Hello Foodie Friends,

I recently was invited to a media & food blogger event at Mimi’s Ravioli in Hollywood, FL. Although Mimi’s was new to me, this family owned and operated gourmet Italian Market and Catering company has been around for 38+ years serving the local community as well as providing many fine restaurants in the area with their wholesale products.

On this night, Mimi’s opened their doors to us after hours and presented us with an amazing menu of many of their delicious homemade dishes served with Mionetto Prosecco.

Mimi’s hand made fresh Mozzarella

Mimi’s fresh Mozzarella is made hourly, stretched and salted to perfection. Their Mozzarella is a quality cow’s milk based cheese. They served us their Mozzarella & Tomato Caprese (pictured above), as well as fresh Salted Mozzarella and their handcrafted smoked Mozzarella.

Mimi’s Artisan Breads, Facaccia’s, Pizzas and Rolls

All of Mimi’s bread, focaccia’s, pizzas and rolls are made daily. Their gluten rolls have been a favorite for over 30 years, while their Ciabatta breads have now become staples to their ever day success. On this evening, they featured a few different homemade ciabatta breads, their own semolina bread, gluten rolls, sea salt focaccia bread, pepper & onion focaccia and their artichoke focaccia (pictured above).

Mimi’s imported cheese’s oils & balsamics

While I don’t have a pic to share with you of the beautiful display of cheeses, suffice it to say that the 24 month aged Parmigiano Reggiano that they presented us was one of the freshest I have ever had. I was certainly in cheese heaven. Mimi’s imports their Parmigiano Reggiano, Grano Padano, Provolone, Extra Virgin Olive Oils and Balsamic’s. Complimenting the cheeses there was an assortment of soppressata and dry sausages.

Side Dishes

The sides that were featured tonight were the Farro Salad, a refreshing cold salad with boiled farro, chick peas, red kidney beans, butter beans, fresh red & green peppers, EVOO, sea salt and balsamic vinegar.

Chick pea Salad, a cold salad mixed with chick peas, red onions, sundried tomatoes, celery, red & green peppers, EVOO and splashed with golden white balsamic.

The Eggplant Caponatta Bruschetta, a vibrant mixture of fresh eggplant, onion, celery, tomatoes, olives, capers, basil and pine nuts make this a tasty treat and one of my faves of the three sides I tried.

Hot Handmade Pasta Dishes

Cheese Ravioli – these cheese ravioli are famous and were served smothered in a delicious creamy vodka sauce. I loved this dish so much that I ended up taking the frozen version home with me.

Pasta al Forno – a Sicilian dish of chopped meat, tomato, onions, green peas, mozzarella, Parmigiano, Pecorino Romano & anelletti pasta.

Vegetable Manicotti – covered in Linda’s sauce, handmade egg crepes filled with broccoli, spinach, bell pepper, mushroom and a hint of skim ricotta and baked in mom’s tomato sauce made with their own San Marzano tomatoes.

Eggplant & Zucchini Lasagna – (No meat or pasta). I had brought some of this home to share with my meat and pasta eating hubby and he even loved this one. Layers of eggplant  and zucchini stacked with tomato sauce and mozzarella form a great lasagna.

Meatballs – Mimi’s own classic beef meat balls baked and sauced with their own marinara sauce.

Chicken Marsala – I am not kidding you when I say this was seriously the best chicken marsala that I remember having. Chicken breast floured and fried and topped with the finest marsala wine and mushroom sauce. It is THAT good! This is another dish I just had to take home from the frozen section.

For the Sweet Tooth

Tonight, Mimi showcased their famous mouth-watering cannoli’s, chocolate mousse cake, ricotta cheese cake, New York style cheese cake and assorted biscotti.

It was a lovely evening spent with some of the most gracious hosts I have had the pleasure of meeting here in South Florida. One cannot help but feel so welcome by the family and staff who work at Mimi’s. When it came time to say farewell, we were each sent off with goodie bags filled with homemade pasta, fresh marina sauce, grated Pecorino Romano cheese, two small Italian baguettes, a split of Mionetto Prosecco, a bag of wine biscuits and a couple cute Italian hats. The following day, we made the fresh pasta and heated up the sauce, broke out the Prosecco and had a delicious Italian dinner in no time at all.

Mimi’s Ravioli is open Tuesday through Saturday from 8am – 6pm and Sunday 8am – 2pm; closed Mondays. They are located at 5714 Johnson St. in Hollywood.  Check out their website for more info.

Until we eat again…

   I send you delicious wishes, xo

Denise