Wonton Magic

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‘Tis the season for parties, potlucks, and drop-ins. It’s the time to get your pretty on, indulge at the table, and not slave over a hot stove. If you are a regular visitor to my blog (and I hope you are, but if this is your first time…welcome!) you know that when it comes to cooking, I have a preference for all things fast and fabulous. In that vein, I’ve developed a couple go-to party bites with simple ingredients. They can be made ahead of time, even frozen, and finished off in minutes. And of course all of them have one thing in common, wonton wrappers!

LEMONY CHEESE WONTONS WITH PESTO

Cheese and pesto wonton wrapper party appetizerThe key to these delicious appetizers is that I treat the wonton wrappers like freshly made pasta sheets. They’re delicious as single serve bites but also make a perfect dinner! As with any recipe, adjust ingredients to suit your taste.

1/2 cup sheep milk cream cheese or regular cream cheese, softened
1 tsp lemon zest
1/2 tsp lemon juice
pinch of salt
25 square wonton wrappers
water
 
Prep Time: 15 minutes     Cook Time: 3-4 minutes 
 

1. Place softened cheese into a bowl and added the lemon zest, lemon juice, and salt. Mix well.

2. Line up a few wonton wrappers and drop about a teaspoonful of cheese mix into the centre.

3. Wet your finger in the water and run it along the edges of the wonton.

4. Fold the wonton in half away from you to form a rectangle, pressing down on the edges to seal well.

5. Bring two corners at the top of the wrapper together and pinch to seal. You make have to dab some water on the wrapper again to stick the corners together.

6. Set aside and repeat with the rest of the wrappers.

7. When ready to cook, boil salted water as if cooking pasta. Once the water comes to a boil throw the wontons in and stir once to prevent them sticking to the bottom.

8. Cook the wontons in the water on high heat for 3-4 minutes for an al dente bite to the wrapper.

9. Drain the wontons and dab with a good dollop of pesto. You can find my pesto recipe here.

10. Plate individually on tasting spoons, pierce with a sturdy toothpick, or plate three together on small plates for a light appetizer.

WONTON TACOS

Wonton wrapper taco party appetizerThese seasonal looking appetizers are delicious any time of year. You can control the heat with the ingredients but a little spice works well with these bites.

1 large rotisserie prepared chicken breast
1 tsp sriracha chili sauce, or any hot sauce you like
1 tsp liquid honey
1/3 cream cheese brick, softened
1/2 avocado
1/2 tsp lemon juice
diced red jalapeno or red pepper
25 square wonton wrappers
 
Prep Time: 15-20 minutes    Cook Time: 12-15 minutes
 

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Shred the cooked chicken breast into smaller pieces and place in a bowl.

3. Drizzle honey and sriracha sauce over the chicken and mix thoroughly. Feel free to add more sauce for more heat.

4. Beat and mix the cream cheese, avocado and lemon juice together until the cheese looks like green cream.

5. Line up the wonton wrappers and divide the chicken on them equally, about a large tablespoonful. Place the chicken down the middle diagonally.

6. Dollop the avocado cream on top and sprinkle with the jalapeno or the red pepper, depending of how much heat you want.

7. Bring the opposite corners of the wrapper together at the top. You may have to pierce them through with a toothpick to hold in position. The toothpick will be removed once you take the wontons out of the oven.

8. Place the wontons on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or oiled with cooking spray.

9. Place in the oven and bake for approximately 12- 15 minutes. Or until the wonton wrappers turn golden brown.

10. Remove from the oven, take out the toothpicks, let cool slightly, and enjoy!

CREAM CHEESE, CHOCOLATE AND POMEGRANATE WONTONS

Chocolate cream cheese pomegranate wonton wrapper party appetizerThese golden beauties are highly addictive, but baking them instead of frying will allow you to indulge without much guilt. Plus using dark chocolate and pomegranate scores high on the antioxidant scale so I guess you could say that this dessert is good for you too!

1/3 brick of cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
1/2 cups of pomegrante seeds
25 square wonton wrappers
water
 
Prep Time: 10-15 minutes     Cook Time: 12-15 minutes
 

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Stir together cream cheese, chocolate chips, and pomegranate seeds until well incorporated.

3. Line up the wonton wrappers and place a heaping teaspoonful of the cheese mix into the centre of each wrapper.

4. Dip your finger in water and run along the edges of the wonton wrapper. Fold the wrapper in half to form a triangle and pinch the edges to seal.

5. Spray both sides of the wonton triangle with cooking spray and place on a cookie sheet.

6.  Put in the oven for 12-15 minutes or until the wrappers are golden brown. Remember to turn half way through.

7. Plate the wontons and sprinkle with icing sugar, or drizzle with chocolate sauce, and garnish with any remaining pomegranate seeds.

8. Serve warm and try to stop at just one!

I hope you try these out at your next get together. Happy munching!

 

Destination Dining in London

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Dining Room at Dolcetto Risto in London OntarioIf you’re looking for a casual, modern restaurant that serves housemade Italian food in London, Ontario, look no further than Dolcetto Risto. Located in the southwest corner of the ever expanding city limits, this Italian restaurant is quite the distance from the dining-focused downtown core. The location is actually part of an outdoor mall, surrounded by a gym, a grocery store, a bank, and a coffee shop. That is not necessarily a bad thing since parking is more than ample. And in my opinion, every part of this city deserves a unique dining spot and this one, because of its location, is definitely a destination.

In a style I like to call Scando-italian, the large open dining room features polished concrete floors, streamlined wood furniture and accents, and large windows that allow in generous light and open to a patio in the warmer months. The neutral vibe reads calm, but the atmosphere is lively and energetic, especially when you peek into the kitchen which stands in full display to the rest of the dining space.

View of Bar at Dolcetto Risto in London OntarioDining area at Dolcetto Italian Restaurant in London Ontario Regardless of where you are seated, the food remains the draw. The boy and I have made the visit a number of times. Each time we make an effort to try something different but a few items stand out as favourites. The large veal and ricotta meatballs, the calamari salad, and the creatively garnished, thin crust pizzas top the list.

With the weather on the milder side this weekend, we found ourselves in the Byron area and I suggested Dolcetto as a lunch spot (the boy didn’t need much persuading!). Seated by the large windows and basking in the sun streaming in, we placed our order. We started off with complementary fresh focaccia and an olive oil and balsamic dip. The soft, salty bread soaked up the oil beautifully and helped to bide time before our meals arrived.

The attentive server kept our water drinks filled until our food was served. The boy chose a trio of crispy arancini (risotto balls) on a bed of tomato sauce.They arrived hot and crunchy on the outside and hot and cheesy on the inside. I wanted a heartier meal and chose broad pappardelle noodles topped with a short rib ragu in a wine sauce. I was surprised at the amount and, to be honest, I couldn’t finish the entire plate. Of course, it was a great excuse to have it for lunch the next day.

Foccaccia with olive oil and balsamic dip at Dolcetto Risto in London OntarioArancini at Dolcetto Italian Restaurant in London OntarioPapardelle with short rib ragu at Dolcetto Italian Restaurant in London OntarioA forkful of papardelle at Dolcetto Risto in LondonAnd if you haven’t guessed by now I have a bit of a sweet tooth so no dining experience would be complete without dessert. We chose to share a double plate of cannoli. The sweet ricotta cheese filling was speckled with chocolate from a local producer, Habitual Chocolate (I absolutely love it when local businesses support each other – a huge kudos to Dolcetto!). However, unlike the traditional version of a cannoli shell, Dolcetto makes they’re own using a pizzelle press for a lighter and fresher taste. The result is a large crispy exterior which is the perfect foil to the creamy core. A perfect pairing with a cup of strong coffee!

Double cannoli at Dolcetto Risto Italian Restaurant in London OntarioNow I can’t wait until the weather gets warm and once again I indulge in some freshly baked pizza and a glass of wine on the patio. I hope you guys can find your way here and give this Italian restaurant a try!

Dinner in 1, 2, 3!

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I can’t believe how early the daylight starts to fade away this time of year. It’s like the season is throwing a blanket around me and urging me to go home and snuggle into bed. I’m not new to this time change thing but it seems like the impending darkness is something I choose to forget in lieu of getting that extra hour of sleep.

The problem with feeling sleepy so early in the evening is that I don’t feel like spending time in kitchen whipping up cozy meals for two for longer than fifteen minutes. Mind you I’ve always gone the fast and fresh route as far as my meals are concerned any time of year. That is not too say that I don’t greatly admire people who devote their time to long, involved, home cooked meals. My Mom’s cabbage rolls are heaven on earth but the hours she puts in to make them is something I just can’t fathom. I’ve got things to do, people to see, places to be! And truly, there is nothing wrong with fast meals… as long as they are delicious. I’m sharing two of my go to Italian recipes for quick weeknight dinners great at any time of year!

 EASY TOMATO SAUCE RECIPE

Ingredients for easy to make Italian tomato sauce | Cobblestones and CappuccinosThe key to this sauce is that you will not be cooking but rather warming all the ingredients in order to keep the sauce tasting as fresh as possible. So start cooking your pasta and half way through you can begin the sauce.

1 pint of cherry tomatoes halved
1 clove of garlic peeled
1/4 cup of good quality extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup of parmigiano reggiano shredded
small bunch of basil torn
salt and pepper to taste
 
Prep Time: 5 minutes     Cook Time: 10 minutes
 

1. Place the oil and clove of garlic in a pan and turn the heat on medium-low. Olive oil has a low smoking point so you don’t want to overheat the pan. You are simply warming the oil and infusing it with garlic. If you want a stronger taste to the garlic then feel free to chop it, otherwise just leave the clove whole. This should take only a minute or two.

2. Take out the garlic clove and throw in the cherry tomatoes and torn basil leaves. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and stir to warm them through. Be sure that the tomatoes don’t over cook and start to fall apart and shrink.

3. Place the cooked pasta, with a small amount of reserved pasta water, in the pan with the tomatoes. Toss with the sauce making sure to coat the strands with the warm olive oil and sprinkle with the parmigiano reggiano.

I like to serve this sauce with spaghetti or linguine. That way the light sauce isn’t overwhelmed by a heavy pasta.

 

SPINACH AND WALNUT PESTO RECIPE

Italian Pesto sauce ingredients | Cobblestones and CappuccinosThis sauce is made in minutes as long as you have all your ingredients on hand. It’s a riff on the basil and pine nut pesto which are harder to locate. I often make this pesto in large quantities and freeze in ziploc bags for later use.

2 cups of baby spinach washed and packed down
1 clove of garlic peeled
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 lemon 
1/2 cup walnuts toasted
1/2 cup parmigiano reggiano cheese shredded
salt and pepper to taste
 
Prep Time: 5 minutes     Cook Time: 10 minutes
 

1. Place spinach, walnuts, garlic, cheese in a food processor. Pulse together until coarsely chopped. Scrape down the sides before proceeding.

2. Add oil and squeeze the lemon into the mixture. Process until smooth. Scrape the sides then season with salt and pepper to taste.

3. Drain pasta and coat with the pesto.

I like to use heavier pastas like penne or rotini for this sauce. The pesto sits nicely in all those tiny crevices.

Both versions of sauce with pasta reheat nicely for lunch the next day. Sometimes I’ll add cooked chicken breast or pre-cooked shrimp before reheating. I hope you give these a try and enjoy!

 

More than Bread at this Bar

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Bread Bar Restaurant in Hamilton OntarioIf you read my previous post you’d know that we spent some time in Hamilton doing a little Christmas shopping. And trust me, nothing works up more of an appetite than that little activity. So when we left Pure Home Couture with our shopping bags filled and tummies rumbling, we headed down the street to the Bread Bar.

This is a tiny Earth to Table restaurant which at the time of our visit was packed to the rafters with locals and visitors alike. We were advised to make reservations for future visits or we could be in for quite a wait….and this one was well worth it. The menu is mostly made up of local, seasonal ingredients and is varied to satisfy all palates. But in my humble opinion, don’t miss the pizza!

Sweet Treats at Bread Bar in Hamilton OntarioSavoury Pastries at the Bread Bar in HamiltonPizzas at the Bar at Bread Bar Hamilton OntarioBread Bar Hamilton MenuThe only thing I’m not happy about is that Hamilton is so far away. I have a feeling Bread Bar could easily have turned into my weekly must do!