Brent Nyitray
Fairlington Blade
Let the mutherfuker burn!
jnc4p
Kevin S. Willis
Michigoose
lmsinca
markinaustin
Arcanaut
novahockey
quarterback
ScottC
yellojktI’ve missed Bites & Pieces, so here goes.
We’re already getting some lovely asparagus at the markets where I shop and at relatively inexpensive price, so I thought this recipe might be timely. It’s easy and quick to make, and I love it with poached salmon. Adapted from eatingwell.com.
Asparagus Pasta
Ingredients
- 8 ounces whole-wheat penne pasta
- 1 bunch asparagus, trimmed and cut into 3/4-inch pieces
- 1 1/2 cups low-fat buttermilk
- 4 teaspoons whole-grain mustard
- 4 teaspoons flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons minced garlic
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh tarragon, or 1/2 teaspoon dried
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
Preparation
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, whisk milk, mustard, flour, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant and lightly browned, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Whisk in the milk mixture. Bring to a simmer, stirring constantly, and cook until thickened. Stir in tarragon, lemon zest and juice. Remove from heat.
- When water boils, add pasta and cook for 3 minutes less than the package directions. Add asparagus, reserving tips, and continue cooking until the pasta and asparagus are just tender, 3 minutes more. Drain and return to the pot.
- Stir the sauce and reserved asparagus tips into the pasta-asparagus mixture. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until the sauce is thick, creamy and coats the pasta, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in 1/4 cup Parmesan. Divide the pasta among 4 bowls and top with the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan.
Nutrition
4 servings, 1 1/2 cups each
Per Serving: 292 Cal; 8 g Fat (4 g Sat; 2 g Mono; 1 g Poly; 0 g Trans); 16 mg Cholesterol; 42 g Carb (8 g Sugar; 7 g Fiber); 16 g Protein; 430 mg Sodium
Salad Dressings
The asparagus pasta is great with a cucumber-tomato salad, but it also works well with a simple green salad. Here are a couple of homemade salad dressings that take minutes to make but are healthier than store-bought dressings. Both go well with the asparagus pasta.
Parmesan Pepper Dressing
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup nonfat buttermilk
- 1/3 cup nonfat cottage cheese
- 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 4 teaspoons white-wine vinegar
- 1 small clove garlic, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper, or to taste
Preparation: Combine buttermilk, cottage cheese, Parmesan, vinegar and garlic in a food processor or blender; blend until smooth. Stir in pepper. Makes about 1 cup.
Nutrition: Per tablespoon: 16 Cal; 1g Fat; 2 mg Cholesterol; 1 g Carb (1 Sugar; 0 Fiber); 2 g Protein; 57 mg Sodium
Goat Cheese & Tomato Dressing
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese
- 2 tablespoons white-wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons maple syrup or honey
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground pepper, to taste
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
Preparation: Combine goat cheese, vinegar and syrup or honey in a blender or food processor and blend until combined. Add oil and tomatoes and blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in tarragon. Makes about 1 cup.
Nutrition: Per tablespoon: 44 Cal; 4 g Fat (1 g Sat; 3 g Mono); 2 mg Cholesterol; 1 g Carb; 1 g Protein; 85 mg Sodium; 24 mg Potassium
Filed under: Bites and Pieces, food, recipes |
All Things in Moderation 
All of these sound yummy, okie! The pasta sauce sounds very similar to one of my go-to’s, except that I use yogurt rather than buttermilk (which means that I don’t have to thicken it with flour)–I love the tangy/mustardy/garlicky mix with pasta! I’m going to get some buttermilk and give this version a whirl for dinner tonight.
I haven’t seen asparagus here yet (other than in the mega-mart), but I just got an e-mail from the CSA that I sign up for every year, so I’m already looking forward to fresh produce. I had dinner with some friends Friday night and we were talking about CSAs vs farmers’ markets and the like, and I just had to laugh at Ed’s comment about CSA bags (which, at least in SLC, are notorious for their over-abundance of leafy greens): “There are only so many ways to cook kale”. I’m guessing chopped kale would work in your pasta recipe, also. 🙂
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Mich, (working backwards), I love kale. I substitute it in lots of recipes that call for spinach if the recipe can handle the more substantial texture (but never in salads). For example, I frequently use kale instead of spinach in a soup recipe I posted here previously.
If you have milk on hand, you don’t need to go to the store for buttermilk. Add 1T vinegar or lemon juice per cup of milk and voila. I usually keep lowfat buttermilk in stock because it’s generally a good healthy recipe substitute for heavier creams (brings more to the party than whole milk). Of course, substituting yogurt is probably even better!
I used to live next door to a guy who was a produce deliveryman. Every day he left on my porch some of the leftover produce they got for free. It always was weighted heavily toward whatever was in full season at the time, same as coops I’ve been part of. That’s part of the fun to me, being creative with whatever is abundant at the time.
P.S. We have beautiful asparagus here for less than $1/lb right now.
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Michi, and try a cabbage roll recipe using kale instead of cabbage. Yummy.
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We have beautiful asparagus here for less than $1/lb right now.
Don’t tempt me! My regular Thursday-night-dinner-girlfriend just got back from a long weekend in San Diego and was sharing pictures with me three nights ago. We haven’t had much in the way of winter here this year, but it keeps hitting at just the exact wrong time. . . I may come move in with you! 🙂
I almost never have milk on hand because it goes bad so quickly, but for a very long time always had buttermilk around because I like soaking chicken in it before cooking. So getting some buttermilk into the fridge will be getting back to normal.
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OT (kind of, but it’s the weekend), I have to say that this sounds to me like a heart attack waiting to happen. Inhalable caffeine????
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Kale is a favorite in our household. I’ve made up a fairly easy soup using chicken stock to blanch kale, chopping it and returning to the broth, then using an immersion blender to partially puree it. Add in a 1/4 lb. or so of pastini and you’re good.
BB
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So, FB, I’ve been meaning to ask you–are you enjoying the dining in Scotland? When we were there about seven years ago the food actually turned out to be one of the highlights of the trip, especially the seafood. I know that Glasgow is “inland” (as much as anything can be inland in Scotland) but we had a great time trying the local cuisine. Also, I think I told you, my family’s castle is only a couple hours up the road from you if you want to make a day trip. . . 🙂
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Thanks for the recipes, particularly the salad dressings.
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FB, do the boys eat soup? Mine don’t. Norah takes kale in chip form.
Asparagus was $7 something at the co-op yesterday. Its definitely not yet spring in MN!
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Primo has declared soup his favorite food in the whole world! Secondo refuses to touch the stuff. He’s pasta boy.
The dining has been pretty good. I’ve been moved to write my first two Trip Advisor reviews. So far, my favorites have been Mama Rasoi’s (inexpensive curries), Gamba (expensive seafood), and Café Gandolfi (black pudding for breakfast). I’m going to hit Fratelli Sarti (Italian) for dinner tonight and try out the West End a few times later this week.
My host in St. Andrews took me out for a couple of spectacular meals. Breakfast with a view of the 18th green was nice, though it is more correct to say that I had a view of a room with a view of the 18th green. I was seated at the back of the room and ignored for awhile. At least the breakfast was good.
I’ve had a few disappointments. It’s easy to spend quite a bit of money and the “highly recommended” places can be busts.
BB
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Hey All (esp. the ladies):
Seriously OT but….
One of my charges got her first Division1 Womens’ Lacrosse start and win yesterday. Coached her through high school and summer club.
She’s the Drexel Univ goalie, and they beat George Washington U!
A memorable President’s Day–heh– for the (very) aulde goalkeep tao.
{empowering young women via putting sticks in their hands ;>) }
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Good work, Tao!
On another topic, I think the continuing pressure by Trans-Canada to get all the ROW easements for the pipeline indicates they think they will have the easements in place in 2013 in time to lay pipe. It’s gonna happen.
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1 lb of Asparagus here for 1.98. At the Krogers. An unusually good price. And it was good, too.
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Congrats, tao! {{{youdaman!!!}}}
FB–Fodor’s, believe it or not, never once steered us wrong–even when I was highly skeptical based on location or decor. The best one was a tiny pub in a little fishing village over on the North Sea; I’m blanking on the name of the town, but it will come to me.
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OT (but it’s still the weekend, right?)
I found this article on telling the difference between vegetative state and minimal consciousness very interesting. I hope the link works because I had to go in remotely to the U’s library system to get it.
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Link doesn’t work.
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Dang. Works on my computer, but must be because of the IP address. Try this one and let me know; it should be from an Open Access site.
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Recipes look great. Thanx.
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