A few of my favorite easy spring asparagus recipes include a soup, a side, and an entree.

Asparagus isn’t just for good looks and taste. Asparagus is highly anti-inflammatory. If you’re not familiar with what inflammation can do in your body, it’s not a pretty picture. It’s the root cause of many cancers and chronic diseases. In fact, many chronic diseases can be reversed into remission if we go on the attack with big fat healthy food that fights inflammation, like asparagus.

The benefits of asparagus go well beyond anti-inflammation, with cancer fighting properties and will act as a natural diuretic.

Asparagus Recipes

These are not the only asparagus recipes on this blog, but a few that are great for this time of year.

• Asparagus Soup
• Chicken Asparagus Stirfry

Asparagus with Eggs

• Asparagus Quiche (almond flour crust)
• Asparagus with Poached Eggs (I first had this in Rome)
• Asparagus Ricotta Fritatta

Thomas Keller Asparagus as a Side

I had this asparagus with gremolata as one of the sides at a Thomas Keller restaurant. To be honest, this dish was my favorite part of the delicious fried

Asparagus can play a major role in your entrees.

• Lamb Chops with Asparagus
• Chicken Asparagus Stir fry
• Spaghetti with Chicken and Asparagus

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My only warning about this asparagus quiche recipe is you may not be able to eat just one piece.

Asparagus is a springtime veggie and this could be perfect for your Easter or Mother’s Day brunch.

This is gluten free, paleo and keto friendly. Read my article below to see why it fits all three.

Ingredients for Almond Flour Quiche Crust

• Almond Flour
• Melted Butter
• Egg
• Baking Powder
• Salt
• Herbs (optional)

You will want to Pre-bake your almond flour crust for about 10 minutes. Once your quiche is baked, you will be able to cut it just like a regular crust, but cool it for about 10 minutes first.

As you can tell I used a bottomless quiche pan. I also used some parchment paper on the bottom.

Asparagus Quiche Recipe (Filling)

• Eggs
• Heavy Cream
• Salt, Pepper
• Asparagus
• Manchego or Gruyere or White Cheddar
• Pecorino or Parmesan

More Related Recipes from Spinach Tiger

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Asparagus Quiche

Asparagus Quiche with Almond Flour keto friendly crust.

Course Egg Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword asparagus, quiche

Prep Time 16 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Pre-baked tart crust 10 minutes minutes

Servings 10 servings

Ingredients

Quiche Crust

• 2 cups almond flour
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon parsley

Quiche

• 1 pre-baked quiche crust
• 7 eggs
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon garlic or onion powder
• 4 ounces manchego or gruyere or white cheddar
• 1 ounce pecorino
• asparagus

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. The crust will take 10 minutes to pre-bake. The quiche will take about 22 to 23 minutes to bake.

Almond Flour Quiche Crust

• Mix cooled melted butter with egg.
• Mix almond flour, salt and baking powder.
• Add the egg butter mixture until incorporated. Refrigerate 10 minutes.
• Use parchment paper to roll out. Place in bottomless quiche pan. You may have to use your hands to patch the sides
• Bake for ten minutes.

Quiche

• Trim asparagus by cutting off about two inches off bottom.
• Wrap in wet paper towel and microwave for about 3 to 5 minutes until nearly softened. Asparagus will continue to cook in quiche.
• Cut asparagus in small 1-2 inch pieces.
• Mix eggs, heavy cream, salt, pepper, cheese together.
• Pour into pre-baked shell. Bake for 22-25 minutes with just a slight jiggle in the middle.

The post Asparagus Quiche Recipe (Herbed Keto Crust) appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

What is Crab Louie?

Crab Louie referred to as the king of salads is made with crab, covered with a creamy dressing and often accompanied by asparagus and hard boiled eggs.

It was created on the West Coast, made with dungeness crab, and a dressing of mayo/ketchup mix. Recipes have been found in cookbooks as early as 1910.

I grew up eating Crab Louie made with blue crab as I lived on the east coast. It was often served with thousand island dressing or a remoulade. I prefer the remoulade for its complex flavors and think the dressing is just as important as the quality of the crab.

Blue crab is expensive, but rich and goes a long way. The crab meat is sweet and tender and not like any other crab. I would not use an imitation crab meat for this salad. If you can’t get crab, use shrimp for a shrimp louie salad.

Crab Louie salad often includes steamed, cold asparagus, hard boiled eggs, avocado slices, and cherry tomatoes. I made my own remoulade because it adds exciting flavor to the crab and the hard boiled eggs.

What are ingredients for Crab Louie?

• Lettuce
• Blue Crab (can use crab of choice or replace with shrimp)
• Asparagus
• Avocado (How to Peel avocado)
• Hard Boiled Eggs
• Tomato
• Remoulade or a Creamy Thousand Island Dressing

Crab Louie is an elegant, old school salad and a nice surprise for a summer dinner.

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Crab Louie with Remoulade Sauce

Blue crab, lettuce, asparagus, remoulade is an elegant dinner salad.

Course Salad and Salad Dressing

Cuisine American

Keyword blue crab, crab, remoulade, ricotta salad

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Hard Boiled eggs 20 minutes minutes

Servings 2 Servings

Ingredients

• 3 cups Salad Greens Romaine, Butter Lettuce
• 8 ounces blue crab
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 6 stalks asparagus
• 1 avocado sliced
• 2 hard boiled eggs peeled, sliced
• 1/2 cup Remoulade Remoulade Here
• Cherry Tomatoes as desired

Instructions

• Trim asparagus and put in boiling water for 6 to 8 minutes. Place in ice bath to maintain bright green and to chill for salad.
• Arrange lettuce on platter.
• Add crab to middle, accompanied by tomato, hard boiled eggs, avocado, asparagus.
• Serve with Remoulade. You can serve with other creamy dressings such as thousand island or green goddess. Add tomatoes if desired.

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Usually a stir-fry points to Asian flavors, but why be limited to that. I find asparagus so much more suitable to this flavor profile with olive oil and lemon,  which doesn’t overtake the vegetable but compliments it.

Pistachios are often under-looked as an ingredient, but once you start cooking savory dishes with them, you’ll make it a habit.

Remember the lamb with mint pistachio pesto? Or this pistachio pesto ? They actually inspired my use of pistachios here, although I didn’t make a pesto, I added them in for a delicious salty texture.

A Little Bit about Pistachios

When I was a child, I loved the Encyclopedias. It was probably a foreshadowing of how much I like to research everything, and run to google, especially when it comes to food, ingredients or cuisine.

You might be surprised to discover that pistachios are not nuts, but seeds, and are part of ancient history, one of two nuts mentioned in the old testament.

Pistachios originated in the middle east, probably Iraq, eventually  spreading to the Mediterranean.  Syria introduced the pistachio tree to Italy in the first century, and you often find them in Italian desserts.

Today, Iran is the world’s largest producer of pistachios and California is second, although America didn’t see its first pistachio until the late 1800’s. Once cultivated, they became more of a snack food, found in vending machines. The shells were often died red to make them more appealing.

While most cooking with pistachios has been reserved to baking, I prefer pistachios in savory dishes more than sweet dishes, although I wouldn’t turn down pistachio gelato.

This is a forgiving recipe.  You don’t have to follow the recipe tightly, but you do need to know a few things about asparagus or this dish can fail. I prefer to use a cast iron pan, a staple in my kitchen, but you can use any kind of frying pan.

What You Need to Know About Asparagus for Chicken and Asparagus Stir-Fry Recipe

• Buy the freshest asparagus you can. It should snap, not bend.
• Buy medium-sized asparagus. If they too thin, they aren’t fork friendly, too thick and they’re too woody. Err on the thinner side if that’s all you can find.
• Peel the asparagus. I peel with a potato peeler starting about half way down. I then cut off about 1 inch at the bottom to remove any woody part.

• Don’t overcook or undercook the asparagus.
• Cook your chicken thoroughly first on low (so it doesn’t get dry) and add your asparagus in to cook it enough that it is not necessarily crunchy, but has just a little resistance.

Chicken and Asparagus Stir-Fry is a Super Easy Dinner

This is a super easy dinner, done in about 15 minutes.

You can prep everything ahead, by cutting your chicken and marinating overnight in a little olive oil and lemon, and trimming your asparagus.

In the version below, I used a rotisserie chicken, and that was as good, maybe better as the stir-fried chicken. Just shred, and add after the asparagus is cooked through.

The thing that makes this dish sing are the pistachios. If you want it to sing even higher, add a tablespoon of golden raisins, often a Mediterranean ingredient. I learned about the magic of pairing golden raisins with pistachios when I made this raw cauliflower salad. If you’re not a raisin fan, skip them.

If you can find purple splendor potatoes, do use them. They are super healthy and I tell you why here. If not it’s great all by itself, with rice or with noodles.

As far as herbs, if you have fresh herbs, use them. Mine herb garden is  are not ready

Capers and lemon zest. adds acid and brightness to the dish.  Don’t forget the sea salt. Salt isn’t just there to make food salty. It’s a flavor enhancer and will make everything taste better. I use himalayan sea salt in almost all of my cooking.

Disclosure: This site contains Amazon Affiliate links, which earn a small commission but do not affect price. For my full list of recommendations, you can visit my amazon page.

More Asparagus Recipes from Spinach Tiger

• Asparagus Quiche
• Asparagus Gremolata
• Asparagus Detox Soup

More Chicken Recipes from Spinach Tiger

• One Hour Roast Chicken
• Ricotta Stuffed Chicken Breast

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Chicken and Asparagus Stir-fry Recipe

The One Dish Chicken and Asparagus Dinner, so easy with a boost of flavor from lemon and pistachios.

Course Entree

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 1 pound boneless chicken breasts
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 bundle of asparagus
• 2 shallots chopped
• 2 garlic cloves chopped
• 1 tablespoon parsley
• 1 teaspoon herbs de provence or herbs of your choice
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 tablespoon capers
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt or to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper or to taste
• 1/4 cup chopped roasted salted pistachios

Instructions

• Cut chicken into bite sized pieces. You can also slice chicken breasts through middle lengthwise and make small pieces that way.
• Trim asparagus. Using a potato peeler, peel asparagus from about 3/4 from bottom, getting strings off. Cut off 1 inch of bottoms (or woody part). Cut into 2 inch pieces. Set aside.
• Heat oil in pan. Add in shallots until softened.
• Add garlic for about 1 minute.
• Add chicken and turn heat very low so as to not dry or brown.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Once chicken is cooked add in asparagus, lemon juice, zest, capers, herbs.
• Once asparagus is cooked through, season again with salt and pepper to taste.
• If you are adding in purple potatoes, they should be boiled and peeled first. Cut into quarters and cook until heated through.

Twenty Five Pistachio Recipes from Bon Appetit

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Asparagus Gremolata

A few weeks ago I got to eat at Ad Hoc, a real treat of a restaurant located in Yountville, CA., in Napa Valley. Ad Hoc is Thomas Keller’s “regular folk” restaurant, conceptualized from meals made to serve the staff at his other restaurants.  The comfort food was so good, it was turned into a cookbook and restaurant. I’ve made many meals from the cookbook, as it’s beautiful and approachable.

Ad Hoc serves a family style, four course meal five nights a week. We were served fried chicken which is highlighted in the cookbook, along with arugula salad, a cheese board, and peanut butter bars with ice cream.  Although the fried chicken was brined, tender, crispy and off the hook wonderful, it was the asparagus gremolata that stood out as the star of the table.

The asparagus was perfectly cooked and brought to life with gremolata, that perfectly healthy chopped medley of parsley, lemon zest, and garlic.  I’ve only made gremolata once for osso buco, which is shocking to me, because I always have these three ingredients on hand, and it’s an incredible flavor builder.

Sometime around the 80’s the over-boiled vegetable of kitchen’s past got a remake when lightly steamed vegetables started to become popular, but I think the pendulum swung a little too far, and today vegetables aren’t cooked enough. Green beans, broccoli and asparagus often fall into the “too raw to enjoy” category. Marcella Hazan and many Italians agree with me. Raw vegetables do not absorb flavor and are often tasteless.

Place Your Vegetables in an Ice Bath to Keep them Green

There is a caveat, however. You must put your cooked vegetables over ice to stop the cooking and keep their beautiful green color.  You can eat it hot or at room temperature. I showed you how to do that when I made broccoli rabe. 

I usually use a big stainless steel bowl which is handy in the kitchen.

This particular dish of asparagus gremolata has many benefits aside from being an elegant side dish or party dish. Asparagus is an especially powerful detoxer, as is lemon, parsley and garlic, so this is the food to make when your body is looking for an overhaul.

There are Many Health Benefits from Asparagus

Asparagus Gremolata is the 10-minute side dish.

When choosing asparagus, make sure it’s fresh. A stalk should snap not bend. I look for medium sized stalks, Big stalks are tough; sometimes baby stalks are okay, but can be stringy instead of tender.

The hardest part of this is waiting for the water to boil. The tips are trimmed, and the gremolata takes a minute to make. I buy organic lemons, especially when I know I’m using the zest.

This is a wonderful side dish for any protein and would be especially nice on a holiday dinner table. Because it can be served at room temperature, it’s perfect to bring to a party.  You might think it strange to bring a cooked vegetable to a party, but there won’t be any left. People are always looking for healthy choices.

If you love asparagus, you’ll love my chicken, asparagus and pasta dish. If you want a low-carb option, this asparagus and poached eggs (another Italian classic) will charm you.

More Side Dishes from Spinach Tiger

More Asparagus Dishes from Spinach Tiger

More Italian Food from Spinach Tiger

You might also like this asparagus detox, anti-inflammatory asparagus soup. 

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Asparagus Gremolata and the Detox Benefits

Fresh Asparagus with Gremolata is a wonderful side dish with many detoxing and health benefits.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 6 minutes minutes

Total Time 11 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 1 bunch asparagus
• bowl of ice
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• squeeze of lemon juice
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• Gremolata
• 1 loosely filled cup of flat leaf Italian parsley
• 1 clove garlic peeled
• zest of two lemons

Instructions

• Trim the tips of asparagus about one inch.
• Place in boiling water for 6 to 7 minutes
• Remove and place in bowl of ice to stop cooking and maintain green color. If you want to serve asparagus warm you can heat it in oven a few minutes before serving.
• Make Gremolata
• zest lemons
• mince garlic
• chop parsely
• You can do chop garlic, lemon zest and parsley at same time if you want to.That's what I do.
• Remove asparagus from ice bath. Toss with half of gremolata. Drizzle with olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice. Serve by adding remaining gremolata.
• This can be served at room temperature or warmed up in oven right before serving.

The post Asparagus Gremolata and the Detox Benefits appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

If you’re like me, you might have taken pasta off the table because you don’t want to eat those carbs or that gluten. What if I told you that there’s a way to eat your pasta guilt free? Did I hear that applause?

Gluten Free Pasta 

The simple recipes are always the best recipes, if you use good ingredients. This is fresh, young asparagus, and only takes a few minutes to cook. I placed it into the hot pasta water once my pasta was finished. I used a gluten free pasta from Barilla. I’m in the middle of testing various gluten free pastas and will give you that report. My husband likes the Barilla best so far, which can be ordered here. 

The old gluten free pastas were simply rice or brown rice and were gummy. I would buy them, cook one bag or box and then leave the remaining rice pasta in the pasta drawer for years. Now some of the brands newer to the market of gluten free are adding in corn, which gives a nice bite to the pasta. By the time I put in the asparagus, the chicken, the butter, the olive oil, the parmigiano reggiano, any lingering taste of corn was nil.

Marcella Hazan

I took inspiration from a recipe from Marcella Hazan’s Essential’s of Classical Italian Cooking adapting her Sauteed Fillets of Chicken with Lemon and Parsley, Siena Style.

This is my all time, life time favorite cookbook.  I wrote a post detailing what I love about her called a Year of Cooking with Marcella Hazan. She wrote this herself, no ghost writers and no untested recipes.  It’s almost 40 years old. It continues to sell every day, although Marcella is no longer with us. She was very old school, giving America authentic Italian recipes and important cooking notes.  It’s all words and there’s not a single glossy picture. If you consider yourself a damn good home cook, this book needs to be in your kitchen.

After her death, her husband published her notes on ingredients, called Ingredienti, Marcella’s Guide to the Market. 

Marcella Hazan talks about Asparagus

She tells us that good asparagus stands up straight, the overlapping leaf part should be taut packed tight. If you’re not eating the asparagus that day, put it upright in a jar with paper towel crunched in and water that reaches an inch over the paper towel. She suggests adding another moistened towel wrapped around the bunch. Make sure you cut the woody stalk part off. It’s too thin to pare away.

Grilled Lemon Chicken also Works Well with this Recipe

A few years ago I made this recipe out of Guilliano Hazan’s Italian Cookbook for grilled lemon chicken breasts.

I’ve made this a few times now and I we really like it. If you’re going reheat it, add in a little more olive oil, as it may dry out.

Spinach Tiger has a lot of Italian food recipes. You can always replace the pasta with gluten free pasta. When I started this blog, the choices for gluten free pasta were not very good. Today, they are greatly improved and I’ll soon be talking about my favorites, so take a minute to subscribe and never miss a recipe.

More Italian Food from Spinach Tiger

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Healthy Asparagus Chicken Pasta Recipe, with Lemon, Gluten Free Option

Sauteed Chicken Breast with Lemon Parsley, Asparagus and Gluten Free Pasta

Course Entree

Cuisine Chicken

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound angel hair pasta or spaghetti.I used this gluten free.
• 1 pound of fresh asparagus
• 2 boneless chicken breasts
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• salt
• pepper
• juice of one lemon
• 4 tablespoons white wine optional
• 6 tablespoons chopped parsley
• lemon slices for garnish
• Pecorino Romano Cheese or Parmigiano Reggiano for serving.

Instructions

• Cook pasta according to directions. You can use either gluten free or regular pasta.
• While cooking pasta, boil asparagus for about 3 to 5 minutes. Drain set aside. (see notes)
• Heat oil and butter in skillet on medium high. When the oil/butter is hot, add chicken filets and cook for one minute each side. Remove to warming plate, season with salt and pepper. You will be cooking through later.
• Deglaze pan. Important: Have a lid ready to put over pan. Acid hitting the grease can cause an eruption.Add in lemon juice, white wine, lower heat, simmer for a minute while scraping bits of pan.
• Add half of parsley, and remaining butter to pan. Add chicken back in to finish cooking.
• Remove Chicken. Add pasta to the pan and toss.
• Cut asparagus into 3-4 inch slices. Cut chicken crosswise into one inch slices.
• Put pasta in large bowl. Add apsaragus and chicken.
• Sprinkle more parsley.
• Add lemon slices for garnish.
• Serve with a pecorino romano cheese.

Notes

To save pots, I removed the pasta from the pot, leaving the water and cooked the pasta in the pasta water. First, reserve 1 cup pasta water to be used for the sauce.

The post Healthy Asparagus Chicken Pasta Recipe, with Lemon, Gluten Free Option appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

There is a story to this healthy asparagus soup recipe that I’m not sure how to talk about.

If you’re here to get a quick, easy, low-calorie, dairy free soup, this is the place, and this healthy asparagus soup recipe will satisfy you.

Friends, this is a long post. I don’t expect most of you to read it. I know you’ll just jump to the recipe and that’s okay. But if you’re interested in knowing a little more about me, my weight struggles and my passion to help others with amazing food, you can take a read.

There’s more to this healthy asparagus soup recipe that should interest you.

Asparagus is highly anti-inflammatory. If you’re not familiar with what inflammation can do in your body, it’s not a pretty picture. It’s the root cause of many cancers and chronic diseases. This article outlines the many chronic illness related to inflammation. I talked about my own auto-immune disorder here.

In fact, many chronic diseases can be reversed into remission if we go on the attack with big fat healthy food that fights inflammation, like asparagus.

The benefits of asparagus go well beyond anti-inflammation, with cancer fighting properties and will act as a natural diuretic. This is a wonderful soup if you’re detoxing.

Asparagus and Fennel make a good team.

I added an entire fennel bulb, celery, and super spinach leaves to the asparagus. There is no need for anything else, not even onion. You can add in a splash of olive oil and I added chia seeds for texture.

A Wild Coincidence. You Decide.

Just as I finished this first sentence on anti-inflammatory foods, a neighbor knocked on the door, distressed at his diagnosis of having a non-alcoholic fatty liver, also known as NAFLD. We sat and talked about the seminar I had attended just 4 hours earlier which talked about inflammation and fatty liver, which is a wild coincidence.

I knew just enough about NAFLD and metabolic syndrome to point him in the right direction, and scare him just enough to motivate him, because old habits die hard.

He admitted to a recent year of over indulgence and a retreat from exercise. Now of course, we all know, blah blah blah, eat healthy, exercise more. None of this sits on our shoulders typically until we get scared. Sometimes being scared is not enough.

Sometimes, it has to be a bigger value outside of ourselves. This week I took three days to do a liquid diet to detox my body, my mind, my spirit, in behest of the sanctity of life. For me, this includes the sanctity of our organs, our body, how we take care of ourselves, our own life.

I told my friend, “you either eat to live, or you eat to die.”

Food can have life giving or life taking effects on organs, our cellular system, our health. We know this, but since we can’t see it happening inside of our bodies, we forget it. We get overtaken the sensory pleasures of the brain.

I was a fat teenager and it wasn’t fabulous.

I understand that. I’ve been there friends. I was highly addicted to sugar and carbs as a fat teenager. Yes, I used to weigh a whopping 197, in an era before obesity began. When I lost the weight, my best friend (who was shamefully thin and embarrassed by her thinness) said to me, “I had no idea your fat bothered you.” I thought, “did I really hide myself and my feelings so well?”

It’s not fabulous. It’s like feeling locked up inside. There is no freedom because even at 17, mobility was difficult. Instead of remembering the polar bears at the national zoo, my memory is how I had to stop and sit on every park bench. It was not a big fat fabulous life. It was painful, physically and mentally. There were no big girl clothes in regular stores.

This is why I want to help people enjoy food, and I would never ask you to give it up. 

There are so many things coming together that are compelling me to share more healthy recipes that are enticing, satisfying and life giving.

I could write volumes shouting out a cheer for big fat healthy food that makes people happy. I don’t think depriving people of the sensory pleasure of food is the way to go. I never want to take away the joy of eating, only the pain of it.

This Healthy Asparagus Soup Recipe Fights Inflammation and can be the start of a good thing for your body.

Of course this soup is not a cure, just a beginning, a start, a small life-giving recipe, as are so many of the recipes here.

Sure, there are some desserts that are high carb, high sugar, and they are meant to be treats.

If you notice, I’ve been introducing more gluten free, grain free, sugar free desserts made with Swerve, a non-harmful sweetener.

There are hundreds of full-health, life giving recipes, so please take a good look around. Most of them are very easy to make. All of them are delicious and should bring food joy to your life.

If you like asparagus, you may love this article on how to cook asparagus perfectly. 

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Asparagus Soup Recipe, the Anti-Inflammatory Detox Soup

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 2

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 1 pound asparagus
• 1 fennel bulb
• 4 stalks organic celery
• 2 handfuls of organic baby spinach
• 4 tablespoons parsley
• 2-4 cups organic bone broth I used homemade chicken stock
• 1 lemon
• 1 lime
• sea salt
• pepper
• olive oil for garnish
• chia seeds for garnish

Instructions

• Trim asparagus tips. Cut asparagus in 3 to 4 inch pieces.
• Trim celery tips. Save leafy greens to use also. Cut into 3 to 4 inch pieces.
• Trim fennel bulb. Slice into pieces.
• Heat broth in a pot. Add asparagus, fennel, celery salt, pepper.
• Boil for around 5 minutes. The vegetables do not have to be completely cooked, as they can finish processing in vitamix.
• You can decide for yourself how thick you want your soup to be. You don’t have to add all the liquid broth into vitamix at once.
• Add in raw spinach and parsley. (Don’t cook these in the pot).
• Process in Vitamix.
• Taste for seasoning. Add more salt, pepper as desired.
• Squeeze lemon and lime as the last thing.
• Add in juice from half the lemon and the whole lime. Taste to see if you want more.
• If the soup isn’t hot enough, you can reheat in pot.
• Serve hot. Garnish with chia seeds.

Notes

This was two dinner sized servings. If serving cups, this could be 4 servings.

The post Healthy Asparagus Soup Recipe appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

I grew up eating asparagus frittata. It’s classic for Italians. Eggs, freshly grated parmesan cheese, and my twist, ricotta cheese.

Lately I’ve been using ricotta cheese in everything like these ricotta pancakes and these gluten free biscuits. It gives a richness and creaminess with just the slightest tang. Thus the asparagus ricotta frittata was born.

The frittata is actually a genius way to make eggs, because of its versatility.

This asparagus ricotta frittata can be stuffed into crusty bread for lunch. It can eaten alone, a staple of a paleo or carb free diet, a side dish or an appetizer. It also makes a great side dish or party appetizer. See below for that.

If you double the recipe and bake in a rectangular baking pan, you can cut it into little squares for a party.

I go back and forth with how to make frittata. I grew up pan frying, which is complicated until you get the hang of it. Then I discovered the super easy method of baking. This is probably the way you’ll want to go. One day I want to make a video on stove top frittata, because it does taste differently and I love the flavor of the olive oil you fry it in.

How to Oven Bake an Asparagus Ricotta Frittata

As far as asparagus, I always look for thin and very fresh. I cut this into pieces to make it more uniform, but that is up to you.

I used 6 eggs what would be a 9 inch round equivalent. Grease your pan well, because eggs stick. Add more eggs for a fluffier frittata. I added in a touch of cream to the eggs, but that is not necessary. However, do add in pecorino romano for flavor along with a good turn of freshly ground black pepper

Make the Asparagus Ricotta Frittata for a Party

Use a rectangular or square cake pan. Grease well. Use enough ingredients to have the egg mixture be two inches high. Once baked, cut into squares. Serve at room temperature.

Frittata can serve many purposes. How do you eat your frittata? Breakfast or dinner?

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Asparagus Ricotta Frittata

Tender Asparagus and Ricotta Cheese make this easy oven baked frittata.

Course Brunch

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 6-8 eggs
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsely
• 1 tablespoon parmesan or pecorino cheese
• sea salt
• fresh black pepper

Instructions

• Mix ricotta cheese with parmesan, parsley, dash salt and pepper.
• Beat eggs.
• Steam asparagus for five minutes or just until soft. Drain. Set aside.
• Grease baking dish with butter or olive oil.
• Pour eggs into baking dish. I used a 9 inch baking dish, but you could use something smaller or use more eggs to have a thicker frittata.
• Place asparagus and dollops of ricotta cheese mixture.
• Bake for 15 minutes. Check at 12, depending on how many or large your eggs are. Check center which should no longer move or show liquid.
• Sere warm. or at room temperature.

Notes

Pecorino cheese is salty, so use salt sparingly.

More Frittatas from Spinach Tiger

Italian Sausage Ricotta Frittata

Sweet Potato Sage Sausage Frittata

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What makes a Bloody Mary best? They need to taste like food and jump a little. I got this recipe from a very sharp bartender who knew how to balance the briny,  salty, spicy elements with just enough citrus  to pull it all together.

Bloody Mary’s are most often enjoyed in the day time, maybe even the early morning.   Some years ago, Jason, the bartender at the lobby bar at the Sir Francis Drake Hotel helped  me to pass some rainy day time, while I was waiting for Mr. ST to return from his conference. We both just happen to have events that took us from Nashville to San Francisco on the exact same weekend, and I sat at the lobby bar waiting for him on a Sunday afternoon. I was intrigued that he wasn’t using a Bloody Mary mix. I watched him muddle together the tomato and jalapeno, add in real tomato juice, and horseradish, Tabasco and lemon, and I knew I had to have one. He was nice enough to make me second one, slowly showing me his step by step method. Then he wrote it all down for me.

Somehow I’ve managed to hold onto that paper for the past three years, and I’m finally sharing it today.

I don’t can food, and I rarely make anything pickled, but in recent years I’m discovering that pickling is a hot new trend and you don’t have to can the old fashioned way if you are going to eat the pickled food in the next few weeks.

I tend to like pickles a lot, especially if they are spicy, so I threw a good dash of cayenne pepper in the mix. I think this garnish is especially nice for a Bloody Mary and not everyone likes the typical celery.

The asparagus in this recipe makes a great appetizer, as well as a drink garnish. I used an interesting pickling spice that has cinnamon, mustard seed, dill seed and tumeric among other things, but any pickling spice will do.

The result is a very flavorful Bloody Mary. I was so excited to make this, I went and bought a muddler, which is used to muddle the  jalapenos and tomatoes.

Tell me, have you ever asked a bartender or a server for a  special recipe? Do you feel awkward doing that?

Print

Sir Francis Drake Hotel Bar Bloody Mary by Jason

Lucky enough to snatch the recipe for the best Bloody Mary from San Franciso's Sir Francis Drake Hotel Lobby Bar, starting with a key ingredient, olive juice.

Course Cocktails

Cuisine American

Servings 1

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 3-4 grape tomatoes
• 3-4 slices jalapeno
• 1/2 teaspoon horseradish
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2-3 dashes of Tabasco sauce
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 2 oz. vodka
• 2 oz. tomato juice
• FOR GARNISH
• 1 olive
• 1 grape tomato
• squeeze lime
• celery stick
• pickled asparagus optional

Pickled Asparagus

• 10 asparagus spears or as many as fit into the jar
• 2 pint mason jar
• 2 cups apple cider vinegar
• 2 cups water
• 2 tablespoons pickling spice
• 1 teaspoon dill seed or fresh dill
• 2 teaspoons pepper corns
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2 cloves garlic

Instructions

• Muddle the grape tomatoes and jalapeno and add ice.
• Add horseradish, pepper, salt, Tabasco sauce, lemon juice, vodka, tomato juice.
• Shake.
• Pour in pint glass, garnish as desired with garnishes

Pickled Asparagus

• Trim woody bottoms of asparagus and make sure it will fit into the height of the jar.
• Blanch asparagus in boiling water for one minute.
• Remove to ice bath
• Bring vinegar and water, pickling spice to a boil. Boil for two minutes
• Put asparagus into jar and pour pickling liquid over asparagus.Add remaining ingredients. Give a good shake.
• Cool. Put on lid tightly and refrigerate for a few days before serving.
• Pickled asparagus will keep in refrigerator for a few weeks.

The post Best Bloody Mary with Pickled Asparagus, Recipe from a Bartender appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

White Asparagus has such a short season that you probably are a true foodie if you have ever had it, but especially if you have ever cooked it.

In fact, the season is so short (in some places only two weeks) that even foodies who are daring in the produce department might not have experience with white asparagus.

This is why it was the perfect challenge for the Five Star Foodie Make Over, hosted by hosted by Natasha of Five Star Foodie and Lazaro of Lazaro Cooks.

In going back and forth with other bloggers who are part of the Five Star Foodie Make Over group, this was a quite the challenge, because many could not find the ingredient. I was very lucky to see it at Whole Foods the week the challenge ingredient was announced. Since white asparagus is very different (in a sense) from green asparagus, I had to really think about how to make this shine.

Firstly, white asparagus is woody and must be trimmed all around.If you are not careful, it could even break. But, the flavor is very delicate and sweet and this is why this is considered a delicacy. Then, there is the method of obtaining white asparagus. How or why this was ever started or thought of, I know not, but white is asparagus is the same plant as green asparagus, but it is buried in dirt and not allowed to see the sun, which turns it green. And, to make even more ado about it, there are several white asparagus festivals held around the world, but the most famous festivals take place in Germany.

I’m not sure how the idea struck me, but but as I was peeling the woody layer, ribbons of pasta came to mind, and I knew this would be the perfect way to showcase this ingredient. I only used a bit of butter, cream, freshly grated Italian cheeses in very small measures to not overload the delicate taste. A few snips of fresh basil for some needed color and a spoon of butter shallots and this is good enough even for a royal wedding. Probably too late to tell Kate and William about this, but they did pick the right time of year to incorporate this unique and hard to find ingredient into the wedding lunch.

Recipe
White asparagus (one bunch)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
4 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons freshly grated parmigiano reggiano cheese
2 tablespoons finely chopped shallots
salt, white pepper
basil for garnish

Peel asparagus with potato peeler, trim lower portion of woody stalk.
Once done, peel deeply into asparagus, turning after each peel to get ribbons.
Cook into boiling water for about 2 minutes.
Drain, set aside.
Saute shallots in pan with 1 tablespoon butter. Set aside.
In pan that will fit sauce and asparagus ribbons, add 1 tablespoon butter, milk, cheese. Add in asparagus, some salt and white pepper to taste.
Top with shallots, and basil garnish.

Note: If asparagus is thin enough, reserve a few tops for garnish.

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