Something New with Asparagus and Mushrooms.

Asparagus is not one of our favorite vegetables; its taste is harsh and overwhelms, even with baby asparagus. If I happen to receive baby asparagus with my Bountiful Basket, I usually make quiche or cream of asparagus soup; the last two bunches though I froze after blanching them in water. I still needed to figure out what to do with them, and the recipe I created was influenced by a mushroom appetizer we recently enjoyed at Bernardone's in Farmington, New Mexico.

Even though I had cut off the "woody" ends that had developed even on baby asparagus, the freezing process caused the ends to stiffen up, so they needed to be trimmed once again.  I had missed a few and it was immediately evident once hubby tried to chew on those tough ends.  Other than that, the asparagus flavor was still overwhelming when the dish was freshly cooked, but mellowed once it sat in the refrigerator for 24 hours and was reheated.  If you're an asparagus lover, you'll like this recipe with added mushrooms and a bread crumb and cheese topping.  Me?  No, I'm still not fond of asparagus, but at least I tried it to see how it tasted.

Baked Asparagus with Mushrooms

Ingredients:

2 lbs baby asparagus, ends trimmed
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup olive oil, divided in half
1 cup plain bread crumbs
2 Tbsp Italian herbal mix
1/4 cup grated cheese

Preparation:





Preheat oven to 350F; spray a 3 quart baking dish with nonstick spray.  Spread the asparagus in the baking dish and drizzle 1/4 cup of olive oil over it.









Spread mushrooms over asparagus.












Mix bread crumbs with the herbs and spread evenly over the vegetables.











Drizzle remaining olive oil over the bread crumbs; place dish in oven and bake for 45 minutes.

 

Spread grated cheese over bread crumbs and bake for an additional 15 minutes.








The asparagus and mushrooms will absorb the flavor from the olive oil and be tender.  The bread crumbs will only crisp up slightly.  If you want a crispier topping; sauté the bread crumbs in the olive oil for 3 minutes; top the vegetables and bake for only 30 minutes before adding the grated cheese and baking the additional 15 minutes.

Makes 8 servings.

Mary Cokenour

Converting a Salsa into a Side Dish.

At the end of my post on Mexicali Corn I hinted at a new recipe that this ingredient, and my Confetti Salsa, would create. Now while each item separately is considered a type of side dish, I'm going to throw some noodles into the mix to bind the two together.  Let me introduce you to...

 

Fiesta Noodles

 

Ingredients:

1 package (8 oz) narrow egg noodles

4 Tablespoons of salted butter

1/2 cup diced green bell pepper

1/2 cup diced red bell pepper

2 Tbsp flour

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried parsley

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 can (10.5 oz) chicken broth 

1 cup whole kernel corn (if using frozen, defrost to room temperature)
 

Preparation:
 

Cook noodles according to package directions.  In a large saucepan, melt butter on medium=high heat; sauté' bell peppers in butter until softened slightly, about 3 minutes.  Whisk in flour until the roux turns golden brown; stir in thyme, parsley, garlic powder and broth, bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium, add in corn and noodles; let cook for 5 minutes to bring all to an evenly hot temperature.

Makes 6 servings.

Mary Cokenour

Winter Winds call for something Wicked.

Another snow storm hit Monticello this past weekend and it's not even officially winter yet!  The neighbors and I were digging out vehicles from the snow dunes the winds had created around them; and of course the piles of ice boulders at the end of the drive from the snow plows coming through.  Inside though, the slow cooker was creating so tender you can cut it with a fork beef, melt in the mouth vegetables and a rich gravy of orgasmic quality.  During the day the outside thermometer kept needling closer and closer to zero degrees, the wind chill factor putting the temperature into the negative.  Inside though, the scent from the slow cooker created an intoxicating aroma that caused incessant drooling.  It took a good ten hours for this ultimate comfort food meal to finish, but it was worth every cup of coffee or hot tea to keep the appetite at bay.

I call this slow cooker meal, "Wicked Pot Roast", but what makes it wicked you might ask?  The tang from the red wine vinegar and the heat from the green chiles merge with the other ingredients to make the beef, vegetables and gravy so decadent, so rich; you feel so wicked indulging in it.  Don't believe me; next snow storm on the horizon, get your slow cooker going with this recipe and you will believe; oh yes, you will believe. Oh, don't forget some nice warm, crusty rolls to sop up the gravy, or lick the bowl clean; either way works well.

Wicked Pot Roast

Ingredients:

3 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces

4 large potatoes, cut into 1 inch pieces and parboiled
2 stalks celery, diced
1 large onion, chopped
1/4 cup flour
4 lb. beef roast
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes with green chiles
1 can (10.5 oz) beef broth
1 packet onion soup mix
1 tsp garlic powder
1/8 cup red wine vinegar

1/8 cup Worcestershire sauce

Preparation:

Spray a 6 quart slow cooker (crock pot) with nonstick cooking spray.  Place veggies in bottom of cooker and sprinkle flour evenly over all; center roast on top of veggies.

In a medium bowl, whisk together tomatoes, broth, soup mix, garlic powder, vinegar and Worcestershire.  Pour mixture over roast, making sure that it flows down the sides and onto veggies below.

Set cooker on low; cook for 10 hours; roast will come apart easily; carrots and potatoes will be fork tender.

Makes 8 servings.

Mary Cokenour

Mexicali Corn, Just Another Name for Corn Salsa.

I'm getting ready to make a noodle side dish to go with my seared chicken and wanted to add corn to it. In my pantry I find a can of Mexicali corn, it has corn and diced bell peppers in it, so that would work fine. The corn is a nice yellow color and firm; the peppers, however, have much to be desired as in "where the heck are the diced bell peppers!?!" They're more like flakes than actual pieces of the vegetables; there are also listed sugar and salt on the can and I'm wondering why do I need sugar in a vegetable dish? Think about the cost too; an 11 ounce can of Mexicali corn is approximately 25 to 50 cents more in cost than a 14.5 ounce can of whole kernel corn. Believe me, flakes of bell pepper do not justify a smaller quantity costing more; and if I want sugar and salt in my vegetables, I'll add them myself, thank you very much!

What exactly is Mexicali corn (aka Fiesta corn) anyway?  The name infers a cuisine fusion of Mexico with California, but both areas have corn and bell peppers; where is the distinction?  Looking up recipes in books and on the internet I have made a profound discovery; Mexicali corn is nothing more than a salsa and ingredients are determined more by the cook's tastes than locale.

Well then, instead of wasting my money on a canned product which obviously has ingredients I do not want, and actually is pretty useless altogether; I might as well make my own.  Oh wait, I already have and I named it Confetti Salsa.

Confetti Salsa

Ingredients:

 3 medium sized tomatoes, ripe and firm
1 ¼ cups whole kernel corn
1 small red onion, diced
1 large jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
¼ cup each diced red, green and orange bell peppers
2 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp fine sea salt
¼ cup lime juice
¼ cup chopped, fresh cilantro

Preparation:

Cut tomatoes in half and scoop out fleshy pulp and seeds; cut into strips and dice. Steam the corn over boiling water until just tender; place in refrigerator to cool. Into a medium mixing bowl, add all ingredients and gently mix. Refrigerate for one hour before serving.

Makes 4 cups of salsa.


When I make the noodle side dish, I will be leaving out the tomatoes, jalapeno pepper, lime juice and cilantro; as I said, it's up to the cook's tastes.  The complete recipe?  That's for another posting at another time.

Mary Cokenour

Bruschetta Without the Bread.

Whenever Bruschetta is on a menu, it is usually listed under "Appetizers"; an Italian antipasto made with grilled bread as the base ingredient. Recently I received an eggplant and figured I would make the same old, same old eggplant parmigiana; Roy and I don't like eggplant, so this dish usually goes to his mom. Then I saw a recipe on Facebook that used eggplant as the top and bottom of a sandwich type appetizer/main course item with spaghetti and sauce as the filling. While the photo looked pretty, I truly didn't see the point of it; but it did get my mind going into a creative direction.

To the refrigerator I went to look for ingredients that would work with the eggplant; Roma tomatoes and mozzarella cheese, but then I spied the chicken cutlets I had defrosted for another recipe.  Suddenly the picture of the recipe I was to make came into my mind like little photos, and I was off!  The eggplant would be the base ingredient, just as bread was for bruschetta; olive oil, garlic, , Italian herbs, tomatoes and cheese were a given.  The chicken, however, would give the entire dish a new dimension in flavor and texture; this would be one of those recipes that could be an appetizer or a main meal.

Enough chit chat and lets get to cooking...

Eggplant-Chicken Bruschetta

Ingredients:

1 medium sized eggplant cut into 12 (1/4" thick) slices

3 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
4 Tbsp olive oil, divided in half
1 Tbsp Italian herbal mix
6 pieces boneless, skinless chicken breasts (1/4" thick, cut to equal or slightly larger size than eggplant slices)
6 slices Roma tomatoes
6 slices mozzarella cheese
3 tsp grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation:

 

 

 

Line a platter or baking sheet with paper towels; lay out eggplant slices, sprinkle with salt and cover with additional paper towels.  Wait a minimum of one hour before pressing the paper towels onto the eggplant to remove excess water that has been drawn out by the salt. 

 

 

 

 

 

Heat 2 tablespoons of oil, medium-high heat, in a large skillet; place eggplant into skillet, brown one side, turn to brown other side and sprinkle garlic powder over first browned side.  Remove to paper towels.

 

Put remaining oil into skillet plus herbal mix; place chicken into skillet and brown both sides; remove to paper towels.  Preheat oven to 375F; line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.

 

Build a stack: eggplant slice, chicken piece, tomato slice, cheese slice, eggplant slice.  When all stacks are made, place on the baking sheet and top with 1/2 tsp of grated cheese.  Bake in oven for 5 to 7 minutes to allow mozzarella cheese to melt.

 

Makes 6 servings for an appetizer; Makes 3 servings for a meal.

Mary Cokenour

Yes, I Do Enjoy Going to Hong Kong.

The Hong Kong Chinese Restaurant in Cortez, Colorado that is.

Hong Kong Chinese Restaurant

332 West Main Street
Cortez, Colorado, 81321

(970) 564-8423
(970) 564-8419



Website: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Hong-Kong-Restaurant/111629405540104?rf=138238292921800

Since moving to Utah in 2009, the first Chinese restaurant we discovered as we entered Cortez was Hong Kong; and we still enjoy dining there.  We were just there recently and begged the staff to please open up a second establishment in Monticello.  The menu variety is large and we have never been disappointed in the quality or portions; the staff have always been friendly and attentive.  We usually dine in after having a shopping day in Cortez, and always notice that their take out service is busy.  While there are a few tables, the seating area is mainly booth which are comfy and clean.

There is a separate lunch menu (served 11am to 3pm), again with a large variety, and it includes soup, fried rice, egg roll and the very American fortune cookie.  In case you weren't aware, the fortune cookie is an American invention, but now it goes hand in hand with Chinese cuisine.  The prices vary from $6.55 to $7.55 and you will definitely not walk away hungry; the service is fast also for those with limited time for lunching out.





Now after a day of hiking the North Rim of Canyon de Chelly and visiting the rebuilt Four Corners Monument, we ended up at Hong Kong Chinese Restaurant starving!  We could not decide on appetizers, so ordered the PuPu Platter for Two: egg roll, paper wrapped chicken, bbq spare ribs, beef stick, fried shrimp, fried cheese wonton (filling so creamy!).  Everything was delicious and there was not a crumb left; well, ok, we didn't eat the bone on the spare rib.  My absolute favorite was the beef stick; a thin strip of steak on a wooden skewer; crisply seared edges and melt in your month tender, flavorful beef.  The usual sweet and sour sauce was served, but what we really like is that they put a dollop of Chinese hot mustard in it...love that stuff!



PuPu Platter for Two

Main entrees are two of our favorites; oh lets be honest, everything we've ever had there is on our favorites list. Anyway, from the House Specialties list we ordered "Happy Family" - shrimp, beef, chicken, vegetables in a delectable brown sauce. We also asked for fried rice to go with this dish. Tender slices of beef and chicken; the shrimp has that fresh "scrunch" to them and the vegetables were crisp; oh so good!

From the Noodle section, we ordered "Beef Chow Fun"; not the broad noodle that we became so fond of in east coast Chinese restaurants, but just as yummy. Tender slices of beef, green scallions and those wondrous noodles; this is my idea of comfort food!







I'm giving Hong Kong Chinese Restaurant a huge recommendation to you; in the mood for Chinese cuisine, then give them a try.  You will be thanking me later on.

Mary Cokenour

Improving on an Alton Brown Recipe.

Now I enjoy watching Alton Brown's show, "Good Eats", on Food Network, and, most recently, the Cooking Channel during its free preview on Dish Network. Seriously, I enjoy the Cooking Channel, but have no intention of paying more for an increased package deal when I don't want the other channels offered. Anyway, Alton did an episode on casseroles and pot pies, basically improving on the current versions that use many processed foods. I liked his newer take on the Broccoli and Cheese casserole, but not having broccoli in the vegetable bin was a deterrent. Instead, I did have a number of firm green zucchini and yellow squash and thought, "What the heck, lets try something different!".  Not only did I change the vegetable assortment, but several other ingredients like Greek yogurt instead of regular, ranch dressing instead of bleu cheese and French fried onion strips instead of Ramen noodles.  No need to use a seasoning packet from the Ramen noodles which is loaded with salt, when it's already in the French fried onion strips.

Now I'm not a big veggie eater myself, but I have to admit that this recipe came out pretty darned well.  I gave half to my mother-on-law and she loved it too, as well as my hubby.  It was not your typical broccoli and cheese casserole; the zucchini and squash picked up the flavorings from the sauce mixture and onion strips.  It is akin to a luxurious comfort food; the sauce coated the tongue and you simply wanted more.   Alton Brown was correct when he proved that using a popular processed product, Cream of Mushroom Soup, is obsolete; creating your own sauce is so much better!

Vegetable Casserole

Ingredients:

16 oz. chopped mushrooms
2 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp saltless seasoning mixture
3 medium sized zucchini, chopped
3 medium sized yellow squash, chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
3/4 cup ranch dressing
2 eggs, beaten
12 oz. package shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, divided in half
1 tsp ground black pepper
6 oz. package French fried onion strips

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350F; spray a 2 quart casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray. In a large skillet, medium heat, sauté' mushrooms in butter for five minutes. Add seasoning mixture, zucchini, yellow squash; mix together, sauté' for additional minute and remove from heat. While mushrooms are cooking, mix together in a medium bowl the mayonnaise, yogurt, ranch dressing, eggs, half the shredded cheese, black pepper and onion strips.


Into a large bowl, put in the vegetable mixture; add the wet mixture from the medium bowl and mix to coat the vegetables evenly. Spoon all into the casserole dish; cover with aluminum foil and bake for 45 minutes.






Remove foil, sprinkle remaining half of cheese evenly over top and bake for an additional 15 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.





Makes 8 servings.

Mary Cokenour