{ asparagus risotto }

1 pound asparagus
2 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup chopped shallots
1 cup arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
About 4 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper

Prepare the asparagus by breaking off discarding the tough ends (about the last inch of the spear). Cut into 1 to 1 1/2-inch pieces. Bring a saucepan with a quart of water to a boil. Blanch the asparagus pieces for 2 minutes. At the end of two minutes, use a slotted spoon to remove the asparagus pieces to an ice water bath. Drain from the ice water bath and set aside.

In a 3 or 4 quart saucepan, heat butter on medium heat. Add the shallots and cook for a few minutes until translucent. Add the rice and cook for 2 minutes more, stirring until nicely coated.

While the shallots are cooking, bring the stock to a simmer in a saucepan.

Add the wine to rice mixture. Slowly stir, allowing the rice to absorb the wine. Once the wine is almost completely absorbed, add 1/2 cup of stock to the rice. Continue to stir until the liquid is almost completely absorbed, adding more stock in 1/2 cup increments. Stir often to prevent the rice from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Continue cooking and stirring rice, adding a little bit of broth at a time, cooking and stirring until it is absorbed, until the rice is tender, but still firm to the bite, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat.

Gently stir in the Parmesan cheese and the asparagus. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.
Serves 6.

Recipe and photo source.

{ ranch potato casserole }

This is one of our very favorite recipes of all time! It’s definitely not low-calorie, but it’s easy to lighten it up a little with light sour cream, etc. A great comfort food, it’s also really good to freeze and reheat later if you wind up with an extra pan full like I did this week!

6 to 8 medium red potatoes (about 2 to 2-1/2 pounds)
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup prepared ranch-style dressing
1/4 cup crumbled cooked bacon
2 tablespoons fresh or freeze-dried chives
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Topping:
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 cups coarsely crushed cornflakes
1/4 cup butter, melted

Cook the potatoes until tender; quarter (leaving skins on if desired) and set aside.
Combine the sour cream, dressing, bacon, chives and 1 cup cheese. Place potatoes in a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Pour sour cream mixture over potatoes and gently toss. Top with 1/2 cup of cheese. Combine cornflakes and butter; sprinkle over top. Bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes. Yield: 8 servings.

Nutrition Facts: 1 serving (3/4 cup) equals 329 calories, 23 g fat (11 g saturated fat), 53 mg cholesterol, 481 mg sodium, 21 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 9 g protein. (Weight Watchers = 9 Points Plus)

fresh

I've read with envy these blogs, women telling how they drove 2 miles down the road for fresh organic produce, and wished I had a place nearby. But I realized one day that I actually am blessed with being close to several Hutterite colonies, so today I stopped by one. I was actually in a search for green beans - I like to blanch and freeze them whole - but this particular colony had just done up all their beans the day before. Somehow I ended up with this huge produce box full of potatoes, onions, carrots, cucumbers, broccoli, cauliflower and fresh honey. When I asked the sweet older woman what I owed, she replied "$20". What?! I would spend at least double that in the grocery store and it sure ain't this fresh! For supper dh grilled precooked ribs in BBQ sauce (from Walmart!), I made these potatoes, and we had a whole pile of fresh veggies to munch on. I think it's hardest on me this year not to have a garden, we're living in our new house but not much else is finished on the yard. Hopefully next year I can have a little green patch! What do you look forward to the most about fresh summer eating? 

pork chops and rice

Tonight we used the grill again... I marinated pork chops for 24 hours in Diana Teriyaki Marinade and dh grilled them to tender perfection! But to me, the crowning glory of the meal was the side of Primavera Rice & Cheese. I've gotten into the habit of keeping these on hand, and if you'll notice they have the recipe right on their website for the side dish that had me licking my plate clean. I'll include the recipe here as well:

Primavera Rice & Cheese

170 g Uncle Ben's Long Grain & Wild Rice w/ Mushrooms
1/2 cup diced onion
1/2 cup diced red pepper
1/2 cup diced zucchini
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
3/4 cup Mozzarella cheese

Prepare rice according to package directions. Just before rice is almost done, saute vegetables in oil. Stir into cooked rice along with Mozzarella. Cover and let stand for 2 minutes to melt cheese before serving.

grilling vegetables

I put a roast in the slow cooker for supper, just dumped a little water and a package of onion soup mix on top, then turned it on High for 4 hours. Then we experimented a bit with the rest of the meal...

Rosemary Baby Potatoes

Boil 5 minutes, then coat with a mixture of:
Olive oil
Rosemary
Salt and pepper
Garlic powder (I would use fresh cloves but dh doesn't really dig the strong *authentic* garlic smell/flavor...)

Grill for 20 minutes over medium heat

Grilled Asparagus

Coat with melted butter, salt & pepper
Grill over medium heat about 10 minutes

Both turned out excellent! We will be doing this a lot more, and the best part is, dh loves to run the grill, so I have a lot less to do!