Recipe: Asparagus and Mushrooms with White Wine and Rosemary

This recipe wasn't really meant to be.  What I had planned to do was use some frozen fennel stalks I've been hoarding since March and prepare a spectacular side dish from them, creating a masterpiece that would show people how to use an ingredient they would normally discard.  This was going to reduce landfill space used, cure diabetes and ultimately bring about world peace.  Really, I charted it all out.  Then I thawed the fennel stalks.  There is only one word to describe them: ick.  While they looked fine in the bag and frozen, once they were thawed the stalks became flaccid and slimy.  I could not cook with this.  I could not eat this.  As a result more landfill space will be used, diabetes remains a scourge and world peace remains elusive.  I did clear some space in the freezer, though. 

 

At any rate, I now had to come up with some kind of vegetable for dinner, and I had very little time to be creative.  What did I have on hand?  Well, there were some crimini mushrooms that I'd bought earlier that week.  I had no idea why I bought them, I think it was for a recipe I scrapped when we got stuck with a lot of leftovers from Sunday dinner.  I had the mortal remains of a bunch of asparagus my husband had bought on a whim.  The tips were slimy and icky, but the stalks themselves were fine.  I had some white wine I'd bought just in case and some rosemary I'd bought for another dish that turned out to be unsuitable.  It might not be much, but it would have to do.  Fortunately for me, it did quite well indeed.  I accidentally slightly overcooked the asparagus, but the flavor was still good even if the color was not.

 

Asparagus and Mushrooms with White Wine and Rosemary (serves 4; approx. $1.73/serving)

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 tablespoons minced jarred garlic

1/2 bunch thin asparagus, chopped into bite-sized segments

8 oz crimini mushrooms, quartered

2 sprigs fresh rosemary, divided

1 cup white wine

Equipment:

• Saute pan

1. Heat the oil in the saute pan.
2. Add the garlic and cook about 1 minute, depending on how hot the pan is. 
3. Add the asparagus.  Saute about 30 seconds. 
4. Add the leaves from one sprig of rosemary and 1/2 cup of wine.  Cook until the asparagus is slightly tender, 2 - 3 more minutes.
5. Add the mushrooms.  Stir well to coat and cook another 2 minutes.
6. Add the remaining wine and the leaves from the second sprig of rosemary.  Cook until the mushrooms are tender. 
7. Serve. 

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Comments

[[eatingclub] vancouver]

Too bad about those fennel stalks. Maybe world peace can be achieved through the green parts of the leek?

[Mike]

Too bad about the fennel stalks, although freeing up freezer space is an equally noble goal. ;-) Sounds like you made do rather well nonetheless!

[Jude]

Looks plenty creative to me. It's so much fun to come up with quick recipes on the fly.