Cookaholics Bulletin Board

Another fan of roasted here...

I serve with a balsamic reduction and shaved parm curls.

Amy

roasted, grilled, steamed-butter or hollandaise, olive oil and garlic, a bit of shredded Parm, there is almost no bad way to cook asparagus.

We get a ton of asparagus here in CA; this year looks to be a particularly good season.

So far, I've made asparagus, potato, olive, gouda and red onion quiche. Other things I'll probably make this season include:

* asparagus & smoked mozzarella pizza
* asparagus stir-fry with Chinese black beans
* asparagus & goat cheese omlettes
* asparagus, saffron & leek risotto
* Pad Thai with asparagus

Kris gets sick of asparagus after a while, and then I have to stop.

Broiled Prosciutto-Wrapped Asparagus with Mascarpone

Delicious, but a PITA to put together...

I just remembered an old Martha Stewart asparagus recipe (although I never actually had the recipe, just faked it). It is really simple and fast.

Cook pasta (anything tubular)al dente
chicken stock
asparagus, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces.
shaved parm.

heat olive oil in saute pan and toss in asparagus and heat until almost cooked.
Add, pasta and small amount of chicken stock (you can add more if you want it more liquidy)
toss around in pan until pasta and stock are heated.
Take off heat and add lots of shaved parm.

Cold roasted asparagus, feta cheese, croutons, red onion, and thyme lemon vinaigrette.

Just did something new with asparagus and LOVED it. I roasted it with some of the Sichuan spice oil I made as X-mas presents. Fan-effin-tastic. I seriously am so in love with this oil I stay up nights thinking of new ways to use it. Funnily enough I have never used it in the recipe it is intended for.

Anyway, just stop what you are doing and make a batch of this:

Sichuan Tofu Celery Salad
1 stick cinnamon
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1 tablespoon Sichuan peppercorns
4 whole star anise
2 whole cloves
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¼ cup red chili flakes
3 large slices ginger
2 green onions, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups peanut oil
2-3 stalks celery (preferably Chinese celery, blanched – but regular celery is okay)
4 blocks pressed tofu
Place the cinnamon, coriander, Sichuan peppercorns, star anise, cloves, cumin, chili flakes, ginger, green onions, salt, and peanut oil in a medium saucepan. Heat on high until the oil begins to sizzle. Turn the heat off and let the oil cool. Strain the oil. You can store the oil in the refrigerator. Slice the celery into 3-inch strips. Cut the pressed tofu into thin slices. Combine the celery and tofu in a bowl. Toss with oil.


Mary

Mary
Did you post the recipe for the oil somewhere? If so, do you remember where and if not, would you?
ilene

The oil is the one from the tofu and celery salad posted above. It is from Mark Bittman. It is really great on steamed or stir fried veggies, salads, cold roast beef... serious amount of flavor going on in this one.

Mary

John Ash has an article about asparagus in Fine Cooking in the April/May issue.
- Shaved Asparagus Salad with Aged Gouda and Hazlenuts
- Asparagus Ravioli with Browned Butter Sauce
- Grilled Asparagus and Steak Salad with Hoisin Vinaigrette
- Asparagus Fries with Smoked Paprika Aioli
fitzie