Parmesan Roasted Asparagus ****

My 5-year-old (almost 6, OMG!) has been begging me to make this again ever since the last time.  That was back in April, so he was getting pretty peeved.  With my oven being out of commission for 2 months, I never got a chance to do them for him.  So, since we got the new oven in last week, I made them for him again tonight.  I kid you not, my kids actually FIGHT over these things.  They're nothing really special, but for some reason, the kids are just crazy about them.  Of course, they also think it's hilarious that asparagus makes their pee smell funny, but what can I say?  Whatever gets them to eat their veggies, right? ;-)

PARMESAN ROASTED ASPARAGUS
(Reagan ~ Recipes Made My Way)

1 lb medium stalk Asparagus
abt. 1 TBS Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Sea Salt
1/4 cup Bread Crumbs
Fresh Parmesan for Grating (I just used dried parm. and I'm sure it would be a lot better with fresh!)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees with a rack set in the middle. Rinse and pat dry the asparagus. One spear at a time, snap off the bottoms of each stalk where it wants to break naturally. Lay the asparagus on a sheet pan with just enough extra virgin olive oil to coat and a generous pinch of salt; toss to coat. Sprinkle the bread crumbs evenly across the spears and put the tray in the oven to toast for 7-10 minutes, when the bread crumbs are golden brown. Grate Parmesan over the asparagus.

Previous reviews:
4/6/11 ~ I'll start by saying that my kids are not huge veggie fans. I can get them to eat veggies, but it's always with the knowledge that there's going to be a lot of whining involved. From the kids too. Ha! Seriously, though, spinach is about the only veggie that they continually will eat without much complaint. When I told them we were having asparagus with dinner tonight, I got the typical moans and groans. The end result was that both kids ate two helpings, and my extremely picky 5-year-old actually tried to go back for thirds! Hubby wasn't home to eat with us, so I was saving some for him. Out of the entire bunch of asparagus, hubby and I got 5 stalks each. The kids devoured the rest. The only way I could convince my youngest not to eat the 5 I was saving for hubby was to promise to make it again this weekend. Seriously. I am still in shock. Needless to say, we will be making this one many, many, many times!

Smoked Sausage Pierogi Bake ***

We do love pierogies around here, so when I saw this one pop up on my blogger dashboard from Cassie Craves, I knew I had to make it.  Especially now that I have an oven again (can I say "woo hoo!" one more time? lol).  It definitely did not disappoint.  The kids absolutely loved it.  They kept going on and on about how it was restaurant-quality.  If you know my kids, you know that they're full of baloney most of the time, but they really did seem to like this one.  Especially since it combined two of their favorites: ravioli and mashed potatoes, lol.  I used turkey smoked sausage, neufchatel cheese, no-fat and low sodium chicken broth, and diced fire-roasted tomatoes.  Browning the sausage first gives it a really nice smoky flavor.  It took me all of 35 minutes to make everything, from start to finish.  It was so unbelievably easy.  Definitely a keeper for us.

SMOKED SAUSAGE PIEROGI BAKE
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ via Cassie Craves, adapted from Lemons and Love)

1 16-ounce package frozen potato and cheese pierogies
1/2 pound smoked sausage, cut into small pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced
8 ounces cream cheese
1 cup chicken broth
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Green onions, thinly sliced

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Arrange the frozen pierogies in a baking dish coated with cooking spray.
2. In a large skillet, cook smoked sausage over medium heat until edges are browned and crispy. Add garlic; cook and stir for 30 seconds. Add cream cheese, chicken broth, diced tomatoes and pepper. Heat through until cream cheese is melted.
3. Pour the smoked sausage-cream cheese mixture evenly over the pierogies. Bake uncovered for 15 minutes until thoroughly heated. Add cheddar cheese; bake an additional 5 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Sprinkle with green onions.

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I love these things! There are several good recipe links on here, so feel free to browse. And make sure to let me know if you try any that are really good! ;)