(49) Pasta Carbonara with Asparagus

As I mentioned before, I have zero sense of taste/smell right now. I wish I could give an accurate review of this recipe, but I can't! So I'm recording this for posterity sake and going to have to revisit this one at a later date! If anybody makes this, please let me know what you think! (sorry for such a worthless opener!)

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Pasta Carbonara with Asparagus

Source: Cooking Light, MAY 1997
Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 1/2 cups)

2 1/2 cups (1-inch) diagonally sliced trimmed asparagus
6 tablespoons grated fresh Parmesan cheese, divided
1/4 cup skim milk
1/4 cup egg substitute
2 tablespoons chopped chives
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 ounces uncooked farfalle (bow tie pasta)
2 bacon slices
3/4 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
Freshly ground pepper
Chopped chives (optional)

Bring water to a boil in a medium saucepan; add asparagus. Cook 3 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain; set aside.

Combine 2 tablespoons cheese, milk, egg substitute, 2 tablespoons chives, and salt in a small bowl; set aside.

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain well; set aside.

Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until crisp. Crumble bacon; set aside. Add onion and garlic to bacon drippings in pan; sauté 5 minutes or until tender. Remove from heat; stir in asparagus and bacon.

Combine pasta, milk mixture, and asparagus in a large bowl; toss well. Divide evenly among 4 shallow bowls; top each serving with 1 tablespoon cheese. Sprinkle with pepper; top with chives, if desired.

CALORIES 321 (17% from fat); FAT 6.2g (sat 2.8g,mono 2g,poly 0.8g); IRON 3.4mg; CHOLESTEROL 10mg; CALCIUM 188mg; CARBOHYDRATE 50.8g; SODIUM 437mg; PROTEIN 15.8g; FIBER 3.8g

(97) Thyme-Garlic Roasted Asparagus

I love oven roasted asparagus and really liked the idea of putting minced garlic underneath. It gave the asparagus a garlicky flavor but you don't feel like you could breathe fire from it! I have 8.6 million spices in my cabinet, but for some reason, I was out of thyme! I used dried basil with no issues. Will repeat this one.

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Thyme-Garlic Roasted Asparagus

Yield: 4 servings
Source: Lynda Bennett, Belvedere, California, Cooking Light, JUNE 2007

3 garlic cloves, minced
Cooking spray
1 pound asparagus, trimmed
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 400°.

Spread garlic in an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange asparagus in an even layer over garlic; drizzle with oil. Combine thyme and salt; sprinkle evenly over asparagus. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until asparagus is crisp-tender, turning once.

Nutritional Information
Calories: 45 (24% from fat), Fat: 1.2g (sat 0.2g,mono 0.9g,poly 0.1g), Protein: 2.6g, Carbohydrate: 5.8g, Fiber: 2.6g, Cholesterol: 0.0mg, Iron: 0.6mg, Sodium: 146mg, Calcium: 31mg

(83) Beer-battered Asparagus with Garlic Aioli

Beer-battered Asparagus with Garlic Aioli

Let me tell you something - these were GREAT!!! The aioli was off the hook good (to quote Guy). We ended up putting it on our chicken sandwiches with dinner. YUM! I had a small dish to soak the asparagus in, so I used more like 4 cups of buttermilk. I think you should just adjust it to what you need. Make sure the asparagus is covered completely while soaking.

Source: Guy's Big Bite (foodtv.com)
Yield: 12 servings (but this depends on your asparagus size)

1 bunch medium asparagus, ends trimmed
2 cups buttermilk
2 eggs, separated
3/4 cup beer, lager or pale ale
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white cornmeal
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
4 cups peanut oil
Sea salt
Garlic Aioli, recipe follows

In shallow pan, soak asparagus in buttermilk 12 to 24 hours. Remove from buttermilk, but do not rinse.

In a large bowl, combine well the egg yolks, beer, flour, cornmeal, salt, cayenne pepper and black pepper. In large deep sided pot, heat oil to 350 degrees F. Meanwhile, in a large clean bowl with an electric mixer, beat egg whites to stiff peaks. Gently fold beaten egg whites into batter mixture. Dip spears, 1 at a time into batter, then carefully lay in oil. Do not overcrowd pan. Fry in batches, if necessary. Fry for 2 to 3 minutes, turning the spears with tongs to ensure even cooking. Drain on a paper towel-lined plate. Sprinkle with sea salt, to taste. Serve immediately with Aioli.

(51) Rotini with Chicken, Asparagus, and Tomatoes

Another dinner winner! YUM! This recipe was as fast as they come and very flavorful. And holy cow, the serving size was BIG! Don't skip the goat cheese, either. The creaminess is awesome!

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Rotini with Chicken, Asparagus, and Tomatoes

Reminiscent of a pasta salad, this recipe coats rotini and colorful vegetables with a basil-flecked balsamic vinaigrette.

Yield: 4 servings
Source: Cooking Light Magazine, November 2007

8 ounces uncooked rotini (corkscrew pasta)
Cooking spray
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into 1/4-inch strips
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup (1-inch) slices asparagus
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon extravirgin olive oil
1/4 cup (1 ounce) crumbled goat cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Add chicken and asparagus to pan; sauté 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and garlic to pan; sauté 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir in pasta, basil, vinegar, and oil. Arrange 2 cups pasta mixture on each of 4 plates; top each serving with 1 tablespoon cheese.

Nutritional Information
Calories: 419 (20% from fat), Fat: 9.5g (sat 3.2g,mono 4.1g,poly 1.6g), Protein: 33.9g, Carbohydrate: 48.5g, Fiber: 3.4g, Cholesterol: 70mg, Iron: 3.2mg, Sodium: 324mg, Calcium: 105mg

(32) Lemon-Garlic Shrimp & Vegetables

For a recipe billed as "a twist on shrimp scampi", I sure did expect a STRONG garlic flavor. This was anything but strong. It had nice mild flavors and was VERY filling. 2 lbs of asparagus is a LOT of asparagus! Holy cow!

I used a red and a yellow pepper because the reds looked pitiful. I think next time I'd add a little fresh cracked pepper right @ the end (or maybe even some red pepper flakes! YUM!). I served it over plain old couscous and it was just right! (oh and you've gotta love the nutritional info on this one! Filling and low cal! SCORE!)

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Lemon-Garlic Shrimp & Vegetables

Here’s a healthy twist on shrimp scampi. We left out the butter and loaded the dish up with red peppers and asparagus for a refreshing spring meal. Serve with quinoa, whole-wheat couscous or linguine.

Source: Eating Well Magazine, March/April 2008
Yield: 4 (very generous) servings

4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 large red bell peppers, diced
2 pounds asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch lengths
2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound raw shrimp (26-30 per pound), peeled and deveined
1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add bell peppers, asparagus, lemon zest and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until just beginning to soften, about 6 minutes. Transfer the vegetables to a bowl; cover to keep warm.

2. Add the remaining 2 teaspoons oil and garlic to the pan and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add shrimp and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Whisk broth and cornstarch in a small bowl until smooth and add to the pan along with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring, until the sauce has thickened slightly and the shrimp are pink and just cooked through, about 2 minutes more. Remove from the heat. Stir in lemon juice and parsley. Serve the shrimp and sauce over the vegetables.

NUTRITION INFORMATION: Per serving:
226 calories; 7 g fat (1 g sat, 4 g mono); 174 mg cholesterol; 14 g carbohydrate; 28 g protein; 4 g fiber; 514 mg sodium; 670 mg potassium.

Nutrition bonus: Vitamin C (210% daily value), Vitamin A (80% dv), Folate (53% dv), Iron (25% dv).