Wow, guys, I feel so behind!

I think this is because I have taken no less than fourteen pictures of food and yet you guys have had nothing to read! Well, since the pie, and oh my, how can we forget about the pie? Anyway, the following are the two meals that I made last week.

Palatable, yes?

The asparagus casserole I made Tuesday was a so-so success. I augmented the recipe in that I used frozen asparagus instead of canned—canned veggies fill me with horror—but nonetheless, it took too long in the oven and really didn’t taste like much of anything at all. Admittedly, it was described as “pablum” but I always like the idea of cheese and breadcrumbs and asparagus.

Another view of the pablum

Asparagus Casserole

6 eggs

1/4 cup water

3 tbl. all-purpose flour

2 cups whole milk

1 cup grated cheddar cheese (I used Parmesan because that’s what I had on hand)

2 19-oz. cans asparagus, drained (I used 12 oz frozen asparagus prepped as per the package)

1/2 cup breadcrumbs

1 tbl. unsalted butter, room temperature

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Add water to cover eggs by at least 1 inch. Bring to a boil over high heat. Once at a boil, cover and remove from heat. Set aside for 10 minutes.  Drain and chill under cold running water. Peel and slice eggs. Set aside.

Combine the water and flour in a small bowl and stir until smooth. Place the milk in a medium saucepan. Add water-flour mixture to the milk and stir to combine. Turn the heat to medium high and bring to a boil, stirring constantly, until the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon, about 7 minutes. Add cheese and season with salt and pepper. Keep warm over low heat.

In a large casserole dish, place one layer of asparagus. Top with three sliced eggs. Pour half the cheese sauce over eggs and asparagus. Top with another of remaining eggs and asparagus. Pour the remaining sauce over this layer. Sprinkle with bread crumbs on top of the mixture. Dot top with butter. Bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes.

Hearty and filling and good for you!

Baked potatoes are one of those things that I rarely make at home, but also rarely order out. The baked potato is such a staid mainstay that it’s easy to forget about it unless you’re at one of those high-class steakhouses where the simple vegetable becomes a lesson in decadence: sour cream, butter, chives, etc. But how about making it at home and making it healthy? Using the baked potato as a vehicle for other veggies and some meat.

(Oh yes, if you insist on some sort of dairy for dolloping, I recommend nonfat plain yogurt. It’s better than sour cream.)

Yes, it looks messy. It is.

Sloppy Turkey Spuds

2 large baking potatoes

12 oz. extra-lean ground turkey

1 medium onion, chopped

1 medium bell pepper, chopped

1 3/4 cup marinara sauce

1/4 tsp. fresh ground pepper

salt, optional

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1/4 grated Parmesan cheese

Scrub potatoes under cold running tap water. Pat dry. Now the recipe recommends you microwave them, but if you have the time, I’d like to refer you here because Alton Brown knows all. I’ve never had any luck with microwaved potatoes so I’ll take the extra hour.

Cook turkey in large nonstick skillet over medium heat for about 6 minutes or until no longer pink. Add onion, bell pepper; cook, stirring, for about  3 minutes. Stir in marinara sauce. Bring to boil, reduce heat and cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper; stir in parsley, remove from heat. Split and fluff potatoes with a fork, top them with the turkey mixture and enjoy!