The Key to a Man's Heart is Through His Stomach

Asparagus and Ham Casserole

Alrighty, so here is the first recipe post on The Delicious Life. Normally the process I go through is fairly simple and common to what most people do when searching for new recipes. Popular sites such as Sunset Magazine and My Recipes are the ones I frequent and for the most part feature fairly simple and delicious recipes. This one caught my attention right off the bat with the simple word "ham". Now I have nothing against religious practices that think pigs are dirty animals and forbid consumption of any food containing parts of it, but I must make a point to say that I really do believe that you are missing out on life if bacon is not a regular part of your diet. That being said, this dish is of course malleable in the sense that the ham can be substituted for chicken and the asparagus can be replaced with broccoli. After I read some reviews from other people commenting on their experience with this dish, I realized a lot needed to be done to rescue it from becoming too bland and undesirable to picky eaters.


Remember the key to cooking from a recipe is to READ the whole thing first. There may be steps that need to be done in a certain order or techniques that need to be properly executed. Personally, I like to prep veggies and such first, placing them all into separate bowls/measuring cups to make the process more efficient and less prone to mistakes.


This being the first post and all, I am still experimenting with the style of how I will present these cooking adventures and the recipes to accompany them, so bare with me and feel free to comment and make suggestions. Here are the original ingredients I found on My Recipes: 

• 1  (1-ounce) slice white bread (to be later put into a food processor to make breadcrumbs)
• 3 3/4  cups  uncooked extra-broad egg noodles
• 2 1/2  cups  (1 1/2-inch) sliced asparagus
• 1/4  cup  all-purpose flour
• 1/2  teaspoon  dried thyme
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1/8  teaspoon  black pepper
• 1  cup  whole milk
• 1  cup  fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1  tablespoon  butter
• 3/4  cup  finely chopped onion
• 1  tablespoon  fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2  cups  (1/2-inch) cubed ham (about 8 ounces)
• 1/4  cup  chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 2  tablespoons  grated fresh Parmesan cheese

And here is my (much tastier) version with pictures to give you an idea of what the process should look like

• 1  cup of Panko Plain breadcrumbs...gives it an extra crunch and takes out the time to make breadcrumbs yourself
• 2 1/2  cups  (1 1/2-inch) sliced asparagus 
• 1/4  cup  all-purpose flour
• 1/2  teaspoon  dried thyme
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1/8  teaspoon  black pepper
• 1  cup  2%  milk to make the sauce a bit more creamy
• 1  cup  fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1  tablespoon  butter
• 1  cup  finely chopped onion
• 3 Large cloves of garlic minced (TIP: for stubborn cloves that refuse to peel properly, zap in the microwave for no more than 5 seconds and the skin peels right off)
• 1  tablespoon  fresh lemon juice (I forgot to do this, could potentially be a nice addition)
• 1 1/2  cups  (1/2-inch) cubed ham (about 8 ounces)
• 1/4  cup  chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (I probably put a little more in than this, not recommended) 
• Grated fresh Parmesan and Asiago cheese (just pour it in to your hearts content, I probably did 1/2 cup each) 

Prep Process:

Step 1: Preheat oven to 450 (Always preheat your oven first so it heats while you are prepping)

Step 2: Prep your veggies

• 
  
  Cut Asapargus into 1-1 1/2 inch pieces and set aside

• 
  
  Finely chop half of a large onion...yes this is the magical Slap Chop and yes it really does work, just not with  tomatoes, I do not reccomend doing that.

• 
  
  Mince 3 large cloves of garlic...you can use the Slap Chop on this one too, works wonders.
• 
  
  Finely chop 1/4 cup of flat leaf parsley

This is flat leaf parsley in case you weren't sure

Step 3: Start boiling a pot of water for the pasta to cook in, omit salt for all you health conscious people

Step 4: Cube the ham into 1/2 inch pieces

Step 5: Once the water is boiling, pour the pasta in and let cook for about 5-7 minutes

Step 6: While that pasta is cooking, start prepping your flour/milk mixture

• 
  
  Lightly spoon 1/4 cup of flour into a dry measuring cup, and level with a knife.
• 
  
  Place flour, 1/2 tsp thyme, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/8 tsp  pepper in medium bowl
• 
  
  Gradually add milk and broth, stirring with a whisk until well-blended. The key here is to keep whisking while pouring the milk/broth mixture in. I have messed up on this before and it ends up clumpy and unusable. Its ok if you do not get it right the first time, practice makes perfect!

Step 7: This is about the time when your pasta will be cooked, add the pieces of asparagus
 and cook for only ONE minute then drain the pasta/asparagus and set aside

Step 8: Melt 1tblsp of butter in a medium sauce pan on medium high heat then add the onions and garlic sauting until fragrant, about 5 minutes

Step 9: Add milk mixture (you may need to whisk it again for a few seconds), stiring constantly until thick, about 5-7 minutes depending on the percentage milk you used. Again, this is tricky for people who have never made a milk/flour based sauce. It is really easy to burn or ruin this by not stiring constantly.



This is the sauce when you first pour in the mixture



This is the sauce as it starts to thicken

Step 10: Remove the sauce from heat...this is the part where I was supposed to add the lemon juice...oops!

Step 11: Combine the pasta mixture, milk mixture, ham, asiago cheese and parsley into a large bowl

Step 12: Spoon it all into a casserole dish and sprinkle with 1/2 cup breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese.

Step 13: Bake at 450° for 10-15 minutes until filling is bubbly and topping is a gorgeous 
golden color.

Step 14: 5 minute warning! Tell your significant other/kids to stop playing video games and
 set the table

Step 15: Bon Appetit!

 My favorite thing about dishes like casseroles is that you put all the ingredients together, stick it in the oven, let it get happy, and you're done! I cleaned up the kitchen in the time it took to bake so we would not have worry about the mess after dinner.


The boyfriend went back for seconds and it made good leftovers. The asparagus however did not reheat very well and I probably would use more ham next time. The original reviews were right, it can be somewhat bland and I tried my best to make it really stand out. It is a great meal for a week night when you will need leftovers for the next couple days. I almost liked it better the afternoon after.

Overall rating: 7 out of 10
Left over potential: 8 out of 10
Total prep/bake time: less than 1 hour, about 45 minutes
Level of complicity: Novice
Kitchen mess aftermath: Moderate
Boyfriend Approval: 2 thumbs up
Wine pairing suggestion: Chardonnay, Beringer has a nice balance of citrus and melon notes which are complemented by a good balance of acidity. On the cheap, affordable side less than $10 at Safeway

 Original recipe Nutritional Facts:

Calories:250 (26% from fat)

Fat: 7.1g (sat 3.4g,mono 2.4g,poly 0.7g)

Protein: 16g

Carbohydrate: 30.9g

Fiber: 2.7g

Cholesterol: 52mg

Iron: 2.6mg

Sodium: 835mg

Calcium: 114mg