Roasted Asparagus with Parrano & White Wine Cream

The vegetable for today is asparagus courtesy my friend Patrick's pick.  Normally I just roast asparagus or steam it for a side dish.  Since it is still cold as hell outside, I thought a creamy pasta dish would be a nice application for tonight.  Originally I was going to add some breaded tilapia, but this dish is heavy enough on it's own.

Paranno is a yummy cheese that we sell at the natural food store I work at.  If you can't find it, just used equal parts Gouda and a good quality Parmesan to get the same effect.

Feel free to omit the jalepeno pepper if you wish.  I just had a few left over from chili-makin this morning, and I hate to let things go to waste.  Also, if you want to make this a vegetarian dish, simply use vegetable broth or a veggie boulion cube mixed in water.

Ingredients:

1 bunch asparagus

1 tsp garlic salt

4 tbsp butter

1 pkg wheat linguine

1 cup chopped onion

½ cup chopped green pepper

½ cup chopped red pepper

1 chopped jalepeno (optional)

1 tbsp olive oil

3 tbsp flour

½ cup white wine

½ tsp + 1 pinch salt

½ tsp black pepper

2 cups chicken (or vegetable) broth

1 cup 1% milk

2 cups Parrano Cheese

¼ cup Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Melt 2 tbsp of the butter with the garlic salt. Cut asparagus into 2 inch pieces and place in roasting pan. Baste the asparagus with melted butter and roast for 20-25 minutes.

Heat olive oil and remaining butter in a saute pan over medium high heat. Heat a quart of water in a separate pot with a pinch of salt for the pasta. Add onion and peppers to the saute pan and cook until tender. When water in pot comes to a boil add linguine and cook for 7-8 minutes or until al dente and then drain.

Add white wine to the saute pan and reduce for a couple minutes. Whisk in flour and cook for a minute then slowly stir in the chicken or vegetable broth and milk. Add salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a medium and melt in cheeses. Stir in drained pasta and roasted asparagus. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.