Pot Luck O' the Irish - Asparagus with Honey Garlic Sauce

 I really love pot lucks. You can always count on at least one really, really good thing - more if you have friends that can cook.  My good friends from Boston are staying with me and they conveniently organized a dinner party at my house. I was away in Vegas and a little too distracted to say yes or no. I think they knew I would say yes....I love to host parties, dinners, etc. Pot lucks are great are even better because it's less work.

Here is the recipe I made for last night's pot luck. Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Asparagus with Honey-Garlic Sauce
Adapted from Cooking With Beer

Ingredients
1 pound asparagus
1/4 cup dijon mustard
1/4 cup dark ale or beer (I used Brooklyn Brown Ale)
3 tablespoons honey
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 crushed dried thyme leaves
1/4 teaspoon salt

Instructions
Trim edges of asparagus. Mince garlic. Bring water boil. While water is heating up, combine mustard, ale, honey, garlic, thyme and salt. Mix well. Add asparagus to boiling, salted water. Cook covered, about 2 minutes or until barely tender. Drain. Pour dressing over asparagus.

Notes about asparagus: Asparagus tastes best when cooked soon after purchase. You should make sure your supermarket refrigerates their asparagus or stores it standing upright in cold water. When you bring asparagus home, wrap stalks in damp paper towels and store in the crisper until ready to prepare.