Thursday, September 3, 2009

Lulu’s Special Asparagus

RileyAdamsFoodBlogPostpic_thumb_thumb Congratulations to Kaye Barley of North Carolina, this week’s winner of our $25 gift card to Williams-Sonoma! A new winner will be announced later this week, so stay tuned! And keep trying because we still have some gift certificates to give away. Leave a comment and you could be this week's winner.

Sometimes I forget about asparagus. In the spring, it’s easy to remember how wonderful it is--everywhere you look, you encounter the delectable vegetable. But the rest of the year, asparagus doesn’t get the buzz.

In an effort to publicize and promote asparagus (a sadly underappreciated vegetable), I’m offering up a recipe that will even tempt your children to eat their veggies. Why? It has bacon and nuts in it! (Well, you couldn’t think I’d have a Southern dish with no bacon in it anywhere.) :)

This recipe is one I think Lulu, my protagonist in the Memphis BBQ series, would serve for a special meal. But it’s so easy to prepare, you could cook it for a regular weeknight supper.

Lulu’s Special Asparagus
Asparagus With Bacon
  • Asparagus 12-15 pieces)
  • 3/4 Cup cooked bacon
  • 1/4 Cup walnuts
  • 1 Tbsp. olive oil
  • Aged Balsamic vinegar
  1. Heat pan to medium-high.
  2. Add olive oil, then add bacon and asparagus. Heat for 5-7 minutes.
  3. When the asparagus is tender, add the walnuts.
  4. Continue cooking for 2 minutes. Add a drizzle of Balsamic Vinegar.

Enjoy!

Riley/Elizabeth
Pretty is as Pretty Dies—August 2009
Memphis Barbeque Series—Book 1 in May 2010
Please pop by and see me at
http://mysterywritingismurder.blogspot.com

Don't forget to enter our contest! We hold a new drawing every week, so be sure to enter each week for a $25 gift certificate to Williams-Sonoma. Leave a comment to enter or, if blogger is being difficult, send an "Enter me!" e-mail with your first name and state to MysteryLoversKitchen@gmail.com Good luck!

14 comments:

  1. GREAT recipe!!! How come some of the most simple ideas just escape me? Walnuts. Perfect. Bacon - well, you know I've used it with my asparagus (I am in the south, after all) and love it. Cannot wait to try the walnuts.

    I love it here!

    and thank you again for the Williams-Sonoma gift certificate - how fun is that?!

    Kaye

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  2. Kaye--This is such an easy recipe, and it looks pretty on a plate, too.

    And you're so welcome for the gift card! Thanks so much for visiting our online kitchen and for your great comments.

    Elizabeth/Riley

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  3. This is pretty much how Donna fixes asparagus for us...(Hmmm. Future as a poet?? Naw.) Anyway, it is pretty darn good. So good, in fact, that I’ll eat stalks and tips. Though, let’s face it, the tips are the best.

    Best Regards, Galen
    Imagineering Fiction Blog

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  4. I love asparagus. My husband, Marc, is not so enamored of it, so I'm always under the gun, trying to find ways to prepare it so he'll he actually eat it, instead of pushing it around his plate like a seven year old trying not to hurt my feelings. I love the bacon, walnut, balsamic combo in this recipe (makes my mouth water just to type that). Great idea for adding yummy layers of flavor. Thanks again, Elizabeth (aka Riley!) for another smart recipe. You may have just saved a worthy portion of veggie from ending up in an infinite loop of eater apathy.

    ~Cleo
    author of the Coffeehouse Mysteries
    Coffeehouse Mystery.com
    "Where coffee and crime are always brewing..."
    Follow Cleo on Twitter

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  5. Bacon and balsamic vinegar -- yum! Two of my favorites. I have to try this!

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  6. This recipe looks wonderful!! Asparagus is the one veggie my husband won't eat. That just means more for me ;-)

    Julie

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  7. This looks fabulous. The answer to tonights supper puzzle.

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  8. Bacon. Lovely addition! Thanks for sharing.

    Avery
    AveryAames.com

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  9. I am the only asparagus lover in my family, but I think the bacon might help convert others! Personally, I love roasted asparagus made out of the tiniest spears that I can find. That way they get nicely browned and crunchy.

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  10. Galen--Wonder if they package just the tips somewhere? :)

    Cleo--My husband is the SAME way! He likes this one though.

    Krista--Hope it works for you!

    Jane--Thanks!

    Julie--What is it with the non-asparagus-eating men?! Mine too...and Cleo's.

    Ellouise--Thanks! Hope you enjoy it. And thanks so much for stopping by.

    Avery--Bacon! :) Gotta love it.

    Janel--It's amazing what a little bacon can do to a dish!

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  11. I will try this recipe. We have a huge asparagus bed. We love it. This will just be another way to enjoy it. Thanks.

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  12. Library Pat--Wow...really fresh asparagus! That would be so fantastic!

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  13. Thank you to all of you at Mystery Lover's Kitchen for my gift card to Williams Sonoma!! You just don't know how delighted I was to find out I was this weeks winner! I've been doing the dance of joy all week! I'm going to have so much fun shopping this weekend! :) And oh my gosh Cleo, your pork roast recipe is a gotta make! It looks like I have my new recipe to try for this weekend thanks to you. Fortunately I have a very dear & sweet husband who doesn't mind me trying new recipes. Thanks again to all of you for giving me such a wonderful "happy"!!

    Sally

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