Love the new asparagus steamer -- if you love asparagus, think about an investment. Make sure it'll fit in your cupboard, though. The steamer is tall (as tall as, well, asparagus spears) and narrow (as narrow as, well about 2 pounds of asparagus). The spears stand upright. while cooking; this means that that the tougher stalks are closer to the heat source than the tender tips. Another tool I used tonight is called a mister: put in your own olive oil and spray -- all to use less oil. I like it and used it often but wouldn't call it a must-have either. GINGER ASPARAGUS Active time: 5 minutes Total time: 10 minutes Serves 4 1 pound asparagus Olive oil Ginger juice (see ALANNA's TIPS) Salt Bring water to boil in an asparagus steamer over MEDIUM HIGH. Rinse spears well, then cut off and remove the woody ends. Place spears in steamer, cover and cook for 5 - 8 minutes or until fully cooked. Remove and mist with olive oil and sprinkle with ginger juice. Salt genero

Tonight was a reprise of Day 9, Lemon Spinach . Truth is, Lemon Spinach is delicious, Lime Spinach was ... nothing special. I did experiment with a fraction of the fat so that might have been the difference. I'll try again, with lemon and less fat. In the mean time, I'd recommend Lemon Spinach!

How to sauté Swiss chard in a skillet with a little garlic, a little ginger and a whole lot of deliciousness. Plus it's quick and easy! If you like this recipe's simplicity and convenience, it can also be used with other tender leafy greens like beet greens or younger, more tender spinach (although sorry, not baby spinach, it's too tender). Real Food, Fast & Casual. Just Three Ingredients! Not Just Easy, Summer Easy . Year-Round Kitchen Staple. Budget Friendly. Little Effort, Big Taste. Weeknight Easy. Low Carb. Low Fat. Weight Watchers Friendly. Not just vegan, Vegan Done Real . Naturally Gluten Free. Whole30 Friendly. Rave Reviews.

Today's green bean recipe: Beans cooked in well-salted water, then tossed with sautéed onions and almonds. ~recipe & photo updated in 2007~ 2005: This recipe is a real keeper, thanks to the browned-buttery, nutty-crunch-ery almonds. How to serve beans in just 15 minutes? Use a bag of frozen French-cut green beans. You might re-acquaint yourself with the frozen vegetable section, especially if turned off by quality a few years back. Frozen vegetables are flash frozen so in a sense, they are 'fresher' than anything picked 10 days ago for shipping to your local grocery store. Do skip the boxes of frozen vegetables, focus on the bags. I think the supermarket brands are as good as the name brands and they are usually cheaper at regular price and more often on sale. There are only two frozen vegetables, so far, that I don't like, pearl onions (but then I think I just don't like pearl onions ...) and carrots. 2007 Update: I made this recipe with fresh green beans and w

~ recipe updated & photo added in 2007 ~ 2005: A brilliant combination, maple syrup and lime, a sort of sunlit sweetness. If you do the prep work ahead of time, reverse the order of preparation, that is, start the syrup and while it cooks, peel the carrots. The uncooked carrots can sit in the saucepan, no water, for a couple of hours without harm until you're ready to cook. A light touch with the syrup is important. If it overcooks, as mine did tonight, the sugar will caramelize and turn into chunks of hard (and unusable) candy. 2007: This time, I used half the maple syrup, a good option for less sweetness. CARROTS GLAZED WITH MAPLE SYRUP AND LIME Active prep time: 15 minutes Time to table: 30 minutes Serves 8 Water to cover Salt 2 pounds fresh carrots (see TIPS) 2 tablespoons butter 1/2 small onion, minced (about 1/4 cup) zest and juice (about 1 tablespoon) from a lime 1/4 cup maple syrup (see TIPS) Salt and pepper to taste In a medium saucepan, bring to boil just enough water

Ten minutes start to finish! While what I threw together last night isn’t yet perfect, it’s a great start. I especially like the technique of cooking the vegetables in virtually no-cal chicken broth (water would likely work as well since the source of flavor is soy sauce) rather than stir-frying in oil. I did add a bit of sesame oil to deepen the flavor but even it might not be necessary. If you haven’t recently checked out the frozen vegetables at the grocery store, do. They are often on sale and of course can be kept in-waiting in the freezer. And they’re good (well, except for the carrots!) and terrific to have on hand for nights it’s frozen vegetables or no vegetables at all. The mix used here was called “vegetable stand” and included broccoli, red pepper, sugar snap peas and water chestnuts. It would be easy to add an onion, mushrooms, zucchini, any vegetable on hand or that your family really likes. This could be the start of a supper stir-fry – just cook tofu, chicken or shrimp