Thursday, April 3, 2008

Odds, ends and a side

First, an odd and end:
  • Has anyone tried the homemade microwave popcorn trick I mentioned a couple months back? We have been doing it regularly and each time I am amazed at how good it tastes.
    So easy, so healthy.
  • Recently a friend shared with me the website for "The Art of Real Life," which is the site for Sally Brewer Photography. I do not know Sally, but I just had to share her site, since she has a true gift. If we still lived in DC, I would be giving her a call to set up a session!
Now, a side (dish):

I love asparagus, and since this is the height of asparagus season near our home, I am always looking for new ways to cook it. This is a recipe that Steel Magnolia once made for a dinner when we all lived in DC. My boys are not that keen on asparagus, but with this recipe, I can get a couple "no-thank-you" tastes.

Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic Brown Butter Sauce (from Cooking Light)

40 asparagus spears, trimmed (about 2 pounds)
Cooking spray
1/4 t kosher salt
1/8 t black pepper
2 T butter
2
t low-sodium soy sauce
1 t balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven to 400°.

Arrange asparagus in a single layer on baking sheet; coat with cooking spray. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake at 400° for 12 minutes or until tender.

Melt the butter in a small skillet over medium heat; cook for 3 minutes or until lightly browned, shaking pan occasionally. Remove from heat; stir in soy sauce and vinegar. Drizzle over the asparagus, tossing well to coat. Serve immediately.

7 comments:

Steel Magnolia said...

YUMMMM!! I can still taste it! I am GOING to try that popcorn recipe-I mean it!!!

Anonymous said...

On the popcorn recipe- yes! - and it's great. We also make huge bowls of it on the stove top using Alton Brown's suggestions. It's at http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_34838,00.html and we grind down Kosher salt to a very fine texture for the "popcorn salt."

Thanks for the asparagus recipe too. Just bought some yesterday and am looking forward to something a bit more flavorful than just roasting with oil and salt.

Deep in the Heart said...

I use the popcorn recipe on a *very* regular basis. It is my favorite snack. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Slacker Mama said...

I haven't done the popcorn yet...but I will! Thanks for the reminder!

I'll also try the asparagus trick. We usually just roast and, if we are feeling *crazy* grate parm on top.

Sally Brewer said...

Thanks for the shout-out. I'm really enjoying your blog and am so inspired to get cooking for my family! :)

Anonymous said...

Thanks for posting a side, but this is one of my regular sides so keep them coming. :)

Twice I forgot the soy sauce, added vinegar to the melted butter and had an explotion take place!

Renee

Anonymous said...

I'm glad you shared the Art of Real Life. The pictures on her website are fantastic. I love photos - taking them, looking at them and scrapbooking (some of them, when I have time which is rare these days.) I like to think of myself as an organzied person but I am having the hardest time organizing my recipes. So who do I think to ask? Sweet Pea Chef, of course! :)

I would like to hear how you (and others out there) keep your recipes organized. Currently I keep my recipes in various places including: 1) a small 3 ring recipe book 2) an even smaller index card recipe book 3) a standard size 3 ring binder -- it's filled with recipes I like plus recipes I come across in magazines that I want to try. I put each recipe in a plastic sleeve 4) cookbook and magazines with the corners of my favorites turned and 5) recipes saved in my recipe box on allrecipes.com.

I would like to consolidate all the recipes that I actually use into 1 location. I also would like something so I can 'flip' through the recipes to decide on my meals for the week. My latest idea is to
store all the recipe names on index cards. I could flip through the index cards when meal planning. The index card wouldn't have the recipe but instead would direct me to where the recipe is located.

Sorry for the long comment. I didn't realize I had so much to say. :)

Any and all suggestions are appreciated.

-- P