My family and friends love it when I make homemade pasta. For my Mom’s birthday I made flower shaped ravioli for my Mom, Dad, and me. All of us kept raving about the meal. It was a delight!

Spinach Strawberry Salad – Spinach leaves, sliced strawberries, toasted sliced almonds

Maple Vinaigrette – Olive oil, white wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, maple syrup whisked together (I did not measure but I have experience making vinaigrettes).

Three Cheese Flower Shaped Ravioli – This is my favorite pasta dough, I used a flower shaped cookie cutter to cut the dough. The filling is Ricotta, Asiago, and Mozzeralla cheeses with some garlic powder, salt and pepper. Cook in boiling water for about 5 minutes. After plating, sprinkle dried basil on top.

Tomato Sauce – Sauté onion and garlic in olive oil, add canned strained and chopped tomatoes, basil, and oregano, cook for about 25 minutes.

Roasted Asparagus – Drizzle a little olive oil over asparagus, roast asparagus in a 420 degree oven for about 10 minutes. Add Asiago cheese after plating.

No-bake Lemon Cheesecake Cups with Raspberries – soften 8 oz cream cheese, whip a small container of heavy cream with some vanilla and a little sugar, whip cream cheese with some sugar and lemon zest, fold cheese mixture and whipped cream together with a spoon. Put some raspberries on the bottom of each container, spoon the cheese / whipped cream mixture on top, garnish with more fresh raspberries.

My critique of the meal: We all loved it. I don’t think that I would have done anything different. But if I really need to be critical, maybe next time I would plan a decorative center on top of the flower ravioli. I thought about it ahead of time but did not plan anything. Last minute as I was plating, I sprinkled some dried basil on top of the ravioli.