Chilled Crudite Asparagus with Mustard Dill Sauce

This is a delicious side dish or appetizer!  

Make sure you have fresh asparagus.  No one likes chewy wooden spears to swallow!  You can often find good asparagus all year round, but the best time of year is April-May-think Easter.

image from here

1.  Boil asparagus spears in water 1 minute.  Immediately immerse in an ICE water bath.  *Note the time for boiling depends on Asparagus thickness.  You want to error on the side of boiling less.  The 1 minute boiling time is for thinner asparagus (which I prefer since it is less "woody").  Make sure your asparagus is FRESH--it makes a HUGE difference!

2.  You can serve immediately with sauce, or store in a plastic bag in fridge until ready to serve.  I LOVE THIS dish because it can be made ahead of time.

3.  Arrange asparagus on platter.  Before serving, squeeze 1/2 a lemon over asparagus.  Optional:  grind a little fresh pepper and sprinkle salt over asparagus. Serve with this delicious Dill Mustard Dip (recipe below).

Herb Dip:
1/2 c. fresh chopped Italian Parsley
1 tsp dill
2 tsp prepared mustard (dijon or regular)
1/2 c. sour cream
1/2 c. mayonaise
juice from one lemon (or more to taste)
freshly ground pepper

Couscous with Spring Vegetables

This recipe comes from the most recent Food Everyday publication. I made just a few slight changes like increasing the amount of peas and using less asparagus. This meal is done in 10 minutes!

2 TBS olive oil
4-5 green onions green and white parts thinly sliced
1 cup thin asparagus, diced into 1" pieces
1 cup frozen peas
1 1/2 TBS fresh lime juice
1/2-1 cup rotisserie chicken
1 5.6 oz box Near East Toasted Pine Nut Couscous
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts

-Rinse frozen peas in warm water to begin defrosting.
-In medium saucepan, stir fry oil, onions, and asparagus 3 minutes. Set aside vegetables in a bowl. Cook couscous according to directions (takes about 5 minutes). Fluff couscous with fork and add cooked vegetables, peas, chicken, and lemon juice. Garnish with fresh parsley and 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts. Add salt if needed.

Dijon Vegetables

This recipe comes from my mom. I love it! She probably hasn't made it in awhile, but it is one of my favorite vegetable dishes. With the potatoes, it easily works as a main dish. The secret is to make sure you don't overcook your vegetables. You want them nice and tender crisp (like a stir-fry)! For presentation appearance...cut your vegetables at a strong angle as in the picture above.

Serves 4 as a main dish or 6 for side dish:
3 medium red potatoes
1/2 bunch thin asparagus
3 carrots
1 medium zucchini (or yellow squash)
1 chicken-flavor bouillon cube
1 TBS butter
1/2 c. water
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp thyme leaves
salt to taste

-In 12" non-stick skillet, heat diced potatoes and 2 TBS olive oil and 1/4 tsp salt. Cover and bake at med-high for 15 minutes (or until tender) lifting lid to flip potatoes 1-2 times for even browning. Set cooked potatoes aside in bowl.
-In same 12" pan skillet add carrots, bouillon, water, butter, and thyme. Cook 3 minutes.
-Add sliced asparagus to carrots and cook and additional 2 minutes.
-Add sliced zucchini and cook 1 more minute (adding a bit more water if necessary).
-Transfer cooked vegetables to serving platter. Arrange browned potatoes and serve.

Asparagus Soup

I like asparagus, but my husband isn't a major fan because of the texture. So this vegetable is more often consumed at our home in a pureed form. This is a thicker soup and is similar in many ways to the Tuscan Tomato Soup. One thing I love about pureed soups is the amount of vegetables you so easily consume!

Carmelize in medium soup pan for 7 min:

2 TBS olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

Add and bring to boil:

2 c. chicken or vegetable broth

1 bunch fresh asparagus (chopped into 1" pieces)

2-3 cloves garlic, minced

-Boil five minutes. Then blend until nice and smooth.

-Pour soup back into pan and add:

1/4 c. basil pesto

1/2 c. cream (or milk)

salt/pepper to taste

-Garnish with parmesan cheese and fresh parsley or basil