Now That's The "Spear-It"

Only twenty calories in five spears, nutritionally well balanced, in season and great tasting. Only a few minutes of cooking time and I am munching those spears one after another as if they were pretzel rods. I seem to do the same thing with brussel sprouts I eat them as if they were popcorn. It's not that I can't have the pretzels or the popcorn; I actually enjoy the asparagus and the brussel sprouts and find them to be a treat and not a deprivation.
Asparagus is so low in calorie that you can actually fill your plate without fretting over the portion size. This recipe is perfect if you are looking for something a little different with loads of flavor without packing on too many additional calories.
If you would like to have this salad as a meal rather than a side, just add some tuna for the addition of protein. The tuna would actually make this more of a traditional Nicoise salad.

Asparagus Nicoise

3 lbs. of asparagus trimmed
6 Tablespoons of red wine vinegar
3 Teaspoons. Dijon mustard
1/2 c. of olive oil
3 shallots minced
3 plum tomatoes, diced (any nice ripe tomato will do)
1/2 c. Nicoise or Kalamata olives, rinsed and drained
1 1/2 Tablespoons drained capers

Place asparagus in a large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, about 4-5 minutes, then drain. Transfer asparagus to bowl of ice cold water to stop the cooking process.

Whisk vinegar and mustard in small bowl, slowly whisk in the oil until it emulsifies. Then add in the shallots, tomatoes, olives and capers, salt and pepper to taste. Drain asparagus and arrange on individual plates or on a big serving platter and let everyone help themselves. Spoon Nicoise mixture over asparagus and serve cold

This Post Just "Popped" Into My Mind.

Popcorn is one of those blank slate ingredients that allows your imagination to run wild. You can go sweet or savory; make it Mexican with a little chili powder or Italian with some garlic and basil. You can drizzle it with chocolate or caramel or add fruits and nuts and turn it into a trail mix. You can roll popcorn into balls or press into cakes, make it into clusters or just eat it loose out of bag, box or bowl.

Popcorn is so inexpensive; it's filling, loaded with fiber and for the most part very healthy depending on how we prepare it.

I don't believe that I have ever met anyone who doesn't like popcorn.....so get popping and start snacking!

Pizza Popcorn

1/3 c. butter

1/4 c. Parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 tsp. basil

1/2 tsp. oregano

1/4 tsp. onion powder

10 c. fresh popcorn

Melt butter. Add Parmesan cheese and seasonings. Pour over popcorn in shallow baking pan. Stir to mix. Heat in preheated oven at 300 degrees for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Popcorn Cake

1 Bundt pan full of popcorn

1 (12 oz.) jar dry roasted peanuts

1 (16 oz.) pkg. M&M'S®

1 (16 oz.) pkg. marshmallows
1 stick butter

Important: Spray all utensils with a non stick spray.

In a large mixing bowl, mix popcorn, peanuts and M&M'S®. Melt butter and marshmallows together over low heat. When completely melted, pour over popcorn mixture in bowl and stir gently. Pack in Bundt pan. Let stand for 10 minutes. Turn pan over and lift off. Cake should slide right out.



Chocolate Popcorn Clusters

8 oz. semi-sweet chocolate
1 tbsp. butter
2 c. popcorn
1 c. coarsely chopped nuts

Lightly oil cookie sheet. Melt chocolate and butter over hot water in double boiler. In large bowl mix popcorn and nuts, then pour melted chocolate over, toss. Spoon candy in clusters onto oiled sheet. Store in tightly covered container in cool place, layered by wax paper or plastic wrap.

Peanut Butter Popcorn

1/4 c. sugar

1/4 c. corn syrup (light)

1/4 c. peanut butter
4 c. popcorn, popped

Combine sugar and syrup in large pan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until mixture comes to full boil. Remove from heat and stir in peanut butter and vanilla. Mix well. Pour over popcorn and stir until coated.

Cooking With Triscuits

The perfect snack food especially some of the new flavors such as roasted garlic and rosemary olive oil. It is a little hard to put them down once you get started that is why it is better to open the box when you have plenty of people to share them with. One day while sitting around with family and friends munching on some triscuits we started talking about all the delicious recipes there are using the crunchy little crackers. I could not believe all the creative uses, have some fun and give these a try.





Triscuit Wraps

Sprinkle a little brown sugar on a Triscuit, wrap 1/2 slice of bacon around. Secure with a toothpick and bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes.


Triscuit Chicken Bake

1 pkg. Triscuits, crushed and crumbled
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 can water chestnuts, drained and sliced
2 cans asparagus (may be frozen) in pieces
2 lb. cooked chicken, cut up
1/2 c. mayonnaise
1 c. mushrooms, cut in pieces

Mix soup, water chestnuts, asparagus, cooked chicken, mayonnaise and mushrooms. Place half of package of Triscuits in bottom of greased 9x13 inch pan. Add above mixture and sprinkle the rest of the Triscuits over the top. Cover and bake 1 hour at 350 degrees. Remove aluminum cover the last 10-15 minutes to brown.

Triscuit Burgers

1 1/2 c. crushed Triscuits
3/4 c. milk
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 c. chopped onion
1 lb. ground beef

Soak Triscuits in milk in large bowl until soft. Add remaining ingredients, mixing well. Shape into patties. Sauté in skillet until your desired degree of doneness.

Getting Corny on Super Bowl Sunday

I thought that I would join the “Super bowl Sunday” snack bandwagon that has been going around for the past couple of weeks. I have to say I have seen some really good ideas for perfect Super bowl party fare. I love popcorn, it’s just a great all around snack food that is really fun to share ……. So please pass it around, have fun and enjoy!

Honey Roasted Popcorn

1/3 cup honey
1/4 butter
1/2 brown sugar
4 cups popcorn (popped)
1/2 tablespoon milk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
In a good size bowl mix the honey, butter, brown sugar and milk. Add the already popped popcorn and mix. Spread on a cookie sheet or in a baking pan and bake at 375 for 10-15 minutes, watch carefully it can burn easily. Let cool a bit then enjoy