Asparagus With Mushrooms

When I walked past this asparagus in the supermarket I had to buy two bundles because the spears are so small. That may sound counter intuitive to some but the smaller the spears the more tender they are.


Looking for something different to do with asparagus I decided to add sauteed mushrooms. These aren't just any mushrooms, this is how Julia Child taught me to make mushrooms in her book Mastering The Art of French Cooking. Thinly sliced and browned on both sides, I think this is the closest any food can ever come to tasting like bacon. One of these days I may cook up a bunch just so I can snack on them.

 If you know anything about Julia you know that she cooked with lots of butter. Since I have a horrible reaction to dairy I thankfully have found a replacement. Nutiva makes a shortening (non-hydrogenated and sustainable) that is a combination of coconut oil, palm oil, and red palm oil. The red palm oil gives it a slight buttery flavor and it has a high smoke point. I've tried but I'm simply not one of those people who can use coconut oil in every dish, especially savory ones. Whether you use butter, ghee, bacon fat, or shortening my husband and I decided that THIS is the way to eat asparagus.

Ingredients
3T Nutiva shortening
6 cremini mushrooms thinly sliced
1/2t salt
1/2C water
bunch of asparagus with the woody ends trimmed off.



Melt the fat of your choice in a skillet. Add the thinly sliced mushrooms and 1/4t of salt to the hot oil and cook until browned on both sides.



Remove the mushrooms and add the asparagus and remaining salt to the pan. Stir the asparagus around so that each spear is coated in fat. Add water to the pan to steam the asparagus and cover with a lid.



Cast iron skillets don't typically come with lids. In the past I have used larger lids to cover the pan but condensation eventually begins to drip onto the stove top. One of my new favorite kitchen gadgets is this silicone sunflower in the photo below. You can use it for an airtight seal on bowls or on hot items such as a pot on the stove. I'm saving on plastic wrap and avoiding drips on the stove. Brilliant!

Remove the lid periodically to stir the asparagus. You are aiming for bright green and tender stalks that aren't mushy and complete evaporation of the water added to the pan. When the stalks are bright green there shouldn't be much water remaining. If there is a bit you can remove the lid to let it evaporate if the asparagus is nearly cooked. If the asparagus is completely cooked simply remove it from the pan and don't worry about the water. We don't want to overcook your asparagus.

Top the asparagus with the cooked mushrooms.

AIP Faux-tato Soup

The auto-immune paleo diet is strict for good reason but sometimes you just want a bite of something familiar and comforting. When I went to make dinner tonight all of the meat was still frozen and I wanted something quick because it was 6:30 an the little one goes to bed at 8. I learned tonight that parsnips don't cook as quickly as potatoes do so if you're pressed for time cut your parsnips smaller than I did. Like most nights this recipe was simply an experiment of mine and I had no idea how it would turn out when I began assembling ingredients. However, the final result hit the spot and I could barely eat it fast enough.

Faux-tato Soup

2 parsnips peeled and diced (about 2 cups)
2 stalks of celery diced
1/2 of a medium onion diced
4T of palm shortening
3 cloves of garlic
2C of vegetable broth
2C of water
10oz bag of frozen cauliflower
1 bay leaf
1/2t dry thyme
1t salt
3 lg cremini mushrooms thinly sliced
fresh sage leaves

In a large stock pot melt 1T of palm shortening over medium heat and saute the onion and celery until the onion is translucent. Add the garlic and stir a few times before adding the broth, water, bay leaf, thyme, and cauliflower.

While the cauliflower is cooking heat the remaining 3T of palm shortening in a saute pan over medium heat and quickly fry the sage leaves. Remove the leaves and add the mushrooms, cooking until they are brown on both sides. When they are done place them on a paper towel or cooling rack to keep them from getting soggy.

When the cauliflower is fork tender remove the bay leaf, set aside, and puree the contents of the pot with a blender. Be careful of hot liquids and don't fill a blender more than half full. I used an immersion blender tonight. Return the liquid to the pot along with the bay leaf, salt, and diced parsnip. Cook over medium heat, the soup should lightly boil, until the parsnips are tender.

Garnish with mushrooms and sage leaves. I grow sage around our covered patio and it provides me with fresh sage almost year round. Since it's early in the year and I was just playing in the kitchen I only picked about 10 leaves. Next time I'll definitely find more leaves to fry up.

Here is a photo of sage I took last summer. It is nearly the only thing that grows here in southwestern Idaho without human intervention. If you have a dry place in your yard with poor soil I bet sage will grow there.

Apple Pie Breakfast or Snack

I love this dish because not only is it easy but it's like an instant apple pie fix in about 5 minutes. This morning I made the recipe below and I ate ALL of it for breakfast. It's one of the recipes I have been wanting to share for some time however the photos I keep taking with my cell phone haven't done it justice. For our wedding anniversary we decided to invest in a decent camera and now I feel like I may be able to hang with some of these food bloggers with the fabulous photos. Now I just need to step up my creativity and artistic arrangement, eh?

Ingredients

1/2 cup of unsweetened shredded dry coconut
2 organic apples diced (apples have one of the highest pesticide residues, so yes, organic)
1/2 cup of nuts (pecans, almonds, walnuts...whatever you have)
1 T coconut oil
1/2 t pumpkin pie spice
1 T real maple syrup

Cut the apples first because this recipe moves very quickly. Over medium heat toast the coconut flakes and then put them into a bowl. Add the nuts to the same pan and toast them for a minute or two, when you smell them, and put them into the bowl with the coconut. Next add the coconut oil, apples, maple syrup, and pumpkin pie spice and stir to coat. I don't cook the apples any longer than it takes to combine all of these things in the pan. Dump the apples into the bowl of coconut and nuts, stir, and enjoy. For an extra healthy addition try topping it with chia or hemp seeds.

Once you have the gist of how this recipe goes together you can customize it to your liking. If you like more or less coconut or nuts adjust accordingly. If you don't have pumpkin pie spice, use cinnamon and maybe a little allspice and/or clove. 

Potato Leek Soup with Vegetables

The thermometer didn't make it above freezing today so I chose to stay in and tackle some chores. Progress was slow with a 3 year old underfoot and dinner time was here before I knew it. I was looking for something quick with little effort. All of the meats were frozen so it would have to be something vegetarian. I usually throw things in a pot without measuring but if this blog is going to work people have to be able to follow me.

Do yourself a favor and buy a leek. I always thought leeks were for pretentious chefs but they really do complement the flavor of potatoes. I've made dozens of pots of potato soup with white or yellow onions and they're good but the leek will make you step back in awe of your concoction.

To clean a leek, there is lots of dirt between the layers, lay it flat on a cutting surface. Insert the tip of a knife 1/4" above the roots and cut the entire length, in one stroke towards the green end. Give the leek a quarter turn and repeat. The root end will hold the leek together while you wash it under running water. Pull off any outer leaves that look wilted. Then slice the leek horizontally in 1/4" pieces. You can stick the roots in some water and the leek will regrow. After a week or two put it into a pot of soil or out pin the garden. Why buy food if you can grow it for free, eh?

Potato Leek Soup with Vegetables Recipe

1 Leek
2 Carrots peeled and sliced into     1/4"
1 Celery stalk sliced
3T Butter
2 Russet potatoes peeled and cut to about 1/4" cubes
1 Bay leaf
1/4 t dried thyme
4 cups of chicken or vegetable stock
Pepper
1 cup of frozen corn

Place the leek, carrot, and celery in a cold pot with butter. Turn the heat on to medium high, saute for a few minutes and then add the diced potatoes and a few turns of the pepper mill. Add the bay leaf and thyme and stir the mixture twice in the next minute. (You want to bring out the flavors of the herbs with the heat of the pan but you don't want them to burn.) Then add 4 cups of stock. I have Organic (chicken flavor) Better Than Bouillon so tonight I added water and the required amount of bouillon. I didn't add salt to the pot because the bouillon is salty, in the end it didn't need salt. Cover the pot with a lid and bring it to a boil. (Too much evaporation can make the soup salty if you're not using a low sodium broth.) Turn the heat down and let simmer for 20 minutes. The potatoes and carrots should be soft. Add 1 cup of frozen corn, preferably non-gmo.

Makes 4 hearty bowls of soup