Veggies, dessert combine for special meals

Today, veggies and a pair of simple desserts that you can make from mixes — or if you wish, the old-fashioned way — shine. Too, fresh veggies shine in several dishes to augment whatever main you choose to bring to the table.

Many of the recipes are only for a few people, so you'll need to double or triple the ingredients. Our first can be whipped up just before serving dinner and goes elegantly with baked ham.

Peas sauteed whole in their pods

(Serves 2-3)

1 pound peas in pods (young and small)

1 small yellow onion

1 shallot

1 clove garlic

4 tablespoon real butter

Dash of tamari or soy sauce

Wash the unshelled peas and drain. Finely chop onion, shallot and garlic. Melt butter in a sauté pan and add the onion, shallot and garlic. 

Sauté gently until soft, then add the unshelled peas. Stir; sprinkle with tamari. Cover and simmer for about 5 minutes.

Fresh pea salad

(Serves 2-3)

3 to 4 radishes, thinly sliced

2-3 green onions, chopped with tops

1 small red onion, finely diced

2 sprigs parsley, finely chopped

1 pound peas

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

Juice of 1 lemon

Shell peas and blanch for about 30 seconds, drain well, tossing to cool. Mix with chopped ingredients, add vinegar and lemon juice. Mix and serve.

Note: A really neat way to serve this salad is in a large bowl on a pretty plate surrounded by halved boiled eggs and dotted with mayonnaise and a sprinkle of paprika.

Asparagus vinaigrette

(Serves 4)

1 pound asparagus

Vinaigrette

1/3 cup olive oil

1 1/2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/4 teaspoon salt

Fresh ground pepper to taste

1 hard-boiled egg yolk, minced

Snap off the tough bottoms of asparagus talks and, if the asparagus is large, peel the bottom half of each stalk if you wish. Bring about 1 inch of water to boil in a large skillet; lay asparagus in the water and cover the pan. Cook for about 6 minutes, or until tender but not mushy. (Remember, they continue to cook a little while cooling.) Drain well and arrange on a large platter or individual serving dishes.

Make a vinaigrette with all ingredients except egg yolk. Pour over asparagus.

At this point, you may sprinkle the asparagus with egg yolk and serve warm as a side dish. Or, don't sprinkle the asparagus with the yolk and place the dish in the refrigerator to chill, uncovered. To serve as a cold salad, roll spears around in the vinaigrette to make sure they are well coated, then sprinkle with the yolk.

Asparagus cashew sauté

(Serves 4)

2-3 cups hot cooked brown rice

Sauce

3 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoon cornstarch

1 1/2 cups water or vegetable stock

1 tablespoon ginger root or candied ginger, minced

1 teaspoon sesame oil (toasted is best)

1/8 teaspoon crushed dry red pepper or to taste

Dash pepper

2 tablespoon canola oil

3 cups (1 pound) fresh asparagus, woody ends snapped off, tender part cut into 3-inch lengths

4 scallions, chopped with green tops

1 small red bell pepper, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 cup cashews, dry, roasted, unsalted OR slivered almonds

Garnish (optional):

Mandarin orange sections

Toasted sesame seeds

Cook rice. In a small bowl, combine soy sauce and cornstarch, stir in the remaining sauce ingredients through pepper; set aside.

In a wok or large skillet, heat canola oil and stir-fry asparagus, scallions, red bell pepper and garlic until all vegetables are crisp-tender.

Stir the sauce mixture, pour over the vegetables and stir until the sauce is thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat, fold in cashews or almonds. Cover and cook for 1-2 minutes only, until nuts are heated through. Serve over the hot rice; top with garnishes. This dish is great with ham or pork loin roast.

Tip: You may substitute 3/4 cup broccoli florets for the asparagus and/or add other vegetables such as carrots or even sliced mushrooms as you desire.

Broccoli serves admirably in this very special meatless main dish, which features hard-boiled eggs.

Broccoli and eggs with hollandaise

(Serves 6)

2 bunches fresh broccoli

3 eggs yolks

2 teaspoon water

1 teaspoon tarragon wine vinegar

3 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

6 hard-boiled eggs, shelled

Prepare broccoli. Wash thoroughly, trim off florets, leaving about 1 1/2 inches of stem. Wrap and refrigerate remaining stems to peel and cook another time.

Prepare hollandaise: In the top of a double boiler, use a wire whisk to beat yolks, water, vinegar and salt over hot but, not boiling, water. Slowly beat in the melted butter a few drops at a time until the sauce thickens. Stir in lemon juice.

Halve hard-boiled eggs lengthwise. Place broccoli with eggs atop on a platter or shallow vegetable dish. Spoon hollandaise over top and serve immediately.

OK, now for the kids (and Grandpa). The Jello folks have come up with a good dessert to tempt everyone's sweet tooth. A bonus, it's good for potlucks, too.

Poke cake

(12 servings)

1 2-layer size package white cake mix OR cake mix with pudding in the mix

1 cup boiling water

1 4-ounce packet of gelatin dessert, any flavor

1/2 cup cold water

1 8-ounce tub whipped topping OR real whipped cream

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare and bake cake mix as directed on the packet for a 13x9-inch pan. Remove from oven; cool in pan for 15 minutes.

While the cake cools, stir boiling water into gelatin in a small bowl, stir for at least 2 minutes or until completely dissolved. Stir in cold water; mix well. 

Pierce cake with a large fork (such as a doubled-tined meat fork) at half-inch intervals. Carefully pour gelatin over the cake. Refrigerate for 3 hours. At serving time, frost with whipped cream and decorate as desired.

Store leftover cake in the refrigerator.

Lemon meringue pie is the second most popular pie in the U.S. Though our last recipe isn't bonafide, it puts some pizzazz into that old favorite. This one's from Royal.

Banana meringue squares

(Serves 9)

1 13 1/2-ounce package Royal no-bake lemon meringue pie mix (Lorna Doone Shortbread crumbs included)

1/3 cup pecans, chopped

1/4 cup butter, melted

2 medium bananas, sliced

1/2 cup sugar

Water

In a small bowl, combine shortbread crumbs, pecans, and butter. Reserve 1 tablespoon mixture for garnish. Press the rest of the mixture against the bottom of an 8-inch square baking dish. Arrange banana slices over the crust. 

Prepare lemon filling according to package directions using sugar and water. Pour over bananas into the dish and chill for 15 minutes.

Prepare meringue topping according to package directions using water. Spoon over slightly soft lemon filling, spread to edges. Sprinkle with reserved crumb mixture. Brown meringue in the oven at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven, cool well, then refrigerate 3 hours before serving.

    Broccoli serves admirably in a very special meatless main dish, which features hard-cooked eggs and a hollandaise sauce.
  

    This fun dessert from the Jell-O folks is sure to tempt everyone's sweet tooth and, as a bonus, it's good for potlucks, too.
  

    Valle Novak
  

Editor's note: For many years, Valle Novak wrote gardening and cooking columns for the Daily Bee. "Weekend Gardener" and "Country Chef" became renowned for their humor, information, and common-sense advice on how to do everything from planting to cooking. She left behind many columns such as this one from April 10, 2001, to delight her many fans.