Asparagus ~ Even if it makes your Pee Smell Funny they are Yummy

(ok, I know what you are thinking..Pee? Yummy? in the same sentence? read on folks..)   


Sorry for the Title Folks, I couldn't help it. I am still Me, no matter how refined I may cook

Aww, the humble Asparagus...It is such the perfect time of the year to head up to your local farmers market and pick some up.  Did you know that the Asparagus is from mediterranean and asian  decent and means Sprout or shoot and derives from the lilly family? as are onions, garlic, leeks, turnips and gladioli. The ancient Greeks loved wild asparagus but it was the Romans who first cultivated it.

So a few weeks back I went to the Farmers Market to pick up this lovely Shoot.  

I have cooked asparagus many different ways. When I first learned to cook asparagus I slightly boiled them till Al Dente. Left them whole and dressed with vinegar, oil, purple onions and blue cheese. Of course S&P.  Back then I only wanted the thinnest asparagus I could find, Because I had visions of when I  bought thick aspargus my Grandma actually taking a potato peeler and trimming the woody parts.

 then I went totally raw for a while, they had to be thin for this.  I chopped, then added diced Purple onion, diced hard cheese such as pecorino romano along with fresh thyme, lemon juice, EVOO and S&P

FAST FORWARD TO NOW

I like'em thick and tender! 

The local Desoto Farmers Market is really gaining a name for itself with fresh produce and of course meat (from Henry Meat Co)  But my Favorite Vendor has got to be Cindy!  her prices are the best and so is her produce.  

But before these delectable plants were available at your farmers market and store

they were  cultivated  more than 2,000 years ago in the eastern Mediterranean region.  Greeks and Romans prized asparagus for its unique flavor, texture and alleged medicinal qualities. They ate it fresh when in season and dried the vegetable for use in winter.

A few weeks ago I picked up asparagus from Cindy at the Desoto Farmers Market, They were gorgeous! with hues of purple and green, enough for my heart to salivate what I was going to make with them.  Was it going to be Asparagus Salad that had been boiled? how about grilled asparagus? raw asparagus salad? how about Asparagus soup? 

NO. 

 None of the above 

It was oven roasted with prosciutto(pig meat aka PORK) .  This asparagus was the best that I have ever eaten.  I don't know if it was the cooking process or the grower of the produce. The Asparagus were naturally sweet from the dirt which it grew in.  

I loved the wee bit of the al Dente that the thicker asparagus has with the crispy salty goodness of prosciutto wrapped around it. 

 And if that wasn't good enough I Kicked it up a notch..WITH HOLLANDAISE SAUCE! 

Julius Caesar would have been in HOLLANDAISE heaven if he could have eaten asparagus  this way. Julius Caesar was the first to request BUTTER with asparagus.  

(Because, well, butter makes everything better..duh)

Can someone please tell me how just a few simple ingredients like Egg, a whole stick of butter and lemon juice becomes so elegant? wow...I just love the stuff!

(hence the the whole stick of butter and going back to the comment "butter makes everything better..." DUH)

and in short, to finish our history lesson, (cause I  have made myself hungry)

These graceful spears of the asparagus plant have always been a sign of elegance and in the past asparagus was deemed a delicacy only the wealthy could afford. Roman emperors were so fond of asparagus, that they kept a special asparagus fleet for the purpose of fetching it.

But now you too can feast like a king! head up to your local farmers market and grocer and buy it fresh!

 feast on asparagus when in season.

Until we Eat Again,
Heidi

Taco Tuesday...Kinda

Happy Taco Tuesday...err, Tostada Tuesday (lets face it, a Tostada is an open face taco, right?)

Fried up corn tortillas for our tostadas 

Made Shredded Beef Mole

Of course quac is a must for Taco Tuesday..err, Tostada Tuesday
kept simple, just salt, lime and wee bit of garlic

Yummo.........

I prefer a poached egg on my tostada...(with the meat too..) Also made from scratch refried beans..first time ever worth saving my bacon grease for that!

Also, mastered Pork Pozole Verde.  However we at it all. Will post recipe and pics  the next time I have a hankering for some Mexican.

Until we eat again,
Heidi

abandoned lead plant and a provencal meal

Homemade butter with french breakfast radishes from the farmers market.  (sophia made the butter) topped with sunflower sprouts and himalyan salt

gorgeous leg of lamb from henry Meat co.....that I purchased 

my finshed dish...an Ina Garten Recipe.  

Pass the Potatoes Please

The local farmers market had great potatoes..

I decided I was going to roast some

since I had so many I decided to make french potato salad too...

the wonderful flavors of the french potato salad.  Lemon zest, purple onion, green onion, dill, basil, flat leaf Italian parsley

yum yum.  A wee bit creamy with an al dente center.  dressing was white wine Dijon vinaigrette

potatoes are a roasting..pitter patter

gorgeous caramelizing and color.  for the full meal come see me on instagram

BUT NOW, Momma needs to make another dollie so we can eat!

TOM YUM helps the flu......

When I am really sick..spicy soup of any back ground makes me happy. Hubby has been sick.
..(so I whispered in his ear..Tom Yum A thai seafood noodle bowl soup)...

I just love it any when I am not.   I am huge lover of Vietnamese Beef stew, from Pho Grand In St. Louis off of Grand. (this was hubby and I's first date!!!)

Love Indian Food from Rasoi...(from the central west end in st. louis).

but since we don't live in the city any more I was so Happy when Thai Rama opened up.  I generally do not like Thai food..prefer Vietnamese 

but, boy oh boy, this spot hits the place for the cuisine I love  when I need spice and everything nice.

located in
Crystal City MO....

until we eat again my friends,

Heidi

Maters & Friends

Well, Not sure where to start, not even sure where July went.

It was turbulent time with my Mom and I think the rickety bridge that was there has fallen and perhaps it fell in the depths in the Earth and put on fire.

Its Hot!! When each day the temps have been hitting about 100, then add the heat degree index. I think the old saying has to be true, its not the HEAT, ITS THE HUMIDITY. When you walk out side it feels like a giant puppy dog breathing on you (probably Clifford). The drastic change from being in an air conditioned environment then walking outside is like Ape scent gorilla slapping you in the face. Showers don't take. Sure you shower and get rid of sticky stinky sweat and for the first 5 minutes when you walk out of the bathroom you feel so revived and fresh...then the feeling fastly fleets. I am sweating in places I did not know you could even sweat at! lol

I am sorry when I say this But I could bear winter much better then summer. Once your naked and hot..there is nothing else to take off. During winter, if you are still cold..just pile more clothes or blankets and drink something hot.

The Garden is a pooper this year. Sure, my herbs did fine. My tomatoes not so much..and maybe just not as good as I had hoped and wanted. With the wicked weather late in spring then these demanding oppressive temperatures things have just flopped. Maybe too my heart was not into as much...and maybe too that I bought some rotten producers. I thought for sure I would have had tons of tomatoes by now. But Mr. Stripey is a big deceiver. Sure he gets real big and bushy, but then most of his blooms fall and want little is producing is slowly getting eating by bugs. Then there is the German Queen...hmmm I have another select name for her.

the tomatoes that are doing the best for me is my Grape tomato plant and my Cherokee purple. oh and a tomato plant I did not even plant, it just came up all on its own. I think it a Campari Tomato.

So, Now I have been picking my tomatoes even though that they are not ripened and put them in brown paper bags to mature. At least this way I know I grew it for us and not the bugs outside.

Not to be a total whiny butt, so something positive now. the cucumber produced way above and beyond what I had hoped and expected. I found a great recipe for a Cucumber & Avocado soup. Sounds so refreshing and delightful. However, by this time last year I had already a couple batches of gazpacho and not one batch yet.

With the excessive heat appetites have slowed down. Even by the kids. I have had a loaf bread that has almost lasted a week!! Wow!!

Tonight for dinner however I am making salad Nicoise. The Heidi Way/
It is going to be such a sexy meal too!! I love taking fresh ingredients and combining the flavors.

So, I ventured over to the next town over to pick up some yellow fin tuna steaks.
came home and got to work on prepping. Now the vinaigrette is traditional, but the serving will be different plus I added in my own flare of flavors that I love.

First...
Marinated the tuna in Evvo and salt/pepper

got started on the cannellini bean salad. this is the part of course that is not traditional, but this is where my "tomato" part of the salad will be found.

Cannelllini beans
fresh maters diced
couple of table spoons of purple onion minced
Fresh Basil
Fresh Italian flat leaf parsley
Evvo
Lemon juice
crumbled Parmesan
salt
pepper


then for the Potato and Green bean part
again, made a salad like.

Fingerling red potatoes boiled briefly
green beans blanched
4 small scallions diced
then mixed with vinaigrette

Vinaigrette

Evvo
Lemon juice squeezed
Fresh thyme and Rosemary
tablespoon of minced shallots
Dijon Mustard


there will be Baby arugula and Boston lettuce dressed very lightly as they will wilt when the Hot grilled tuna is put on. A small serving of cured black olives.

Good Music...A glass of Vino.
Life is Good.

the break down of this fine and wonderful meal. I know the Meal sounded extravagant, but it came in at under 7 dollars a head. for 6 servings it cost 6.41

2.00 2 cans if Cans cannellini beans
5.00 Good Aged Parmesan cheese
2.00 4 lemons
2.50 Fingerling Potatoes
1.50 Fresh Green Beans
3.50 Arugula
2.00 French loaf
18.00 yellow Fin tuna 6 Steaks

I did not include the Olive oil or olives. Most of the time anyway these are staples we have on hand, even lemons and parmasean. Was just out this day.

Today's Freshness

ahhhh....
a cool front moved through..knocking it down a few degrees and with lower humidity it has made it nice to survey my small garden of Eden.

It has been so hot that Watering 3 times a day was necessary. More so for the plants that are in containers. Which is halve of my garden.

I love to garden...I mean grow food. Sure flowers are nice, but give me something I can eat. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but for me, beauty is in taste.

I have never grown FOOD. I am in WONDERMENT that I can grow stuff I can EAT. Sure, I have always had an Herb garden. There was nothing more liberating then being able to step out my door and pick basil, Italian flat leaf parsley, dill, sage, cilantro, thyme, rosemary.... what ever else I might need for a dish. I felt like I was kind of free from the MAN. I mean, have you checked out prices of fresh Basil at wally world? I was spending easily about 15 bucks a month alone on Fresh BASIL during winter.

When we first thought about how we would garden we did not have much room. Our back yard is the size of a postage stamp with a GINORMOUS tree in the back yard. I think that thing has seen many moons pass. On the side of our house was optimum sun. but we had shrubbery. Well, up it came.

I did not have quite enough room for all of the things I wanted to grow. So containers were a great alternative.

The rest as they say is History.

This leads me to now.

Today's Freshness.





As I pick the okra when it is ready, I go ahead and clean, cut then freeze. I am hoping by turkey time have enough for our tradition of Gumbo Thanksgiving day weekend. We have picked about 2 pounds and had it stewed with homegrown maters. With speckled butter beans, rice and corn bread. Wow..is life ever good!





I am really not sure how big Okra is supposed to get, anytime I have ever bought it home grown from the farmers market it was never this big.



My okra is just grown in containers. I can't help to think how much I would have if it were in the ground with great dirt.




Today we also picked about 2 pints of grape tomato's...




all in all this 3 dollar grape tomato plant growing in a pot has given me at least 12 pints of tomatoes...with more to come it seems. What a money saver. if you buy the sweet grape tomatoes at the store you are spending at least 3 bucks if not more a pint!!




This tomato is my favorite. The bradley.



I really thought it was done. but after putting some compost in there it has had a rebirth, every flower blooms into a fruit now...I am counting down to pick these so I can grab my salt and savour the acidic goodness this tomato has, with a flesh that is tender with no mushiness at all.

WHAT IS IN THE FUTURE?

Eggplant...



cantaloupe..( I planted this from seed, I have at least 6 waiting for the perfect moment to be plucked) Again, just in a container..and I was told Cantaloupe had a low yield and was hard to grow...








what is even more wonderful about our garden. Pesticide free. and no unnatural chemical fertilizer.
here is to fresh eats...

My FFA Girl

Sophia, my lil ole FFA Girl..

we picked these carrots a while back, just enough to put into a pot of chicken noodle soup.

my small garden has grown by leaps and bounds. Cucumber have been plentiful..as well as all of my herbs.

I had no idea zucchini was going to take over like it did.

if you go down a few posts you will see my garden in the begining...

the small plants with only 2 leaves on them have turned into amazon like plants.

I am still awaiting much anticipated home grown maters...

I'm GroWinG!!

I am Growing!!

Not in Height

(maybe an LB here and there...)

But needless to say, I am growing..

it has been about 8 weeks just about since I have sewed a stitch.

I traded my needle in for a shovel..

instead of fabric to create, I have been planting seeds.

and I am sure my neighbors really thought I lost my mind when I decided to PULL OUT ALL OF MY LANDSCAPE ON THE SIDE OF MY HOUSE and opted for a raised cinder block garden instead.

not only did I pull out all of my landscape on the side of my house (the side that faces south and gets 6-8 hours of light a day..) but also any container that could hold dirt, well, now holds dirt.

My radishes are even almost ready for harvest!

Arugula is very tasty compared to those old plastic tubs that you can buy in the store! for years I have always heard how arugula had a "peppery" taste. Not the ones I was buying all of these years that come pre packaged. but the baby greens growing that I planted from seed have a very peppery taste indeed.

I can be found grazing on the seedlings that need to be thinned.

I have got 3 different types of basil plated so far, and awaiting the Thai basil to come in (it is so good in a noodle bowl soup!!)

by good ole summer time I am hoping to have a healthy harvest of 5 different kinds of maters, and my favorite lettuce, bibb.

so, that is what I have been up to. Now, today for the first time in about 2 months, I am ready to sit down and sew.

Happy Growing & Sewing to all.

Heidi