When you saute or roast asparagus in hot olive oil, the asparagus will have a much more concentrated flavour than it would if steamed or blanched.
Add the garlic to the pan once the asparagus is just about done, so that the garlic cooks only long enough to soften and sweeten.
This dish is delicious with eggs - poached or scrambled. The asparagus can be hard to resist but it is very nutritious and healthy, so treat yourself!
Ingredients:
1 small bulb of garlic
2 tablespoons of olive oil
500g asparagus, trimmed and cut on the diagonal into 5cm lengths
Salt & pepper to taste
1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
Method:
Separate the garlic into cloves, remove the skins and cut into think slices
Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large, heavy pan.
Add the asparagus and salt to taste and saute until asparagus is tender and the skin has shriveled slightly, about 5 minutes.
Add the garlic and continue to saute for another minute until garlic is translucent.
Adjust salt if required and add pepper and parsley and serve.
Serves 4
This is best when served right away.
Martha Rose Schulman "The Very Best of Recipes for Health"
From The New York Times.
I live
close enough to be able to walk to where I shop and strong enough to be
able to carry my groceries home; for both of those facts I am thankful.
I
was walking to the shops last week, enjoying the sunshine, saying "good
afternoon" to the people I passed in my neighbourhood and getting 20
minutes of walking in, when I realised the value of all the things I was
getting done at once:
- I was outside, soaking up my vitamin D content,
- getting some daily exercise,
- being a part of my community and
- doing my small part for the planet by not using my car.
I
stopped for a chat with an older lady, from whom a walk to the corner
was as much as she could manage. She was determined to make it despite
her breathing difficulties and deteriorating health that kept her
indoors much of the day and she was glad of the rest and a chat with a
neighbour.
Walking
home with the knowledge of how good that walk had been, not just for
me, gave me a good feeling that stayed with me the rest of the day; or
maybe it was the exercise buzz.
It's cool
the be "green" and "sustainable" these days but when I was growing up,
"greenies" were cast as weirdo-hippies who were stuck in the sixties
(yes, I'm that old).
Now almost everyone I know takes their own shopping bags to the
supermarket, refuses plastic if they can carry their purchases and finds ways to save energy within their home.
My
contribution to sustainability is buying clothes only from charity
shops; there are already enough clothes in the world and if I can find a
unique, recycled item that saves me money, I'm thrilled.
I even managed to do this while in New York earlier this year.
My hot pink
trench coat from Hell's Kitchen Flea Market is one of the most
beautiful, functional and best-value purchases I've ever made.
This article caught my eye because the family wanted to live more sustainably and ended up really enjoying the experience and each other.
Whether it's your coffee, chocolate or other products, caring about where they come from and deciding with your dollars, makes a difference.
So do what
YOU can do to use your car a little less, get out and walk more, re-use
where you can and be aware of how your everyday decisions have a wider
impact.
