Asparagus, Snap Pea, and Avocado Pasta

from Everyday Food Magazine

This is delicious!! And I can't wait to make it when the asparagus and the peas are at the farmer's market.

Ingredients

• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 pound asparagus, ends trimmed and cut into 2-inch lengths
• 1 pound sugar snap peas, strings removed
• 1 pound bow-tie pasta (farfalle)
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 ripe avocado, halved, pitted, peeled, and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh mint, parsley, or basil
• 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan or pecorino cheese, plus more for serving, if desired

Directions

1. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook asparagus until bright green, about 2 minutes. Add snap peas; cook 30 seconds. With a slotted spoon or a small sieve, scoop out vegetables; transfer to a bowl.
2. Return water to a boil; add pasta and cook until al dente, according to package instructions. Drain, reserving 1 cup pasta water; set pasta aside in colander.
3. In pasta pot, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add asparagus, snap peas, and garlic; season with salt and pepper. Cook, tossing, until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter, cooked pasta, avocado, herbs, cheese, and reserved pasta water. Toss to combine; season with salt and pepper. Serve topped with additional cheese, if desired.

Lentil salad

 

 From http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2009/05/recipe-for-lentil-salad-with-green.html

Lentil Salad with Green Olives, Red Bell Pepper, Green Onion, and Greek Oregano
(Makes 4-6 servings, recipe created by Kalyn)

1 cup brown lentils
1 T + 1 T fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 T + 1 T balsamic vinegar
1 T + 3 T olive oil
1 red bell pepper, diced small
1 jar (6 oz.) green olives
3/4 cup sliced green onion
1/2 tsp. sweet paprika
3/4 cup finely chopped Greek Oregano (I always use dry-- maybe 1 TBSP or so- season to taste)
salt/fresh ground black pepper to taste

Put lentils in pan with 3 cups water, bring to very low simmer, and let cook until lentils are soft. (This will be about 30 minutes, but cooking times can vary quite a bit depending on how fresh the lentils are, so just keep tasting until they're soft.)

Dump lentils into a colander and let drain about 15 minutes, then toss with 1 t each of olive oil, fresh lemon juice, and balsamic vinegar. Let lentils marinate in the fridge for a few hours if you have time. (You can skip the marinating step if you're rushed, but at least toss the warm lentils with the oil, vinegar, and lemon and let them marinate while you prep other ingredients.)

Chop red bell pepper and green onions and place in medium-sized plastic or glass bowl. Coarsely chop olives and add to bowl.

Mix together remaining 1 T lemon juice, 1 T balsamic vinegar, and sweet paprika, then whisk in 3 T olive oil. Add marinated lentils to ingredients in the bowl and gently combine with dressing. (You may not need all the dressing, depending on how wet you prefer your salads.)

Finely chop Greek Oregano with chef's knife and gently stir into salad. Season to taste with salt and fresh ground black pepper.

This will keep in the refrigerator for a few days.

Lindsey's Clumpy Granola

I tweaked this to try and make it taste like Lindsey's store bought granola.

1 1/2 cups slivered almonds
1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1 cup quick cooking oats
1 cup rice crispies
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup unrefined sesame oil
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon
dash of nutmeg
dash of coarse salt

1 cup raisins

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and cover a cookie sheet with foil.
2. Mix the dry ingredients in a big bowl (nuts, oats, crispies, coconut, seeds).
3. In a small bowl whisk together the wet ingredients and spices (honey, oil, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt).
4. Pour the wet over the dry- set the small bowl aside for later use.
5. Stir all the ingredients really really well, to coat the dry with all the honey/oil.
6. Pour it onto the cookie sheet and spread it around with a wooden spoon so it's in an even layer.
7. Put it in the oven and set the timer for 7 minutes.
8. Meanwhile, if you want plump soft raisins, put the cup of raisins in the bowl you used for the honey/oil (the bowl will most likely have left over cinnamon and honey in it, so I like to use the same bowl). And cover the raisins with water. Let them soak while the granola bakes. If you don't care to plump up your raisins, skip this step.
9. When the 7 minutes is up, take the granola out of the oven and stir it around with your wooden spoon. Put it back in the oven and set the timer for another 7 minutes. Repeat this process three more times so you've cooked your granola a total of 28 minutes and stirred it a total of 4 times.
10. Take the granola out when it's a nice golden brown color and smells toasty.
11. Leave it on the cookie sheet to cool and harden- I leave mine out for almost an hour so it's cooled off.
12. While the granola's cooling you can drain the raisins and put them on a towel to dry.
13. When the granola is cool break it up into clumps- as big or small as you want. With the smaller pieces it's handy to just pick up the foil, fold it, and let the granola slide into a container- that's why I like to use foil.
14. Toss the granola with the raisins and store in an airtight container.
15. Yum.