-X-1 pastry cutter in the center of the plate and fill with the tuna tartare mixture. Remove the pastry cutter and drizzle the tuna around the asian vinaigrette, a little chili oil, and the sesame-soy emulsion.Sprinkle chopped chives, tomato, and cilantro leaves around the plate and serve.Asian VinagretteIngredients:1 cup lime juice1 cup chopped shallots¼ cup soy sauce3 tablespoons grated ginger¼ cup chopped fresh jalapenoA tablespoon chopped garlic¼ cup honey3 tablespoons red curry pate2 ½ cups sesame oil1 2/1 cups olive oilDirectionsThree days in advance of when the vinaigrette is needed, combine all ingredients store in the refrigerator until needed.Sesame-Soy EmulsionIngredients:¾ cup soy sauce¼ cup honey¼ cup sesame oil½ red onion, diced1 tablespoon minced garlic1 cup olive oilSalt and pepper to tasteDirectionsCombine all ingredients, except the olive oil, salt, and pepper in a blender. Blend for 1 minute. Drizzle in the olive oil, continuing to blend until emulsified. Add salt and pepper to taste. Store in a squeezed bottle and keep refrigerated.