Cooking Asparagus, Vacations, Sharks,

I am always looking for new recipes and I checked a book on vegetables that I have had since time began. Never looked at it much and certainly not for asparagus. Not a bad recipe in there, but it tells you how to cook asparagus. Tie it up in a bundle, stand upright (heads out of water) and boil for 25 minutes. Horrors, 25 minutes what on earth would you have at the end of that time? Mush? I have tried cooking them standing upright but I wasn't impressed. 3 minutes in boiling water seems to work very well for me. 25 minutes, can't get over it.

We hear the temperature in North Carolina is 106°F at the moment. No wonder some people aren't

stepping outside. I would be glued to the air conditioning. We were in Pennsylvania once in our travel trailer and it was 103°F. All the people on the campsite were taking their chairs and sitting in the stream keeping their feet wet - until someone saw a snake. I can't remember if that was the time when we didn't even have a/c in the car. We drove the New Jersey turnpike and had to keep the windows shut because we were surrounded by traffic, particularly trucks, and the air was horrendous but then it was pretty horrendous inside the car too. Not necessarily on the same trip you understand. We used to spend a fair amount of time at the beach. Today I would not go into the water. These recent shark attacks happened in relatively shallow water. A friend said she was going to the beach for the 4th I recommended she and her family stay out of the water. It really isn't worth it. I gather the sharks are migrating at the moment and this is part of the trouble, I've also heard they are evacuating the beaches.

Wednesday is league bowling again, It seems such a long time since last Thursday.

This recipe was demonstrated on local TV (Canada AM) the other day and featured a chef called Rose Murray who buys her asparagus from Barrie's. I thought it looked delicious but hunting for a picture, I found it was not original to her although she may have made adaptations.


Oven-Roasted Asparagus with Hazelnut Vinaigrette

2 Tbs finely chopped shallots

2 Tbs finely chopped toasted hazelnuts
1 Tbs hazelnut or olive oil
1 Tbs red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 lb (500 g) asparagus, freshly roasted

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the shallots, hazelnuts, hazelnut oil, vinegar and mustard.

2. Transfer the hot, freshly roasted asparagus to a warm platter and spoon the dressing over the top. Toss gently to coat the asparagus with the dressing.

How to Toast Nuts

1. Spread the nuts out on a baking sheet and bake in a 350°F (180°C) oven for about 5 minutes, watching carefully. (In the summer, I use my toaster oven to toast nuts to avoid heating up the kitchen.)

2. When toasting hazelnuts, wrap the warm nuts in a clean tea towel and rub vigorously to remove their loose, brown skins before using. (Don't worry if a few skins are left)

Servings: 2-4

Source: Rose Murray


Have a great day