Roasted Asparagus With The Works

 Asparagus is a spring-time favorite at our home and this particular recipe is over-the-top delicious!

 The marriage of ingredients teases the tastebuds...I really hope you try this and find a new way to prepare asparagus!

 Oh, spring-time in Michigan surely could last for a good long time, with morels and asparagus leading the way!

 Asparagus With The Works:

Asparagus, about 3 dozen nice sized stalks

Goat Cheese, herb flavored, plain, or with cranberries

Pancetta, or you can use thinly sliced ham in a pinch

Pine Nuts, 1/3 cup or so

Lemon

Balsamic Vinegar

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Freshly ground black pepper

Sea Salt

Preheat oven to 400-425 degrees

Wash asparagus thoroughly, trim the ends, and dry

Place asparagus on a foil lined cookie sheet pan

Arrange asparagus on prepared pan and drizzle with 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil, 1-2 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar, sprinkle with 1 generous teaspoon of sea salt and 1 teaspoon of black pepper or to taste.  Make sure to roll the asparagus around to coat all around.

 Bake for 8-14 minutes (depending on thickness of stalks).  You want the asparagus to be a bit soft but yet firm.

Lightly crisp the pancetta in a frying pan while the asparagus is roasting.

Also pan toast the pine nuts but do not use oil.

Remove the asparagus from oven and top with crumbled goat cheese, then pancetta, and finally the pine nuts.  Sprinkle with a few squeezes of lemon juice.

For a crowning touch, garnish with chives (blossoms attached), and fresh edible flowers!

Enjoy~ 

  

      

Two of our favorite spring things!

 What are the two favorite spring things, you ask...fresh morels and asparagus!

 After washing the morels and soaking them in salt water in the fridge overnight, they were dried and then rolled in flour and fried in a mixture of butter and olive oil.

 The asparagus was just steamed and dotted with a little butter and sprinkled with freshly ground pepper and the finishing touch was a zest of lemon!

Of course there was a little fruit and a slice of pork to round out the perfect spring meal!

Morel Mushroom/Asparagus Tartlets

 Thanks to Kelly for the morel mushrooms!!!

 Allow me to boast just a little...these little tartlets are absolutely delicious!  They are a bit time consuming but so worth the effort!

 We reside in a wooded area and used to find mushrooms galore but not any more and thankfully Kelly shared her bounty...bless her heart!

 The combination of ingredients is perfect and I would not change a thing in making them again!

Morel Mushroom/Asparagus Tartlets:

2 sheets puff pastry dough 

1 egg yolk, mixed with a tablespoon of water

2 cups morel, cleaned thoroughly

1 nice medium to large bunch asparagus

2-3 tablespoons whole black peppercorns

1 pint heavy cream

4 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated

Sea salt, to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 heaping tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped

1 heaping tablespoon fresh parsley

1 teaspoon tarragon, chopped

1 tablespoon fresh chives, chopped

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Allow pastry to thaw for about twenty minutes.  On a lightly floured surface, roll each sheet to measure 8" x 10".  Cut into 5" circles (you will have some pastry remaining and you can make a few smaller tartlets or save for something else)

Puncture each circle at least 3-6 times.  Double over the outside edge to form a raised 1/2" crust.  Chill on parchment paper lined cookie sheet

Blanch the asparagus until tender, do not overcook.  Drain and rinse with ice cold water to stop the cooking.  Dry on paper towels.  Cut off the tips and reserve.  Dice remaining stems and reserve separately.

Steep heavy cream and whole black peppercorns for a good 10-12 minutes, being sure not to boil.

Saute mushrooms lightly in butter until tender.  Season with salt and pepper, to taste, along with 1/2 the thyme and tarragon.  Add the cream and simmer until the mixture is reduced by 1/4 (it will get a little thick)

Brush puff pastry with egg wash.

Bake in pre-heated oven for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned and and raised.

Remove from oven and spoon mushroom mixture in the center of tartlets...arrange the asparagus tips around the edge of mixture in a circle.

Add diced stems in middle and then sprinkle with Gruyere.  Place back in oven and bake for an additional 7-9 minutes or until cheese is melted and golden.

Remove from oven and garnish with remaining herbs.

Serve promptly and enjoy~

Asparagus Tart

Hands down, Ben's favorite vegetable is asparagus and I am always on the hunt for another recipe that contains the spring time veggie!
Pictured above is the tart prior to baking!

I stumbled upon this asparagus recipe in a newspaper and give it a thumbs up for sure! It is relatively quick and easy which is a bonus!

Puff pastry is a favorite at our house and as I mentioned asparagus tops my husband's list of veggies! Beyond those ingredients you have ricotta and either Parmigiano Reggiano OR Pecorino Romano...oh my!

As always, the puff pastry does it's thing by being beautiful and tasty with no effort by the home cook!

Asparagus Tart

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large shallot, chopped finely
1 pound asparagus
1 sheet puff pastry, defrosted
1/2 cup Ricotta
1/2 cup shredded cheese (Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano)
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 egg yolk, beaten with 1/2 teaspoon water

Preheat oven to 450 degrees
Heat olive oil in saute' pan, add shallot and saute' for a couple of minutes over medium heat.
Wash and trim asparagus (cut in 4" pieces)
Add the asparagus to the pan with shallots and cook until crisp-tender
Remove the shallot/asparagus mixture to a paper towel lined plate to drain the extra olive oil.
Roll the pastry to a 10 X 16 inch rectangle on a sheet of parchment paper that has been dusted with a small amount of flour. Transfer the parchment paper to a large cookie sheet (with pastry).
Spread Ricotta evenly on pastry up to an inch from the edge-place asparagus mixture on top of Ricotta and sprinkle your choice of shredded cheese over all. Top with salt and pepper!
Brush edge of pastry lightly with the beaten egg/water mixture.
Bake until pastry is lightly golden!

I hope you enjoy this tart!

Shrimp Alfredo

Shrimp happened to be on sale at the local market so it was on the shopping list, thinking I would freeze them for future use. Then I noticed some nice, fresh looking asparagus and knowing full well that Ben loves that veggie I placed a nice bunch in my cart. What to make??? Shrimp Alfredo of course, so off I wandered to the Knorr packets of Alfredo and added that to my collection. I knew there was a package of al dente' Garlic Parsley Fettuccine at home so I was feeling like dinner was clearly in my mind and would be quick and easy! To make the dish diet-friendly I used low-fat milk and just half the butter called for. I washed and cut the asparagus in bite size pieces, then steamed briefly, and rinsed under cold water to stop the cooking progress and maintain the brilliant green color. Putting that aside, I then prepared the sauce according to package directions. To that cooked sauce I added the shrimp and asparagus, and allowed the flavors to come together over low heat. Meanwhile, I added the fettuccine to boiling water and after three brief minutes it was perfectly cooked and then I drained it and tossed to remove excess water. I added about one half the fettuccine to the sauce mixture and tossed lightly. A simple garnish of cilantro (didn't have any parsley) and sliced tomatoes topped off the creation. This was served with a fruit salad, making for a nice dinner!

Asparagus/Mushroom Tarts

When I saw the asparagus/mushroom tarts on the Good Things Catered blog I just knew I must try them. I thought I would use fresh Michigan morels from our very own woods but day after day my husband went out shrooming with his mighty fine shroom bag and arrived home with an empty bag and a puzzled look on his face. This is the second year that he has had no luck finding the morels and we can't figure out what the problem is. Perhaps the deer are feasting on our delicacy.

So my bright idea for using morels didn't pan out which was disappointing but the white mushrooms from the grocery store were just fine!

I must say that the tarts are a bit on the fussy side, which I don't mind, but be warned. Believe me, they are worth the added effort. You must "carve" out an area in the puff pasty for the mushroom, gruyere, and asparagus filling. The complete recipe can be found at goodthingscatered.blogspot.com You will love the blog, it has so many wonderful ideas and inspiration galore! I so appreciate bloggers sharing their recipes!!!

It was seventy degrees here yesterday and today at this very moment it is only 48 degrees, what's up with that?

Wednesday evening dinner

Another windy and cold day in Michigan so a hearty dinner seemed to be the ticket this evening. After perusing a few magazines for ideas, I decided to try a couple of recipes from Kraft www.kraftfoods.com/foodandfamily

Since my husband doesn't care for tuna noodle casserole, I decided to add corn rather than peas, and instead of milk I used evaporated milk, and to top off the dish I used crushed potato chips. A little garnish of parsley and baby tomatoes added to the interest of the dish.

The asparagus recipe came from Kraft and you just fry three slices of bacon and drain on paper towel, crumble and set aside. Discard all drippings but don't wash pan. Meanwhile, cook one pound of asparagus until crisp/tender. Add about 1/3 cup chopped onions to saute pan and cool until tender, remove from heat and add 1/3 cup Ranch Dressing. Plate asparagus and pour sauce over and sprinkle with the crumbled bacon.

A little fruit gave the plate more color and it is healthy you know!

Peanut butter cheesecake brownies were the grand finale. Again, this recipe is from Kraft Foods and it calls for brownie mix, how easy is that? A cream cheese and peanut butter mixture is spooned on top of batter in each "cupcake". As you can see I topped the brownie with cool whip, mint, maraschino cherry, and chocolate sauce.

This blogging could put on some pounds...maybe I should stick to crafting!