Love those geranium plates (bowls?). The nice thing about salads is that riffs usually work!

Pizza sounds good, maybe very thin ham shavings would work better, almost like prosciutto. When I put asparagus on pizza, I blanch it and cut in bite size pizzas. Not as pretty but yeah, you don't unintentionally get a whole spear when you take a bite

Mmm, looks and sounds great!

I should have realized how salty the ham was and soaked it. Ham wasn't a totally bad idea, but the ham I have is too salty for almost any application except maybe seasoning an unsalted pot of soup beans . . .

I love asparagus in quiche.

Bechamel takes about 5 minutes in the microwave and you don't run the risk of scorching the bottom. I melt a good sized lump of butter (often I throw some finely sliced spring onions in with the butter so they cook as the butter melts), then add seasonings and any herbs I have on hand and fancy, blend in an equal amount of plain flour, then whisk in the appropriate amount of milk. Zap for 3 minutes, whisk, zap another minute or so and whisk, repeat until boiled and thickened.

Gonna have to try that tip Colleen. Sauces seem to take forever on my pulsing hated electric stovetop.

I used this recipe whenever DH got a yen for something ”Alfredo.” It is pretty quick and I like the flavor of it, even though it veers way off from a traditional Alfredo. You could use unsalted butter if you needed to reduce the saltiness.

We don't even have salted butter in the house BB! I love both your and Colleen's ideas. I'm often wanting a quick white sauce, gonna try both of these. I often add cream cheese and grated parmesean to some type of sauce to make it "creamier" anyway. I really feel that without taking time to toast the flour by sauteeing it gently in butter, a traditional bechamel has a "gluey" taste . . . that's where I get hung up on the time, and also I am usually not very good about watching things that need finessing (see my above mention of over roasting the asparagus for my typical kitchen scenario, I am usually multitasking too much.)

what about Knorr packets? could do in a pinch. add a quick squeeze of lemon to brighten it

No reason you can’t zap the flour/butter mixture for, say, a minute before whisking in the milk. I don’t find it tastes gluey, maybe the hot butter cooks the flour enough, but you can always cook it more.

Thanks for sharing this, Pink! I have some anchovies hanging out in my fridge and will have to try the salsa verde dressing. Your salad looks beautiful!

I can't eat any Knorr's products due to the msg which I am highly sensitive to. That's one reason I never got hooked on a lot of convenience and snack foods and why I ended up being a devotee of the kinds of "natural" stuff you get in the health food stores . . . before it was fashionable. I even have to make my own spinach dip from scratch . . .

Impressive photo LP…..like the salad plate also. Been watching this post, your porch party clicked with me. i wish you well on your gathering and would like pictures of your day.

I've also heard I think of people dry toasting flour and keeping it on hand to quickly thicken sauces . . .

Well I surely did enjoy the virtual visit to your lovely porch. What a porch to enjoy. Just like another room. We have a front porch that i love,

I made an impossible asparagus pie with cheese ... it was mighty tasty ... and better the second day ...