Ravioli with Balsamic Brown Butter

I’m sorry the posts have been few and far between lately.  I will reiterate my common refrain: law school gets a little crazy this time of year.  Last spring I actually went on a three month hiatus from blogging so this is a slight improvement.  It’s not that I haven’t been cooking- I actually have a huge stack of recipes to share.  The roadblock has been the writing.  When I get home after a long day of banging my head against the keyboard and checking facebook every two seconds while trying to write the endless stream of papers that I’ve been assigned this semester, the last thing I want to do is to organize my thoughts into a coherent and interesting blog post…but that will all be changing soon and the end of finals is in sight! 

Last weekend I went to Nashville to visit Nora and she said that she would be more interested in reading my blog if I mentioned her.  This made me realize that I really should mention her, because she was a huge part of Navy Blue Kitchen’s first year since I was living with her when I started it!  The problem is that I didn’t really incorporate personal stories into my blog during that first year.  I played it pretty safe while I was finding my ‘blogging voice’, so stories of Nora are past due.

Nora and I lived together for two years in DC where we had a glorious kitchen that could actually fit more than one person at a time.  She was the best roommate because we have a shared love of pasta, prosecco, scrabble, and Harry Potter.  The amazing kitchen plus having Nora as a roommate created the perfect combination of factors for my fledgling blog because I had space to work AND a wonderful roommate who ate absolutely anything I cooked (and tolerated the messes).  Sadly, we had to leave our happy home when we both went to law school, but Nora will always and forever be one of my favorite people to cook for. 

This is a good time to mention that I am going to Croatia and Italy this summer with Nora as well as Smita (mentioned previously in this post) and Sarah (sorry Slicht- I don’t think I’ve introduced you yet!).  I’m considering bringing my fancy camera with me so that I can blog about the trip afterwards.  We are staying in an apartment in Hvar, Croatia for a week so we will probably do quite a bit of cooking!  And I’m sure there will be some beautiful mozzarella in Italy that I will have to document. 

Ok now a few words about this recipe- its deliciousness makes up for the fact that it really has no redeeming nutritional quality.  It comes from my college days where I watched the food network constantly to learn how to cook.  Make sure you use good balsamic- I promise it is worth the extra $.  Or wait for you mom to buy you some (this is my approach and it has worked very well).
I may or may not post again before finals are over.  If not- I’ll see you in May!

RAVIOLI WITH BALSAMIC BROWN BUTTER
adapted from the Food Network
Serves 4
click here to print

18 to 20 ounces store-bought ravioli (cheese, mushroom, or squash)
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup toasted, chopped hazelnuts
1/4 cup grated Parmesan

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the ravioli and cook 4 to 5 minutes, until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally. Drain ravioli onto a large serving platter.
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan cook the butter over medium heat, stirring occasionally. When the foam subsides, and the butter begins to turn a golden brown, about 3 minutes, turn off the heat. Let cool for about 1 minute. Stir in the balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper.
Transfer the ravioli to the pan saucepan with the balsamic brown butter. Sprinkle hazelnuts and parmesan over the top. Serve immediately.