Monday, February 16, 2009

Stir Fry Asparagus with Cashews

My first and only regret/apology...no photos of this yummy veggie side dish. Had I known it was this impressive, I would have. It was a long day and this was such a quick dinner to make; I just didn't think to grab a camera.

I had to post this recipe and I'm just asking you to trust me. Just make it. Soon. Its delicious, and so easy but looks so fancy. DH raved about it, and he is not a veggie eater, much less something that was as out of the ordinary for our meals. We usually stick to frozen/steamed broccoli, canned green beans, etc. I bet you could even add some chicken or tofu and make this more of a main dish.

I served this as a side with salmon (very lightly seasoned with seafood rub and baked in foil packets), and brown rice.

INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger root (I omitted this, I DO NOT like ginger related anything-seeing as I love the recipe so much, I guess it didn't hurt to leave it out.)
1 bunch asparagus stalks, ends cut
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 cup chopped cashews

DIRECTIONS
Heat olive oil and sesame oil in a wok over low to medium heat. Add ginger, and stir-fry until slightly brown. Add asparagus, and stir-fry for a few minutes before adding soy sauce and cashews. Cook until asparagus is tender but still crisp and bright green, stirring frequently.

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Rolo Snacks

These are good...TOO good. I mean, I had to put them where I couldn't see them. The closest thing I can compare them to is a turtle candy. But even though this is a lot simpler, I think it is so much tastier!
I couldn't find a bag of the little square pretzels, but I found them in 100 calorie packs. I thought about a regular pretzel so I could get a bag, but I think the chocolate needs more of a foundation, if that makes sense. I didn't want it melting through. So, I went ahead with the 100 calorie packs...now that they are done, I wouldn't use any other pretzel-these are perfect.
So here it is...little square pretzels, Rolos, and pecan halves. That's it! I'll note that my "batch" was an entire bag of Rolos, 3 100 calories packs of pretzels, and one 2oz bag of pecan halves.

Place pretzels on a baking sheet, top each one with a Rolo and bake for 3 minutes at 250 degrees. Place a pecan half atop each Rolo (kind of press it a little...don't flatten it completely, but smoosh enough to where everything is for sure stuck together when they cool). I stuck mine in the freezer while they were still on the baking sheet so they could set. Place them in an airtight container and store in a cool place.





I kept mine in the fridge, but you have to leave them out a few minutes before you eat them or they are too hard...but if they aren't stored in the fridge they were to soft and stuck together. You can pick how you like them.

You can be creative with the topping...any type of nut would work (almonds, walnuts). I saw a variation using Hersey's Kissables as the toppers as well.