Asparagus Round-Up

Asparagus, one of spring's first.

How To Buy
Choose firm, bright green asparagus stalks with plump, tightly closed tips. Fading color is a sign of deterioration. Check the stem ends to make sure they look freshly cut, not shriveled or dried out.
How To Store
Uncooked asparagus will stay fresh for three to four days in the refrigerator. The secret is to keep the vegetable cool and damp. Store spears upright in a container with the stems wading in an inch of water, then cover loosely with a plastic bag. Easier still: Wrap the ends in moist paper towels and drop the bundle into a plastic bag.
Asparagus Quiche with Dill Havarti and Bacon

Cook's Notes: Omit the bacon and it's a vegetarian meal perfect for your Easter brunch or a meatless Friday. Cooking time for quiche depends on size of the pan. The recipe below is for a standard 10 inch pie pan using a Pillsbury Refrigerated Rolled Crust.

If using a 9 inch frozen pie crust such as Marie Callender will need to add more cooking time at the end because pie pan is smaller.   

Ingredients:

• 1 prepared pie crust 
• 6 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 4 oz. asparagus, cooked, drained and cut in 2 inch pieces 
• 1 tsp. dried parsley flakes 
• 1/4 cup green onions, diced
• 1-1/2 cups grated Havarti Dill or White Cheddar Cheese
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 4 large eggs
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup half and half
• 1 TB.Dijon mustard
• Optional: 1 cup torn baby spinach leaves

Directions:

• Let pie crust stand at room temperature for 10 minutes.
• Bring salted water to a boil, add asparagus, boil 1 minute. drain and pat dry.
• Cook bacon and set aside. 
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees and place pie crust in a pie pan, crimp edges.
• Line pastry shell with 2 sheets of foil (blind baking) overlap the foil so edges will extend over the pie pan.

• Bake for 7 minutes, remove foil and bake 3 minutes more.
• Mix in a blender eggs, cream, half and half and parsley flakes.
• Brush bottom crust with Dijon mustard.
• Sprinkle bacon, asparagus pieces, cheeses, onions on bottom of pie crust.
• Tear foil strips and place around the outside edges of pan to avoid over browning.

• Use a measuring cup and slowly pour filling in pie pan. 
• Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes, reduce to 325 degrees and bake 25 minutes more or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. 
• Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Baked Pork Chops with Peach Whiskey Sauce and Asparagus 
https://sockfairies.blogspot.com/2015/03/baked-pork-chops-with-peach-whiskey.html

A Taste of Spring in a Salad
https://sockfairies.blogspot.com/2019/03/spring-for-these-spring-dishes.html

Barcelona, Spain
I follow food blogger Ali from gimmesomeoven. Two years ago she and her husband moved to Barcelona, Spain from Kansas. Her fans have been asking her how life has been lately with lockdown in Spain. Her account is fascinatingly told with heartfelt words as they struggle to meet the daily challenges of their life the past few months. I am including the link to her recent post as it's quite interesting reading from a perspective of an American in Spain.   
https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/life/day-in-the-life-3/ 
Her recipe for Honey Beer Bread was one of my most recent postings.