Ham & Asparagus Casserole

It's fresh asparagus season in Washington. It is one of the locally grown favorites this time of year. I picked some up at the grocery and they were young, small, and delicate. I decided to create a dish using ham and cheese, of course. This is the recipe I came up with. It was very good, but got a little juicy. It was still delicious and we ate the whole casserole (two people!)

1 bunch of fresh young asparagus
A few scallions, chopped into pieces
1 package of ham slices, or slice your own
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
2 tablespoons lemon juice
salt & pepper

Parboil the trimmed asparagus for 5 minutes. I left mine in long spears, but it was hard to serve. I would cut them into large pieces instead. Drizzle some olive oil in the bottom of a 9 x 13 casserole dish. Drain the cooked asparagus and arrange in the bottom of the dish. Sprinkle scallions over the asparagus.


Lay ham slices over the top. Salt and pepper over the ham. Mix the soup, mayo, mustard, and lemon juice. Spread this mixture over the ham.


Cover with shredded cheese and sprinkle paprika over all. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes, or until bubbly and heated through.

Stir Fry Shrimp and Asparagus

This is a quick meal for those nights when you haven't planned ahead. I used frozen jumbo shrimp, but fresh would be even better. It is asparagus season in the Northwest, so I used baby fresh asparagus that were wonderful. I made some brown rice to have with this dish. I will give the ingredients and method; the amounts are up to you.

1 bunch of fresh young asparagus

Thawed, frozen jumbo shrimp

Prepared chili-garlic sauce

Scallions, chopped in large pieces

Red bell peppers, sliced into strips

Soy sauce

Salt & pepper

Sesame seeds

Sliced almonds

Canola oil

Molasses

Heat a wok on Med-Hi heat, with a little canola oil in the bottom. Add some chili-garlic sauce to the oil and stir around. Drop in the thawed shrimp and stir fry just a couple of minutes. Remove. In the same oil add the asparagus, which has been cleaned and chopped in half. At this time also add scallions, red pepper strips, and seasonings. At this time you can add more chili-garlic sauce if you like. Stir fry until the asparagus begins to wilt, then add seeds and almonds and continue stirring. Add the shrimp back into the mixture and then drizzle molasses over the top of all. Stir well and serve with rice.