My most recent addiction:

Crispy Baked Asparagus Fries

Ingredients:

1 pound asparagus, trimmed
1/2 cup flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Dredge the asparagus in the flour, dip them in the egg and then into a mixture of the panko breadcrumbs, parmesan, salt and pepper.

Place the asparagus on a wire rack on a baking sheet and bake in a preheated 425 oven until golden brown, about 7-13 minutes.

I bought some fresh Polish Sausage out of the quick sale bin last week and had to go looking for ideas on how to prepare it. Adapted a recipe from AllRecipes and it was delish.

Sweet Polish Sausage

2 pounds fresh [i.e, raw, not the smoked heat & eat] Polish sausage, cut into 1 inch pieces (I used Klement's brand)
1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 dashes hot pepper sauce
2/3 cup water

Preheat oven to 350.

Place sausage in a large saucepan. Add water to cover and simmer for about 10 minutes. Drain and put the sausage in a casserole dish.

In the same (empty) saucepan combine the Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, onion, sugar, hot pepper sauce and water. Bring all to a boil, stirring to combine ingredients. Pour prepared sauce over the sausage and place in preheated oven.

Bake @ 350 for 45 minutes to one hour.

(I served this with plain white rice to ladle the sauce over.)

Edited to specify using raw sausage

This post was edited by ci_lantro on Tue, May 20, 14 at 8:24

This is quick, easy and refreshing. We've never had jicama before, and I've been curious about it. We loved this salad last nite.

Pineapple and Jicama Slaw

1/2 pineapple, cut in thin slices
1 red pepper, cut in thin slices
1 small jicama, peeled and cut in thin slices
2 tsp lime juice
1 tbsp olive oil

Combine jicama, red pepper and jicama. Stir lime juice and olive oil together and combine with slaw

Added to my "to try" file this morning. Will halve the recipe and add some garlic. My asparagus obsession is about over for the season. LOL

Red Potato and Asparagus Salad

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt, to taste
Cayenne pepper, to taste
3 pounds asparagus, trimmed and cut into chunks
2 pounds small red potatoes, halved
1/3 cup finely chopped chives

Method:

In a small bowl, whisk together Dijon and lemon juice. Drizzle in oil while whisking constantly and then season with salt and cayenne; set dressing aside.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add asparagus and simmer until just tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking; drain well and transfer to a large bowl. Return water to a boil, add potatoes and simmer until just tender, 15 to 20 minutes; drain
well and add to bowl with asparagus. Add dressing, chives and salt and toss to combine. Transfer to a platter and serve at room temperature.

Serves 12 to 14

I had a small boneless pork loin roast. Didn't feel like making a roast--the weather was great--so cut it into some thick chops and went looking for a new marinade recipe. The cinnamon in the recipe was a new wrinkle for me as I had never used cinnamon in a marinade before. Turned out quite good. Served some of the reduced sauce on the chops and drizzled a bit over plain white rice.

Recipe Source: Allrecipes

Grilled Pork Loin Chops

Ingredients:
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons brown sugar
3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons Worcestershire
sauce
2 teaspoons ketchup
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 (6 ounce) thick-cut boneless
pork loin chops

Directions:
1. Mix the garlic, brown sugar, honey, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, ginger, onion powder, cinnamon, and cayenne pepper together in a bowl. Pour half the mixture into a large plastic zipper bag, and place the pork chops into the marinade. Squeeze the air out of the bag, and seal the bag. Refrigerate 4 to 8 hours, turning occasionally. Refrigerate remaining marinade in the bowl.
2. Preheat an outdoor grill for medium heat, and lightly oil the grate.
3. Remove the pork chops from the plastic bag, and shake excess droplets of liquid from the chops. Discard the marinade from the plastic bag. Grill chops on the preheated grill, basting with the reserved marinade until meat is browned, no longer pink inside, and shows good grill marks, 8 to 10 minutes per side. A meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a chop should read at least 145 degrees F (63 degrees C).
4. Pour remaining reserved marinade into a saucepan over medium heat, bring to a boil, and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook the marinade until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes, stirring constantly; serve sauce with chops.