Cheddar, Pesto & Arugula Wontons

The other night I made some homemade steamed shu mai (dumplings) which left me with quite a few extra wonton wrappers! Well when I got home from work today, it was too early to make dinner but I still wanted a snack and was in the mood to create something. I spotted the extra wrappers and realized I should use them up before they spoiled! (which has happened to me before) I know that you don't just have to use Asian flavors inside wontons, but you can use them as a yummy wrapper to any kind of flavor!

I poked around and found some aged cheddar, pesto that my grandma made, some arugula and green onions. So the experimenting began....

Pretty much everything you need

by the way this cheese is SO good!

There are no exact measurements for this as I kinda made it up but here's roughly what I did:

1 wonton wrapper (small)

1 dollop (about teaspoon or less) of pesto in center of wrapper

1 small cheese cube (see photo for approximate size) (by the way use any kind of yummy cheese! I just used what I already had...)

2-3 small arugula leaves (stems removed, the soft part of it is better I think for this)

just a snippit of green onion (I just used kitchen shears and cut off a couple small bits)

Using your fingers or a pastry brush, just moisten the edges of the wrapper, then bring corner to corner and tuck up carefully into a wonton like shape. Doesn't really matter the shape I dont think as long as it's sealed up and the filling doesn't poke out.

Top with a tiny bit of olive oil so the wonton will be golden brown after cooking.

I baked at 375 for 10 minutes, then realized it needed to be hotter so I flipped them over and I put the temp to 400 for another 5-6 minutes or so 'till they were golden brown.

I took them off the tray then zested some lemon to add a bit of acid since I knew it'd be salty with the pesto and cheese. And the arugula adds a peppery taste. Yum!

I did only 6 at first to test it out, I'm not sure the cooking time may vary if you do a large tray...

=) aren't they cute? =) Now I need to go make some more so Caleb can eat them when he gets home from class....

Asian Chicken Noodle Salad

This might have a lot of ingredients but TRY IT. It's so worth it ;)

2 tbl seasoned rice vinegar
1 tbl reduced sodium reduced sodium soy sauce
1 tbl reduced fat peanut butter
1 tbl packed brown sugar
1 tsp Asian (dark) sesame oil
1 tsp minced peeled fresh ginger
1 garlic clove minced
1/2 lb chicken tenders (NOTE: I've used shredded rotisserie chicken, saves time!)
1/4 lb rice stick noodles (NOTE: I've done it once with that and once with angel hair pasta. We preferred it with the pasta not the stick noodles)
1/2 cup fresh sugar snap peas, trimmed and cut diagonally in 1/2
1/2 cucumber peeled seeded and cut into thin strips
1/2 red bell pepper seeded and thinly chopped (NOTE: I left that out and I liked it like that. But I just don't like peppers) =)
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup unsalted dry roasted peanuts coarsely chopped

To make the dressing, whisk together the vinegar, soy sauce, peanut butter, brown sugar, sesame oil, ginger and garlic in a bowl until blended; set aside.

Cook the chicken tenders over a nonstick skillet and cook about 8 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and let stand 5 minutes. Shred the chicken and set aside.

Meanwhile place the noodles in a large bowl and add enough hot water to cover; let the noodles stand until soft, about 10 minutes. (or cook according to package directions)

Drain noodles and transfer to large bowl. Add chicken, sugar snap peas, cucumber, bell pepper, and cilantro. Drizzle with dressing and toss well to coat. Sprinkle with peanuts.

Arugula and Orange Salad w/ Pine Nuts

Want an easy week night salad that's different than your standard iceberg and ranch? Try this out! It's delicious and fast and easy. Want to add some protein? Get a rotisserie chicken and chop some up and add it.

2 tbls rice vinegar
1 tbls orange juice
1 tsp Asian (dark) sesame oil
1 tsp honey
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp soy sauce
Arugula
1 naval orange, peeled & cut into sections (canned manderine oranges will probably work too)
thin sliced red onion (I hate red onion so I cut up scallions instead)
1 tbl toasted pine nuts (they are expensive, so use slivered almonds instead!)

Whisk together all ingredients except arugula, orange, onion and nuts. Then toss/coat the arugula in the dressing and top with oranges and pine nuts.

And add the chicken too if you like!

DELICIOUS