Asparagus and Tomato Tart

As previously stated, asparagus is the most-loved veggie in our home. We love our normal way of cooking it, but sometimes you get tired of having stuff the same all the time. The other day I saw an episode of Sandra Lee's Money Saving Meals on the Food Network, and one of the dishes she cooked was Asparagus and Tomato Tart. She used some of the asparagus for the tart, then the rest in a soup for another meal. Economical! We're going to try that, so tonight I made the tart and another pot of that delicious slow cooker French Onion Soup to go along with it.

Asparagus and Tomato Tart

Ingredients:

1 (9-inch) frozen pie crust
3 slices bacon, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 bunch fresh asparagus tips, reserve stems for Round 2 Recipe
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1/4 cup milk
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained well, divided
Seasoning to taste (salt, pepper, etc)
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

Method:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Place the frozen pie crust onto a baking sheet. Poke the bottom of the crust a few times with a fork and bake for 10 minutes.

Saute the bacon until crisp. Remove bacon and drain on a paper towel. Add onion and asparagus tips to the skillet with the bacon fat and saute until tender.

In a large bowl whisk together ricotta, milk and eggs. Add parsley, bacon, half the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Make sure after the tomatoes are added to use a spoon to stir, not the whisk! Add asparagus and onion mixture and stir well. Pour egg mixture into the crust.

Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until the tart is lightly browned on top. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes.

In a small bowl, toss the remaining tomatoes with the basil, balsamic vinegar and season with a pinch of salt and pepper and garlic powder. Serve as garnish for tart.



The Ingredients (minus the pie crust!)


It's baked!


And ready to eat!

Verdict: This was freaking delicious! I made sure to read the comments on the recipe before trying, so I kicked the seasoning up a bit by using some Tony's Creole seasoning, Salt, Garlic Powder and Onion Powder. Make sure to do that and you will have an awesome meal! I think this would be great as a brunch also.

Chicken Stew

My husband loves good home-style cooking. I call it food people on farms eat. Things like chicken stew just seem like something hearty and homey that a farmer would come in and eat after a long day on the tractor or something! I'm silly, I know. Anyway, I've been making this recipe that I created for a few years now and I think it's pretty tasty. I served it with the Bacon-Carmelized Onion Asparagus and there were almost no leftovers!

Chicken Stew

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts, cut into small pieces and seasoned to taste
1 stick butter
1/2 cup flour
1 onion, chopped
1 tsp minced garlic
Seasonings to taste (I used Tony's, Salt, Garlic Powder and Onion Powder)
1 can chicken broth
1 small can mushroom stems and pieces
rice

Method:

In a deep, non-stick pan, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour and stir constantly until a golden brown (this is called a roux). Add pieces of chicken and combine well with the roux. When chicken is no longer pink, add the onion and garlic and cook until softened. Add the mushroom stems and pieces, including the liquid and the chicken broth. This will break up your roux and turn it into a nice gravy. Let simmer for a few minutes, then season to your tastes. Kitchen Bouquet can be added sparingly to achieve the brown color you desire. Serve over rice.


The Ingredients (minus the chicken)


Stew is simmering


Ready to eat!

Verdict: I think this is a pretty darned good chicken stew recipe, if I do say so myself! We also serve it with peas often. Anyone that loves rice and gravy will love this, two thumbs up!

Stuffed Artichokes

I love stuffed artichokes but it's something you don't often see in grocery stores or restaurant menus. While at my local Kroger, I noticed the fresh artichokes were on sale for fifty cents each. What a steal! I bought two and looked up a recipe for stuffed artichokes in my Cooking with Entergy cookbook. The recipe I used (page 57) is for 6 stuffed artichokes, I cut it down to two, but I'll give you the recipe for the six anyway.

Stuffed Artichokes

Ingredients:

6 small artichokes
1/3 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups French bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons chopped parsley
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon hot sauce

Method:

Trim steam of each artichoke, leaving 1/2 inch. Remove any damaged or rough lower leaves and trim off upper edges of remaining leaves. With palm of hand, gently press down on artichoke to open up or separate leaves. Wash artichokes in cold running water. Heat oil over medium heat; add garlic and cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; stir in crumbs, cheese, parsley, salt, pepper and hot sauce. Stuff each leaf with crumb-cheese mixture. Place artichokes in a large sausepan and steam in 2 inches of water over low heat for 1 hour or until leaves can be removed easily. During steaming period, occasionally baste artichokes with additional olive oil. Yield: 6 Servings.


The ingredients


The artichokes, washed and trimmed


Stuffed, ready to be steamed


In the steamer basket


All done!

Verdict: While quite tasty, the end result was so NOT worth the effort! This is an involved process and did you know that artichokes have pickers on them?? My thumb is hurting today! I also added some garlic and onion powders. It was delicious but seriously, whatever the grocery store is wanting to charge for stuffed artichokes - pay it. Don't attempt at home! I will NOT be making this again!

Pimiento Cheese Stuffed Burgers

This is another recipe stolen from my friend who is the genius behind the blog Scrumptiously Sassy. She posted it and talked about how delicious this burger was and I admit, I was a skeptic. Pimiento cheese in a burger? Hmm... But I'm a good sport and willing to try new things so I did. I changed/added a few things too.

Pimiento Cheese Stuffed Burgers

Ingredients:

1 lb. Ground Beef
1 Egg
Breadcrumbs
Salt
Tony's Creole Seasoning
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Tiger Sauce
Worcestershire Sauce
4 Tablespoons Store-Bought Pimiento Spread
Hamburger Buns
Toppings as desired

Method:

In a large bowl, combine ground beef, egg, a few shakes of Worcestershire sauce, a small touch of Tiger Sauce and the rest of the seasonings to taste. Add enough of the breadcrumbs to hold the meat together. Form into a ball and score into fourths. Take each fourth and form into a ball, then tear apart, making each half into a patty. Put 1 tablespoon pimiento spread in the middle of one, then press the other on top, sealing the edges. Do this for all four patties. Cook as desired and serve on hamburger buns with your desired toppings.


Sorry for the fuzzy picture, but you get the idea!

Verdict: Delicious!! I am no longer a skeptic and will definitely be making this again soon. For our toppings we used Cabot Vermont White Sharp Cheddar, pickles, and grilled onions, along with mayo and mustard. I have a recipe for homemade pimiento cheese that is fantastic, I just didn't have time to make it. I may try that next time just to see how it turns out, but this was fantastic!! Two very enthusiastic thumbs up!

Olive Cheese Bread

This fabulous concoction comes from one of the best cooking websites there is, The Pioneer Woman. I am one who thinks that olives are the best thing since sliced bread...so what better to pair them with than bread? And cheese just puts it over the top! The photography on PW's website are just great, I'd love her camera! On her site, she explains how you can flash freeze the bread to serve at a later date. I definitely think I will do this with small pieces, so I can pull out to go with dinners for Hubby and I.

Olive Cheese Bread

Ingredients:

1 loaf fresh French Bread, cut into two halves
1/2 cup real mayo
green onions, chopped
1 6 oz. can black olives
1 6 oz. can green olives
1 pkg. finely shredded Monterey Jack Cheese
1 stick butter, softened

In a bowl, combine butter, mayo and cheese. Coarsely chop both black and green olives and add to bowl. Add green onions and mix well. Spread mixture generously over French Bread and bake at 325 for 25 minutes or until cheese is turning golden and melted through. Cut into small portions.


The Ingredients


The olive cheese mixture





I couldn't wait till tonight to try this so I cut the end off of the loaf and made myself a sample to go with my leftover French Onion Soup for lunch (see previous recipe). Here is what my sample looked like!

Verdict: OMG! This is heaven! I thought I'd cheat and buy the already chopped can of black olives and will not do that again next time. They were chopped too fine and I'd rather them be chopped more coarsely. But this is fantastic, you MUST try it!

Slow-Cooker French Onion Soup with BLT and Avocado Sandwiches

My husband and I both really love French Onion Soup. We've tried a few recipes and none could quite compare to the wonderful concoction at Maspero's in New Orleans. I found this recipe on the Food Network website and decided to give it a try. For a side dish, we made BLT sandwiches with sliced avocado. Interested? Read on!

Slow Cooker French Onion Soup

Ingredients:

5 small yellow onions, thinly sliced
2 cans Swanson's low sodium beef broth
2 cans Campbell's Beef Consomme
1 packet Lipton's Beefy Onion Soup Mix
1 loaf pumpernickel bread, cut into slices
sliced aged swiss cheese
shredded parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons white wine

Method:

In a large nonstick pan, saute onions in butter. When almost soft, add wine and cook for a few more minutes. Dump into a crockpot sprayed with cooking spray. Add the broths, consomme and soup mix. Cook on HIGH for 4 hours or LOW for 8 hours. When ready to serve, put soup in a bowl and place a slice of bread and both of the cheeses on top and put under the broiler until the cheese melts.


The Ingredients


The soup, in all it's cheesy goodness!

The Verdict: Fantastic!! While it still does not compare to Maspero's French Onion soup, this is the best I've had at home so far. James says it's much better than the canned variety, less salty tasting. Be sure not to get red onions because they will make your soup sweet, which is a mistake we have made in the past. We will definitely be making this again. Soon!

BLT Sandwiches with Avocado

Ingredients:

White bread, sliced
Cooked Bacon
Mayo
1 tomato, sliced
lettuce
1 avocado, sliced
cheese, if desired

Method:

Toast bread to desired doneness. Spread a generous amount of mayo, then add bacon, tomato slices, lettuce, cheese if desired, and avocado slices. Enjoy!


The Ingredients


mmmmmmm....

The Verdict: OK look at the above picture, do I really need to tell you?? Yummola!!