Creamy Lemon Pasta with Asparagus 

A delicious weeknight dinner modified from a recipe found on NYTimescooking.com.  Chef Ron is currently featuring tender roasted locally grown Quincy asparagus in his Saturday Chef's 4-course dinner.  Try this easy recipe for your dinner - - Bon Appetit, Millie

Ingredients: 

18-24 fresh asparagus spears

12 oz wide egg noodles

Zest and juice of 2 lemons; zest cut in very thin 1" strips

1 c heavy cream

1-2 cloves peeled garlic, sliced thin or minced

Kosher salt to taste

Lots of freshly ground black pepper

1/2 c grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Preparation:  

1.  Heat oven to 400.  Clean and trim asparagus spears. Toss lightly with olive oil and roast on a sheet pan approximately 8-12 min, until tender, but still crisp.  Set aside. 

2. Meanwhile bring a large pot of salted water to boil.  Add noodles, stir to separate.  Cook for 8 min or until tender.  Drain and return to pot. 

3.  Just before noodles are done, in a small saucepan combine the lemon zest, garlic, cream, salt & pepper.  Cook over medium heat for 2-5 min, or until cream comes to a boil.  

4.  Pour cream mixture over drained noodles and add the lemon juice.  Stir to coat.  Cook over medium heat, stirring, until the liquid is absorbed, about 2 minutes.  Season with additional pepper as desired.  

5.  Serve pasta in wide bowl placing roasted asparagus on top and sprinkle with grated cheese. 

Check out our new spring video my dad Brad made.  He is having way too much fun with his drone!  Snow in the upper elevations is disappearing fast.  Indian paintbrush, trillium and lupine are now blooming on the trails.  Come enjoy for yourself - Love Millie V. 

Mountain Home elk sunrise! 

The elk herd graced our meadow this week as the sun awakened the Cascades with an alpenglow sky!  I (Millie) was still sleeping so missed this site, but thankfully a guest shared her photo with us.  Pretty neat, huh?     

Come enjoy our slice of paradise for 2 nights and dinner for two is at half price this upcoming weekend, May 6-8th!     PS: this photo was taken on Wednesday so you can see how gorgeous it is here right now! 

Enjoy any two nights lodging May 6-8, 2016 at our spring rates and join us for our Saturday Chef’s 4-course dinner for two at half price… a $75 savings!  A perfect weekend to celebrate the arrival of spring and Mother’s Day!  Limited space so please act now!  800-414-2378

Sweet!

The beautiful lilac bushes here are the Lodge are budded and starting to bloom!  Their delicious scent perfumes the air in the meadow and at the orchard.  Come and "sniff" for yourself!  Weather dependent, it looks like we will enjoy them to mid-May.  Let us know if we can add a vase in your room if you are able to make it over here these next few weeks.  

Leavenworth was featured in Singletracks Magazine's recent article as WA premier mountain biking capital.  We have great trails here at the lodge as well as the area.  Check it out!  http://www.singletracks.com/blog/mtb-trails/the-51-mountain-bike-capitals-of-the-united-states/11/ 

Now that's a view! 

Lupine, indian paintbrush and so many more wildflowers are on their way! 

April showers bring May flowers!  Winter snows are receding as temperatures warm, rivers rise with mountain melt off and the mountain returns to green and wildflowers.  Hiked the Overlook trail this morning with "mom" (Kathy) and we saw lots of avalanche lilies, spring beauty and wood anemone.  A few patches of snow here and there and a few trees hanging low we had to walk over, under or around, but it was gorgeous!  Stellar blue skies,  sunshine on a crisp morning, bird song, elk tracks and snow-capped Cascades... living here doesn't get much better!  Come join the party!  Love, Millie 

It's rough being an animal at Mountain Home Lodge... here is my brother Jack "working" at the resort.  Someone has to take care of capturing the rays and enjoying a guest's lap and Jack is our man!  

Chocolate is not good for me, a dog, but it's a favorite of my family!  Last night we celebrated our neighbor Stan's retirement with a fun dinner and mom served these decadent baby cakes to everyone's delight.  Thought I would share the recipe with you, my pals - - enjoy!  - Millie 

From Nigella Lawson's cookbook: How to be a Domestic Goddess:

Ingredients: 

4 TBSP unsalted butter, softened + more for greasing the dishes  

12 oz. best bittersweet chocolate, chopped  

4 large eggs

1/2 c sugar

salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 c flour

Preparation:

1.  Unless you are making these up in advance, preheat oven to 400 degrees, putting in a baking sheet at the same time.  Butter the insides of six 6-oz baking dishes.  Line base with a parchment circle traced from the base atop the butter. 

2.  Melt the chocolate over low heat in a small saucepan; set aside to cool.  In a medium bowl, beat eggs with a pinch of salt until frothy; set aside  Using electric mixer, cream butter and sugar together.  Gradually beat in the eggs then the vanilla.  Add flour and mix well.  Add chocolate and blend until smooth.  

3.  Divide the batter between the 6 dishes.  Quickly arrange dishes on top of HOT baking sheet and return to oven.  Cook for 10-12 minutes ( the extra 2 minutes will be needed if the batter was refrigerator cold). Bake until firm and dry on surface. 

4.  Immediately tip cakes onto shallow bowl or small plates.  Serve with ice cream or whipped cream.  Yummy!!! 

Hi friends... my pals from last weekend sent over some great shots from our weekend adventures I can show you.  I had a blast sharing the trails with them snowshoeing and running down the sledding hill at record speeds.  Basking in the sunshine on the decks was perfect with my bro & sis cats, Cracker and Jack, joining in for lots of attention!  We 3 are very spoiled "pets"!  With just a month left of snow before the spring thaw, you better call asap to join in this seasons fun.  I am ready to show you our kingdom of fun... Millie Vanilli, the Concierge! 

Her highness Millie and her mountain kingdom