Asparagus Caesar Salad

April 28, 2016 · by Carrie Trax · Leave a Comment

Tender green spears of asparagus are popping up out of the ground all around Oregon! Asparagus can be grilled, steamed or just eaten raw fresh from the garden. With fresh lettuce I bought with the asparagus from the market I wanted to make a quick and simple salad combining the two. Caesar salad came to mind and instead of serving with croutons I made the asparagus the crouton of the salad. In less than 20 minutes you will have a side salad with dinner or a meal all by itself. When buying asparagus look for firm stems, the tips are tight with moist and plump stems.

Asparagus Caesar Salad
12 asparagus spears, washed & ends trimmed off
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons panko crumbs
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1 head Romaine lettuce
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Homemade Caesar dressing, recipe below

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a 11×7-inch baking dish place the asparagus spears and drizzle with the olive oil. Roll the asparagus in the olive oil to cover. Sprinkle with the salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese. In small bowl mix the panko bread crumbs with the butter and sprinkle over the asparagus. Bake uncovered for 10 minutes.

Cut end off the romaine lettuce and separate the leaves (wash as needed) and lay on 4 plates. If you prefer smaller pieces cut lettuce before placing on plates. Lay cooked asparagus on top and sprinkle with the grated Parmesan cheese. Drizzle with the homemade Caesar dressing and serve. Serves 4.

Homemade Caesar Dressing
4 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon anchovy paste (optional)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
2 tablespoons water
salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste

In the bowl of a food processor or blender, add all ingredients except the olive oil, parmesan cheese, water, and salt and pepper. Process to combine.
While blending, slowly drizzle in the olive oil. Add the parmesan cheese, and blend until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and thin with water to desired consistency.
Keep dressing refrigerated in a sealed container until ready to use. Use within several days of making.

Fresh Dungeness Crab Salad with Grilled Asparagus

April 7, 2013 · by Carrie Trax · Leave a Comment

With fresh asparagus coming into season and Dungeness crab still in season in Oregon I made a Fresh From Oregon crab salad with a lemon vinaigrette. The best way to serve asparagus on a salad is grilled with olive oil and seasoned with a little salt and pepper. This will make two nice size salads.

Fresh Dungeness Crab Salad
1 head butter lettuce
1 pound fresh Dungeness Crab meat, cooked
1/2 pound asparagus grilled
1 each green, red and yellow peppers, cut in strips
2 hard boiled eggs, cut in quarters
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 lemon, cut in wedges
Divide and place the butter lettuce on two plates. In the center of the salad divide and place half of the Dungeness Crab meat. Around the crab arrange the asparagus, peppers, eggs and cherry tomatoes. Serve with the lemon vinaigrette and garnish with lemon wedges.

Lemon Vinaigrette
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
6 tablespoon olive oil
In a pint size mason jar add lemon zest, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, salt and pepper. Shake until mixed. Mixing with a small whisk slowly add the olive oil until it is combine and mixed well. You can give it a good shake after whisking, (with a tight lid on).

Pork Sandwich & Apple slaw

September 3, 2012 · by Carrie Trax · 2 Comments

I woke up to a beautiful Labor Day morning in Oregon of blue skies and the wonderful sound of the river coming through my window. This was going to be an awesome day for an afternoon hike for the first week in September here in Oregon. I need to get the Pioneer Woman’s Spicy Dr. Pepper Shredded Pork I made last week from the freezer into the crock pot to heat up. I made a big batch so my son Scott could take some down to the Hoodland Fire department were he is a volunteer. After a little work around the house the pork was ready to send with Scott keeping back some for sandwiches after the hike. If you live in the Pacific Northwest you know that the Pacific Crest Trail runs from Canada to Mexico. We are lucky enough to live right down the road from were you can jump onto the trail. John and I loaded Sage in the car for a small afternoon hike, with this being Sage’s first hike. We took the trail towards the south which gave us a great view of Mt Hood and then walked 20 feet and had a view of Mt Adams, which is located in the state of Washington. We had a great afternoon hike and found a patch of huckleberries along the way. Check out tomorrow’s post to see what I am making John and Scott with the huckleberries we picked.

After returning from our hike we were ready to eat and instead of making the traditional coleslaw with cabbage to go with the pork I decided to make some apple slaw. I had bought some Honey Crisp apples, that just came into season, at the farmers market on Saturday. I hope you all had a wonderful Labor Day!

Happy 1st Wedding Anniversary to my son and daughter-in-law, Johnny & Jess!

Apple slaw
2 apples ( I used Honey Crisp)
1/2 cup mayonnaise (I use Miracle Whip what can I say!)
2 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoon white vinegar
dash salt and pepper
1/2 cup dried cranberries
2 tablespoon Oregon hazelnuts, toasted & chopped

Fill a medium bowl with water and add a tablespoon of lemon juice. Cut apples with skin on (looks prettier) into matchstick size pieces and place into lemon water to prevent browning. In small bowl combine Miracle Whip, sugar, vinegar, salt and pepper and whisk to combine. Drain water from apples and add the cranberries and hazelnuts.

If you do not have hazelnut (which is the state nut of Oregon) you can use pecans or walnuts. Toss with the Miracle Whip mixture until coated. I added a side of my Bread & Butter pickles to finish off the meal.