When he said this, I almost cried.
It wasn’t supposed to taste like bacon.
It wasn’t supposed to be wilted and floppy like soggy bacon.
It was supposed to be a little crisp and taste really good..like really good asparagus.
But it really did have this amazing smoky taste…kinda like bacon.
Let me start at the beginning.
I have a wonderful cookbook, Fresh, Fast & Green, that is full of ways to make vegetables more exciting than just boiled to death in a pot. I’ve used several recipes and loved every one of them. It even has a roasted tomato recipe, but I ignored it THEN because y’all know I hated tomatoes at one time. Anyway, I saw the recipe for braised buttered asparagus. Basically, you let the asparagus get brown in butter and then add some good liquid and let it steam. The brown bits on the bottom make a great flavor, according to the recipe. Butter makes everything better and I’m not afraid of it. I don’t eat enough to create heart issues or fat issues so when a recipe calls for a tablespoon of butter for the whole dish, I go for it. But how in the world the asparagus took on a smoked flavor is beyond me.
It was right, but I wasn’t sure if I could get around the floppy texture.
I certainly did get around it and inhaled every floppy bite. I think I could make a bunch of other vegetables just like this.
This was the butter browning part. Then I poured in 1/4 cup of chicken stock, 1/4 cup of white wine. Cover and let it cook two minutes. Then add a tablespoon of dijon mustard and scrape up the bits off the bottom. That’s the important part. Stir it all together and try not to cry.
When you plate it, make the rest of the meal look outstanding and hide the floppy green stuff. Next time, I’ll cut down the cooking time to 1 minute in the liquid. I really want crispier asparagus.
Salmon and slow roasted sweet potatoes
Tomorrow is tuesday. Again. I better get some sleep and maybe get a head start on beating down the evil tuesday vibes. (I never capitalize tuesday. It doesn’t need any more power than it already has.)
Sarah (Running To Slow Things Down)
Saturday 16th of April 2011
I love this! I'll have to try making some "bacon tasting asparagus" for my dad, as he would totally love this. Thank you for this! :D