Sizzling Spring Recipes
 In
the spring, the thoughts of cooks of all ages turn to ...
the freshest produce available: asparagus and (if you like the stuff)
rhubarb. If you are lucky enough to live near a farmers’ market,
as I do, you will see the bright green and red stalks of these vegetabes
showing up on tables next to the daffodils. Asparagus
is our Coastal Kitchen Fave food this month, so the first recipe
here combines two mid-Atlantic staples, asparagus and crab meat,
in a creamy, savory soup that can chase any lingering chill in the
April air. Next we venture clear across the continent for a couple
of fresh new California dishes from my new cookbook, Coastal
Cooking with John Shields, coming out in August. (You get a
sneak preview!) The first is a salad that could be a meal in itself.
Or serve the soup and the salad for a bright spring brunch, along
with some home-baked herb biscuits. Or, for a truly elegant spring
meal, add Pan-Seared Scallops with Polenta, Orange-Fennel Sauce,
and Crispy Fried Leeks. Finish off with a tangy-sweet strawberry
and rhubarb pie.
Crab and Asparagus
Soup >>
Salinas Bibb
Salad with Gorgonzola and Toasted Hazelnuts with Cider-Dijon Dressing>>
Seared Scallops
with Polenta, Orange-Fennel Sauce,
and Crispy Fried Leeks>>
Parmesan Polenta>>
Crispy Fried
Leeks>>
Buttermilk-Fennel
Biscuits>>
Strawberry-Rhubarb
Pie>>
Coastal Kitchen Fave Foods!
The Real Dirt
on Asparagus>>
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