Roasted Asparagus with Parmesan

My mom grew up on an asparagus farm and has always had an affinity towards asparagus as a side dish. My dad, on the other hand, has a general rule about not eating any green vegetables. How to please them both? Serve roasted asparagus with an garlic olive oil and parmesan cheese. Pleases even the fussiest pallets and takes your side up a notch. 

Ingredients

• 1 bunch asparagus spears, trimmed
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 1/2 tsp grated parmesan 
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp ground pepper

Directions

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees
• In a small bowl, mix the olive oil, garlic, sea salt and pepper together
• On a baking sheet, lay out the asparagus in a single layer and brush with the olive oil mixture to coat and sprinkle parmesan cheese over top
• Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until tender, depending on thickness
• Serve hot

Creamy Asparagus Soup

I picked up some fresh Ontario asparagus from a farmer's market last week and I've been hunting for a unique recipe to try. I stumbled upon this recipe for asparagus soup which intrigued me, but it was the curry powder that made me really want to try it.

As you may have noticed from my recipes, I am not a heavy spice user. In fact, the food I usually make has very subtle flavours, nothing bold. But, I'm working to come out of that spice shell so I gave this a try. 

It was quick and easy and the curry powder definitely gave it a kick. My husband liked it so much he ate half of it before I could even take this picture. 

We ate it hot, but this would also be nice served cold in shot glasses as a refreshing summer appetizer. Unexpected but refreshing. Enjoy.

Ingredients

• 1 pound asparagus, stalks sliced into 1 inch pieces, tips reserved
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup water
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1/2 cup cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp pepper

Directions

In a small saucepan, bring the asparagus stalks and 1 cup of chicken broth and 1 cup of water, to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and let simmer for about 10 minutes, or until tender. Let cool slightly and blend until smooth in a blender.

In a larger saucepan, melt the butter over low heat and whisk in the flour to create a roux. Whisk continuously for about three mintes.

Add the chicken broth while whisking and bring to a boil.

Add milk and cream, whisk and let simmer for another three minutes.

Add the blended asparagus, curry powder, salt and pepper and reserved asparagus tips.

Bring to a boil then lower heat to a simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

Print recipe for Creamy Asparagus Soup

Recipe adapted from www.allrecipes.com 

Chicken Stuffed with Havarti and Asparagus

Asparagus is in season and I'm looking for ways to use this delicious vegetable. As a new cook, I am usually a stickler for a recipe, but I branched out and adapted a chicken cordon bleu recipe and instead of stuffing chicken with swiss cheese and ham, I used havarti and asparagus. In a word? Awesome.

This, I think, is the start of a slate of stuffed chicken recipes. Any recommendations?

Ingredients

• five chicken breasts
• five slices of havarti (from the deli)
• 10 spears of fresh asparagus
• 1 egg
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 chicken bouillon cube
• 1 tbsp cornstarch

Directions 

Cut the bottoms off your asparagus and put in a microwave safe bowl with a little bit of water for about two-and-a-half minutes to cook them slightly.

Lay out your chicken, crack an egg into a bowl, put your bread crumbs in another bowl and wrap two asparagus spears in each slice of havarti.

Slice the chicken length-wise leaving a hinge on it. Insert a roll-up of cheese and asparagus.

Dip in egg followed by a dip in the bread crumbs and lay flat in a buttered oven-safe dish.

Repeat with each chicken breast. If you want, you can put toothpicks in at the seam to secure the chicken closed.

Put in oven at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.

When there is about 10 minutes left for the chicken, in a pot, whisk together the heavy cream, wine, bouillon cube and cornstarch. Bring to a boil and then let simmer, whisking often while the sauce thickens.

Once you've plated the chicken, spoon a couple tablespoons of the cream-wine sauce on top of the chicken.

Download a printable recipe for Chicken Stuffed with Havarti and Asparagus

Shrimp and Asparagus Risotto

Urban legend: Risotto is hard to make and those who dare to brave it will become slaves to their stove for hours to stand and stir.

I recently made risotto and when I told people I made it, the answer was always: "But isn't it hard to make? And doesn't it take hours?" No! It is not hard to make. And no! It did not take hours but a mere 35 minutes.

Before taking on this challenge, I did some reading, and I learned that unlike regular rice, risotto can absorb a lot of liquid and that you add about three to four times the amount of liquid to rice. But to make the risotto perfect and delicious, you need to add the liquid warmed in really small volumes, about 1/2 a cup at a time. Before you can add more, you need to wait for the previous liquid to be absorbed.

This was my first time making risotto and it turned out great, but it does require some patience and it's not a fix-it-and-forget-it -- you do need to be in the kitchen and able to stir every few minutes. But trust me, the result was worth it!

Ingredients

• 1 cup arborio rice
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 2 cups water
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 tsp butter
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/3 cup white wine
• 6 cloves of garlic (I like a lot of garlic!)
• about 20 shrimp
• 10 stalks of asparagus
• pepper to taste

Directions


In a pot, combine the chicken stock and water on medium heat. You want it to be warm when you add it to the risotto because it will absorb better. I used a ladle to transfer the liquid over to the risotto.


In a shallow but large pan, melt three teaspoons of butter on low to medium heat, add garlic and sautee the diced onion until soft.

Add the risotto and coat with the butter until it's "toasted," about three minutes.

Add the wine and stir until absorbed.

Increase heat slightly (I never went past medium) and add in broth-water mixture about a 1/2 cup at a time. Stir frequently until liquid is absorbed before adding more. This process should take about 30 minutes of stirring and adding liquid slowly.

In another pan, melt some more butter and add garlic. Sautee shrimps about 4 minutes until pink. Add chopped asparagus for the final few minutes to soften.

Cook rice until tender and mixture has a creamy consistency.

Add cream, parmesan and pepper and shrimp and asparagus. Stir until mixture is creamy, about 2-3 minutes.

Download a printable recipe for Shrimp and Asparagus Risotto