Asparagus with lemon and thyme

Do you like asparagus? My son does. One morning, he asked me to make asparagus for supper. My husband would never ask for anything green for any meal. My husband thinks my son is crazy.

 Since I just made the roast chicken with lemon and thyme, I thought it would be a nice addition to the asparagus. Also, I wanted to try it out before Thanksgiving. 

I asked my son if he wanted to help and he said sure. At home, I think my son's two favorite words are sure and Mamma. "Son, do you want me to add lemon to the asparagus?" He shrugs, "Sure." "Should I try adding a little thyme?" "Sure." My oldest replies, "Why not?"

Asparagus with lemon and thyme 1 lb asparagus
1 1/2 tsp olive oil
1/4 lemon zest, cut into stripes
1 tsp dry thyme
salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Take one stalk of asparagus and bend it in half until it snaps.
3. Cut the other pieces of asparagus the same length as the snapped asparagus.
4. Drizzle the olive oil over the asparagus.
5. Add the lemon zest, thyme, salt, and pepper. Toss to coat the asparagus.
6. Cook the asparagus for about 15 to 18 minutes.

Recipe by Jen of Sweet Morris.

 Did you already know..............
-Asparagus is a member of the lily family.
-When harvesting is completed, the asparagus spear will grow into ferns.
-A well cared asparagus plant can produce asparagus for about fifteen years from the same plant.

Roasted Chicken

I like to make Thanksgiving dinner. I plan it out and I normally have the same dishes each year. I even make a schedule of when the dishes need to be cooked so they are ready about the same time. Sometimes, I will change one dish but for the most part the dishes have not changed since I was a kid. 

The thing I like about Thanksgiving the most is it is one of my son's favorite holidays. He becomes very excited about the large meal. My husband is always amazed by how much food we have. Growing up, we always had a lot of food at Thanksgiving. I will admit a lot of the dishes are vegetables.

 My favorite part of Thanksgiving is having my family and friends over. If you have never made the Thanksgiving turkey before, this recipe is the perfect practice run.

Roasted Chicken

4 to 4 1/2 lb. roasting chicken
1 onion, sliced in four pieces
1 lemon
4 carrots, roughly chopped
3 clove of garlic
4 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
3 Tbsp of thyme
salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Prick the lemon on all sides with a fork.
3. Place 3 carrots and 1/2 onion on the bottom of a roasting pan. 
4. Remove the giblets and excess fat from the cavity.
5. Place the chicken on top of the vegetables in the roasting pan.
6. Place the remaining carrots, onion, garlic,and the lemon in the cavity of the chicken.
7. Slather butter over and under the skin of the chicken.
8. Season the outside to the chicken with the thyme, salt, and pepper.
9. Roast the chicken about an hour.
10. Check chicken with a thermometer inserted in thickest part of a thigh (avoiding bone) registers 190 or the breast temperature registers 180 degrees. The skin should be golden brown and crisp. The chicken juices should look clear. If not, continue cooking chicken and check every 20 minutes until the thermometer reads the correct temperature.
11. Remove the chicken from the oven and let rest about 10 minutes before serving.

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart Living 2002 Annual Recipes Cookbook page 299.

If you think "oh this is too hard to make", it really isn't. I taught my husband to make it. He can even prepare this dish with no recipe.

I will be posting another chicken recipe tomorrow which is a great way to use up the leftover chicken.

Did you already know.....................

-Thyme was used to treat depression in the Romans time. 

-There are over 100 varieties of thyme.

-Thyme is a member of the mint family.

-Thyme is native to southern Europe and Mediterranean regions.

-1 tsp of thyme has 1 calorie.