My all time favorite way to cook asparagus

I love asparagus but whenever I have had it in a restaurant it has been boiled... ick! So here is my oven method that I found the very first time I ever made it! I would eat this over french fries any day!

Set your oven to 400° F

To prepare the asparagus rather than cutting the ends, which can leave some of the hard woody part, I break them. Simply hold onto each end of it and bend it till it snaps this will ensure that you are left with only yummy tender asparagus and no hard woody stuff!

Rinse it well and make sure it is mostly dry (I have left it wet and it doesn't hold the oil and seasoning well).

Lay them on you cookie sheet or whatever you want to cook it on and drizzle about 1-2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil on it (enough to coat all of the asparagus). Then sprinkle salt and pepper and toss them around to make sure all are coated well.

Finally spread them out so they are flat on the pan on pop them into the oven. I suggest 5-10 minutes or until it is a darker green and fragrant, you can also test with a fork for the desired crispness but I like mine on the crispy side and it is so flavorful. *You don't want it to turn brown or it will be soggy.

Lime Chicken with rice

This recipe has been a favorite since I worked at this group home and was able to cook from a 200 calorie entree cookbook by Betty Crocker. I love to use this for enchiladas, nachos, or just by itself with toppings that you would put on enchiladas or nachos. We made it last night and I was all out of rice so I used quinoa and I think it was even better and tricked us into thinking I had more chicken then usual (which I didn't).

Ingredients:

• 1 package (1 pound 4 ounces) chicken thighs (I use 3 or 4 thighs depending on the size and I buy the boneless skinless but you can buy bone in either way it falls apart after 8 hours)
• 1/4 fresh lime juice (1-2 limes)
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth (reduced sodium is great)
• 2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves (we use ground thyme and it works just as well, just whatever you have)
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 cup uncooked instant rice (or like I said quinoa)
• chopped fresh parsley, if desired

Directions:

1. Place chicken (frozen or thawed in slow cooker and add remaining ingredients except rice and parsley. 
2. Cover and cook on low heat setting 8 to 10 hours. During last 15 minutes of cooking stir in rice (30 minutes if using quinoa).
3. The recipe says to remove the chicken and spoon rice onto a plate then add the chicken and top with parsley. I have found the chicken will just shred itself and mix with the rice and just be wonderful for enchilada fillings like I said. 

I hope you enjoy this one as much as we do!

Experimenting With Fish... Blackened Salmon

I have recently decided that we need to incorporate fish into our diets and have tried a few recipes and not loved any as much as this one. We have made this recipe twice now and it is definitely one of my favorites as I do not like fish that tastes fishy... While the ingredients sound like this will be really spicy it really isn't, it is actually balanced quite nicely. We usually pair it with steamer vegetables and rice-a-roni but I would would use whatever sides sound good to you. Warning: when you are "blackening" the fish it will sting your nose a bit.

I took this from the web since I forgot to take a
picture but this is how it should look. 

Ingredients:
1 1/2 tbsp paprika
3/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter (I'm sure you can use salted and be fine)
Juice of one lemon
**optional: lemon to squeeze on top
4 6-ounce salmon fillets skinned (We only use three)

Directions: 
Heat oven to 400° F. 
In a shallow bowl combing the spices. 
In a saucepan, over medium heat, melt the butter and add the lemon juice. 
Working with one salmon fillet at a time, dip the top and bottom halves first in the lemon butter, then in the spices. 
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the salmon until blackened, about two minutes per side. 
Transfer to oven (if skillet is oven proof use that, or move to a baking sheet) and cook for 8 minutes. 

I hope you enjoy this as much as I do!

Best Pizza I Have Ever Made!

I have tried many pizza dough recipes since I have been experimenting with bread dough lately and the last one I made was good, but not awesome. Then I stumbled upon this one, and my oh my... it was the best pizza I think I have ever had hands down! Even the boys said it was the best pizza so I am sharing it here so I don't lose it and so all of you can have the recipe if you would like!

Fail-Proof Pizza Dough and Cheesy Garlic Bread Sticks

You will never need another pizza dough recipe after this one!

yield: 2-12 INCH PIZZA CRUSTS; ABOUT 1 LB. OF DOUGH

INGREDIENTS:

for the pizza dough-
1 cup warm water
2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 tablespoon honey {or sugar}
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons olive or canola oil
3 cups bread flour {give or take 1/2 cup...depending on the heat & humidity}

for the cheesy garlic bread sticks-
1/2 recipe Fail-Proof Pizza Dough from above
2 tablespoons softened salted butter
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese {use the real stuff!}
1/4 pound grated mozzarella cheese
{salt & pepper, or italian seasoning, if desired}
{sauce for dipping, if desired, they are wonderful even without!}

DIRECTIONS:

For the pizza dough--In a large mixing bowl, preferably that of a stand mixer, stir yeast and honey into warm water. Sit for 5-10 minutes or until bubbles form and mixture starts to foam. This tells you that the yeast is alive and kicking. Pour in salt, oil and half the flour and mix. Once that flour is incorporated, start adding flour in bit by bit until you get the pizza dough to the consistency you want: slightly tacky, but when you touch it it doesn't stick to your hands. Once you reach this stage, knead for 6 minutes. Turn a timer on and walk away! Resist the temptation to stop earlier than 6 minutes! That seems to be the magical number. It should look something like this when it's done! The dough should be smooth and easy to work with. And the bowl should be clean! Lightly grease the bowl & the dough so it doesn't dry out, cover with plastic wrap and let it rise 1-2 hours. That's it! 

Roll pizza dough out into a 12-inch circle on parchment paper. {This makes it easier to transfer to the hot pizza stone.}{If you don't have a pizza stone, use an upside down cookie sheet... Best tip Ever!!}

Preheat oven to 500 degrees with pizza stone inside.  Bake about ten minutes till hot and bubbly!

For the Cheesy Garlic Bread Sticks-
Mix butter and garlic in a small bowl and set aside.
Spread pizza dough out into a 12-inch circle on parchment paper.
Spread the butter and garlic mixture over dough and top with Parmesan and mozzarella cheeses.