Asparagus growing

Try this easy to prepare recipe for quick, healthy and refreshing asparagus salad with ham.

Ingredients

asparagus (1,1 lb)
3 tomatoes
3 hard boiled eggs
ham (5 oz)
an onion
salt
vinegar
lemon rind
teaspoon of sugar
6-7 tablespoons of light mayonnaise
chives
parsley

Preparation

Wash asparagus and cut them into pieces 1 inch long. Boil them in water containing salt, sugar, vinegar and lemon rind.
Squash the eggs with a fork (leave 3 slices for decoration), slice the ham, onion, parsley and chives, then mix it altogether with mayonnaise.
Carefully stir cooked and chilled asparagus into this mix and put it all in a bowl.
Decorate the salad with slices of hard boiled eggs and chill it well before serving.

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Asparagus cures hangover and preserves liver

What can we do in case of hangover? We can drink a lot of water, take a rest, but we can also eat asparagus. A new study shows that amino acids and minerals in the extract of asparagus may relieve drowsiness and protect liver cells from toxins in alcohol. Extracts taken from the leaves and shoots of asparagus have been analyzed in the laboratory at the Institute of Medical Sciences at the South Korean National University. The research has shown how asparagus affects on human and rats liver cells.

“The analysis has shown a significant reduction of cell toxicity after treatment of extract from the leaves and shoots of asparagus”, confirmed the principal investigator B.Y. Kim and added: “These results provide evidence of how the biological function of asparagus can help reduce alcohol hangover and protect liver cells.”

Over time, chronic alcohol abuse causes oxidative stress that leads to liver damage, and excessive absorption of alcohol can result with headache, nausea, diarrhea and thirst.

Asparagus has long been used to fight cancer, fungal diseases, inflammation, and is also known by diuretic effect. It is also a good source of folic acid, potassium, fiber, vitamin B6, vitamins A and C and thiamine.

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Ingredients for 4 people:

1 kg (35, 3 ounces) of white asparagus
1 spoon of olive oil
2 tablespoons of sesame seeds

Mustard and onion sauce:

200 g (7, 1 ounces) of shallot (onion)
2 tablespoons of sunflower oil
pinch of sugar
1, 5 dl (5,1 fluid ounces) vegetable clear soup
pinch of saffron
1 spoon of mustard
salt

Preparation and serving:

Peel the white asparagus and cut off the woody ends. Tie them and boil in salted water for about 15 minutes, take them out and drain well. Meanwhile, prepare the sauce of onion. Cut shallot into rings and stew on sunflower oil. Sprinkle onion with a little sugar and stew until it fades. Pour everything with vegetable base soup, add saffron and leave it to cook slowly for about 15 minutes. Then add the mustard sauce and adjust flavor by adding salt. Sauce is ready.

Fry drained and cooked asparagus shortly in olive oil, sprinkle with sesame and fry until sesame receives golden color. Serve on a hot plate with the prepared sauce, onion and salted potatoes or as a side dish with meat. Water in which asparagus were cooked can use as a base of aromatic soup. If leftovers are cooked in it for the next 15 minutes it is rather stronger. Leftovers, of course, must be cleaned.

Technorati Tags: asparagus, asparagus recepies, sesame, white asparagus

Ingredients:

# 14 young asparagus stalks
# 1/2 lemon
# 1 dl olive oil
# Ground coriander
# 1 flat teaspoon brown sugar
# A pinch of salt
# 6 small young potatoes
# 100 g butter
# a bunch of fresh chives
# 2 sheets of baking paper

Preparation

Peel the asparagus from the top down and cut of the thick endings. Cut the lemon into slices. Boil water in your cooking vessel with lemon, brown sugar, coriander, olive oil and then add asparagus. Simmer them for about 3 minutes, then quickly remove them, rinse with cold water and drain. Thoroughly wash the potatoes and boil them with their skin on in salted water. Drain them and rinse with cold water. Heat the oven to 180 ° C.

Grease the baking paper with butter, then spread, on each sheet of paper, seven asparagus stalks, three potatoes and pieces of butter. Close the paper so you get a tight package. Place both bundles on the baking sheet and bake in oven for about 12 minutes.

Serving

Just before serving, cut the top of the paper pack and sprinkle asparagus with salt and chopped chives. Serve the asparagus in the paper in which they were baked.

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Asparagus is considered as one of the most healthful food on the planet and helps many ailments. Compared to other vegetables and fruits it has much more nutrients it supplies. Ten ounces, which is the same as one box of frozen spears, have just 68 calories and 9 grams of protein. Asparagus is an excellent food for loosing weight. It gives you a variety of minerals such as calcium, zinc, copper, selenium and manganese - like a vitamin pill.

Asparagus is populated with antioxidants and other substances that have been shown to prevent tumors and cancers, especially lung cancer, cervical cancer, colon and rectal cancer. Furthermore, it contains the rutin and glutathione that are very important in healing blood and liver vessels. Beside that, it is very rich in folic acid, which is essential for a healthy cardiovascular system. Folic acid is also important in pregnancy because it prevents birth defects. Eating asparagus has benefits in preventing symptoms of PMS, e.g. premenstrual swelling and bloating.

Another value of asparagus are diuretic and alkaline properties. That induces cleansing the body by simulating urination and helps prevent or dissolve kidney stones. This can cause strange smell of urine, but don’t worry, it just means that your kidneys functioning very well.

Technorati Tags: asparagus, cancer, folic acid, health

Asparagus risotto with shrimps

Ingredients (4 persons)

10.5 ounces of wild asparagus
14 ounces of shrimp tails
2 vegetable cubes
2.8 ounces of onion
2 tablespoons of olive oil
10.5 ounces of rice
2 tablespoons white wine
half a lemon
salt
sugar
1 tablespoon of sliced mint

Preparation

1. Cut of the thick asparagus parts and put the tops in boiling water, in which you previously added a bit of salt and sugar. Cook them on low heat for about 5 minutes, and then take them out and drain them.

2. Fry chopped onion on olive oil and add washed rice. Fry altogether shortly, add vegetable cubes and pour with one cup of water.

3. Fry for about 5 minutes while occasionally adding water (about one cup). Then add shrimp tails, asparagus, wine and lemon juice. Fry it altogether for 10 more minutes.

Serving

Arrange the risotto on warm plates and sprinkle with freshly sliced mint.

Tip

After the risotto is cooked, stir in 3/4 ounces of butter.

Technorati Tags: asparagus, asparagus recipe, risotto, shrimps

When making a bouquet for the bride, it is important to consider the greenery that will come with the flowers. Because of their color, shape, and ability to complement flowers asparagus is well known as bridal fern. Asparagus leaves are used for making beautiful bouquets that brides carry on their way to the alter.
Asparagus also look very beautiful when used in garden both for outdoor and indoor. In hanging baskets and window boxes they simply look adorable when it blooms with its bright colors.
The problem is that this foliage has short life, about 2 - 3 days. That is why dry leaves are getting popularity amongst people, as it is an everlasting, inexpensive, and ecological product.
You can preserve asparagus foliages through dehydration with a view to preserve the freshness and beauty of foliages for a long time, embedding one to enjoy its beauty even at home as well as in the office.

How to Dehydrate or Dry Asparagus

Pick asparagus when they are dry because moisture can be appear between leaves and cause mold. Divide the leaves into small bunches, and tie each bunch with an elastic band. String or wire are not good, as the shrinking of the stems as they dry can cause falling out of their tie on to the floor, making damage! Hang the bunches upside down in an airy and warm place (up to 55 degrees Celsius), preferably in the dark or in low light. Strong light will bleach out the beautiful green color. You must assure plenty of room for air circulation to prevent mold forming and to speed up the drying process. You can tell when they are dry by carefully flexing them. If they don’t break they are not ready yet.

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White asparagus is very popular in Europe, where it is also known as spargel, which is the German name for asparagus. As most asparagus in Germany is white, they usually call the green one grüner Spargel. Beside Germany, it is also widely appreciated in Netherlands, France and Belgium. Germany is a big producer of asparagus and they call it the Royal Vegetable.

During the ’60s it was commercially grown in California, but now it can be found in cans or as a pricey, fresh import during a few short months when it is harvested, from late April to early June.
California growers stop producing the white asparagus because it is highly labor-intensive crop so producers from Taiwan took over the industry due to their much lower labor costs.

White asparagus is also called the king of darkness because it grows underground and sometimes it is even referred to as white gold. It is special for how it is produced. It is cultivated by depriving the plants light. The plant is covered with dirt while growing to keep it in the dark. That way the plant cannot produce chlorophyll so the stalks don’t get their green color and remain white. This process of growing white asparagus is called etiolation.

So what effect does this process of production have on its flavor? Well, the white asparagus is slightly bitter, but tender, fibreless, soft and more delicate than the green one.

White asparagus requires more concern when it comes to preparation and storage. The chefs suggest storing it with the tips up in 3 inches of water with a little sugar, for three days maximum.
When preparing the spears for cooking, you can use the potato peeler to peel of the woody pulp and hard skin. Around 30% of the spear would be peeled but it can be used for making a soup.

Technorati Tags: etiolation, growing white asparagus, spargle, white asparagus

Here is short and simple recipe for a quick to prepare and tasty Asparagus soup.

Ingredients

1,5 lbs Asparagus
1 lbs potatoes
1,5 oz smoked bacon
lemon juice
6,5 oz cream
a little parsley, salt and pepper

Preparation

Cook the asparagus, cut and dry them.
Cook the potatoes in the water from the asparagus, drain them and mix with a mixer when they cool down. Add chopped asparagus, chopped and fried bacon, salt and pepper, and lemon juice to taste.
Mix the cream and add it to the soup along with parsley.

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