February 14, 2019

Hello and & a Happy Valentine's Day to all!

Hope you have a moment to appreciate anyone sweet in your life with even so much as a smile ;o)

Serving up a recipe for CHICKEN & ASPARAGUS LASAGNA today that is a great alternative to the usual. You can eliminate the chicken for a vegetarian recipe too. Now this is what I'm talking about for a nice home cooked meal. Seriously just add some garlic bread and a salad and everyone's happy with this crazy good meal! Scared of asparagus? No worries, scroll below for tips on everything you need to know.

BTW: MORE ABOUT GAAAAAAHLIC?

Microwave unpeeled garlic cloves at 100 percent power 10 to 20 seconds, cool, and store in a self-sealing plastic bag in the coldest part of the refrigerator. Microwaving makes garlic easier to peel and lessens the garlicky smell on your hands. uee the garlic within two weeks.


Enjoy!
Marzee
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CHICKEN & ASPARAGUS LASAGNA

INGREDIENTS:
4 lbs. Fresh asparagus
1 lb. Butter
2 C. Flour
2 C. Chablis
4 tsp. Lemon Zest
2 C. Half and Half
2 C. Milk
16 oz. Ricotta Cheese
8 whole Eggs
1 box Lasagna Noodles
9 boneless skinless Chicken Breasts, cooked
1 lb. Mozzarella Cheese
1 lb. Parmesan Cheese

DIRECTIONS:
Roast asparagus in a small amount of olive oil in oven at
400 degrees for 15 minutes. Make the white sauce with the
next six ingredients. Mix eggs, and Ricotta cheese together,
and add this to the white sauce. Cook lasagna noodles as
directed on package, and coat the noodles with sauce, and
lay in a 9 by 13 inch casserole that has been coated with
nonstick spray. Chop chicken and asparagus, spread over the
noodles, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. One layer of noodles
and repeat. Top with noodles, sauce and mozzarella cheese.
Cook at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. Serve after casserole
has sat for 15 minutes. Toping of red sauce and sprinkle
with Parmesan cheese.

MARINARA SAUCE:
1 large onion, chopped fine
1 carrot, grated
1/2 C. Butter
5 ripe Roma Tomatoes, quartered
1/4 C. chopped Fresh Basil Leaves
1 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Black Pepper
1 to 1 tsp. Sugar
2 C. Chicken Stock

SAUCE DIRECTIONS:
In a quart sauce pan saute onions and carrots in butter.
Stir in tomatoes, basil, salt, pepper, and sugar. Cover and
simmer for 15 minutes. Puree in blender until smooth. Return
to saucepan, and chicken stock and reheat.

Category: Pasta, main dishes

~*~*~*~*~* MARZEE's CORNER *~*~*~*~*~

How to Shop for Asparagus

Look for asparagus that are plump and straight. Check out the
ends and put back any bunches with dry, split, or excessively
woody stems as this is a sign of older asparagus. Thick or
thin asparagus is really a matter of personal taste - thin
spears are more tender and sweet, while fatter stems have a
meatier texture and stronger asparagus flavor.


The Best Way to Store Asparagus
Keep the rubber band on to hold the bunch together, and trim
an inch off the ends of the asparagus. Stand the asparagus
up in a glass or jar with about an inch or two of water,
making sure all the ends are sitting in the water. We've
found that a 2-cup measuring cup is a great container.
Loosely cover the asparagus with a plastic bag and store
in the refrigerator for up to a week. If the water looks
cloudy, just change it as needed. Read more: The Best Way
to Store Asparagus

How to Clean Asparagus
Rinse the spears under cool water to remove any grit. Snap
off the bottom inch or so using your fingers; the stems will
naturally break where the tough woody part ends and the tender
stem begins. Dry the spears by rolling them between two kitchen
towels. You can leave the spears whole or cut them into smaller
bite-sized pieces for a stir-fry or other preparation.

Really thick asparagus can sometimes develop a tough outer skin.
It's not strictly necessary, but you can peel this coating away
with a vegetable peeler.