Giada makin' me happy

I saw a recipe the other night and I knew I had to try it. Lisha, Shay and I had a discussion while painting our pottery about Giada. The consensus was that you either love her or hate her. Lisha and my hubby share the same opinion..... Giada has a freakin organism every time she tries her food. She does moan quite a bit with a far away look in her eye but I can over look the moaning as long as she continues to give me recipes like this. I will say this recipe requires more time and effort than I would like to do after a day of work, but this was worth it. The little "roasted chicken purses" were so damn tasty and tender. The butter and Parmesan cheese was the perfect way to top the dish, no heavy sauces were needed. I paired these purses full of joy with a salad... perfect summer dish!

So ladies and gentlemen.... go grab your wonton wrappers, your left over chicken, and your best food moan and make this wonderful dish!!!

Roasted Chicken Purses
Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis

1 1/4 cup shredded roasted chicken (or any leftover chicken, light and/or dark meat) ( I used one breast, but you could easily add more)

3/4 cup whole milk ricotta cheese

1/2 lemon, zested

1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves ( I used a dash of dried thyme)

1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more for sprinkling

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for sprinkling

32 small, square wonton wrappers

1 large egg, lightly beaten

4 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup grated Parmesan

In a small bowl combine the chicken, ricotta cheese, lemon zest, thyme, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.On a dry work surface place 8 wonton wrappers. Place a rounded teaspoon of the chicken mixture in the center of each wrapper. Using a pastry brush, brush the egg wash around the chicken mixture. Bring four corners of the wonton square together over the filling to form a purse. Press the edges together tightly to form a seal. Wipe the board with a towel until dry and continue making batches of 8 with the remaining wonton skins. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the purses and cook until they float to the surface, stirring occasionally, about 4 to 5 minutes. Drain the ravioli.Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a medium skillet. Turn off the heat, add the cooked pyramids and gently toss. Transfer the pyramids to 4 serving plates. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Right after this step where you put a spoonful of cheese/chicken mixture in the middle of the wonton, you take a brush and go around the edges to make a "pocket purse". I'm not really sure if I did this right because my little purses didn't look like Giada's. Out of about 32 wonton purses, 3 had blowouts (where the cheese got loose and made a mess in my boiling water). I thought that was a good percentage. I would put the four corners of the wonton together then I made sure to also pinch the edges all around.

Dana's little pocket full of goodness

Damn steam got in the way of the photo

Once they were done boiling, put them on a plate to soak up excess water. Then I melted the butter to fry up a bit. A couple sides were slightly crisp and I loved the texture difference.

The final product..... YUM!