Prosciutto Wrapped Asparagus Fries

3 Jun 2014

I am the only one in my little family who likes asparagus, so I rarely cook it because I can’t get anyone to eat it! Then recently I found a recipe for parmesan fries on pinterest that seemed to “disguise” the asparagus enough that my kids wouldn’t know what they were eating, and delicious enough that my husband wouldn’t complain–so I made a couple of different versions with high hopes, both of which were horrible! The first, I thought i’d be clever and creative, and added some citrus–which was SO gross that it almost put me off asparagus {with the rest of my family}. Then the second was a classic, popular recipe–but I just couldn’t get the flour and egg and parmesan and panko to adhere to a smooth, shiny, thin asparagus spear, and it was a huge, frustrating MESS!

Then yesterday as I resolved to master attempt number 3 {the more something defeats me, the more determined I am to defeat IT!} I decided to wrap prosciutto around the asparagus first. Not only would this help the heavy mixture of flour and egg and cheese and panko actually STICK to the spear, but I knew my family would LOVE it if it involved bacon, {even in its slightly healthier form}. It worked like a charm! They were salty, and cheesy, and crispy and pretty heavenly! I served them alongside a couple of steaks, but they would be great dipped in a cheesy, creamy alfredo sauce too! Yum!
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Quick & Simple Mint-Cucumber Raita

15 May 2014

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This week I decided to make a delicious Chicken Biryani, which I couldn’t serve without a side of delicious, cooling, raita! I have attempted raita, and its cousin tzatziki, in the past–but just couldn’t seem to get them as thick and creamy and flavorful as I would have liked. This time, I decided to use the highest quality greek yoghurt that I could find, so the base of the sauce was instantly as thick and creamy as possible, then drained every last bit of water from the cucumbers I could so the sauce would stay like that, and not thin out. Not only was this raita finally the perfect texture I had been looking for–but the seasonings, spices and added mint were the perfect blend of flavors. It was delicious served alongside the Biryani–but would also be a delicious accompaniment for any spicy curry, chicken tikka masala, or stuffed naan. What are some things that you like to serve with a raita?
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Olive Tapenade Devilled Eggs

15 Apr 2014

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I tried my first ever olive tapenade a few months ago–until then, I had never even heard of one, so for those of you in the same boat, a tapenade is basically a spread consisting of chopped olives or capers or anchovies with olive oil! A reader of mine also commented he uses figs in his, which would be delicious! My mother in law found a pre-made tapenade from costco, spread it on some flat bread and topped it with prosciutto, fresh buffalo mozzarella and cherry tomatoes, and we were all obsessed. I have been thinking of ways to use tapenade ever since…. in pretty much everything.

Colcannon

17 Mar 2014

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I’ve been having fun making some “green” recipes this week in honor of St. Patrick’s day, but I also wanted to try making something that was traditionally Irish– so I thought i’d have a go at making Colcannon for the first time ever. It’s basically just mashed potato with kale or cabbage mixed in — but I was kind of taken aback by how something so simplistic could be so clever, and SO delicious. You can also add bacon, but since I wanted to serve it with Corned Beef, I thought that would be a lot of salty meat, and a little too heavy on the calories, so I kept this recipe light, and creamy, and it complimented the corned beef perfectly! I really can’t believe I have never tried this before, but I can’t wait to make it every St. patrick’s!

Quick & Easy Traditional Irish Soda Bread

12 Mar 2014

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I don’t know why I get so excited about St. Patrick’s… i’m not Irish {although I am 1/4 Irish!} I don’t drink. I HATE getting pinched because I don’t own anything in the color green, and I can’t even spell lepricorn! Haha. But honestly, I do LOVE Ireland and think it’s one of the most beautiful places in the world {esp. since it’s on the same island as my home and all!} And I love good excuses to just celebrate! This weekend we’re going to the St. Patrick’s day parade in Spokane, which will be fun. But until then, I thought it might also be fun to theme my posts around rainbows and gold and green, and all things irish.
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