Beef w/ Broccoli & Asparagus

3 tablespoons cornstarch, divided
1/2 cup water, plus
4 T. minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 lb boneless round steak or charcoal chuck steak, cut into thin 3-inch strips
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
3 cups broccoli florets
1-2 cups large chopped asparagus
1 small onion, cut into wedges
1/3 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
crushed red pepper for heat (opt)
hot cooked rice

Directions
In a bowl, combine 2 tablespoons cornstarch, 1 tablespoons water and garlic powder until smooth.
Add beef and toss.

In a large skillet or wok over medium high heat, stir-fry beef in 1 tablespoon oil until beef reaches desired doneness; pour in approx 2 T. of soy sauce to deglaze pan. Remove and keep warm.

Stir-fry broccoli, asparagus and onion in remaining oil and drippings for 4-5 minutes.

Return beef to pan.

Combine remaining soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger and remaining cornstarch and water until smooth; add to the pan.

Cook and stir for 2 minutes.

Serve over rice.

The best broccoli ever

You know you've done something right with broccoli when the person you made it for describes it to someone else the next day as "better than biting into a steak." I can't take any credit. The credit goes to that formidable force in my foodie life; namely, The Barefoot Contessa.

Normally, broccoli gets squishy when you cook it. Not this broccoli; it develops an amazing brown crust in spots. Then you toss it with lemon juice, lemon zest, and Parmesan cheese and you're in heaven.

Seriously, this recipe is so easy.

You preheat the oven to 425.

Take 4 to 5 pounds of broccoli (I just got two large bunches), cut into florets (but relatively big ones.) Here's the key that she doesn't mention in the recipe: dry them THOROUGHLY. That is, if you wash them. I saw an episode of Julia Child cooking with Jacques Pepin once when Pepin revealed he doesn't wash a chicken before putting it in a hot oven: "The heat kills all the germs," he said in his French accent. "If bacteria could survive that oven, it deserves to kill me." By that logic, then, I didn't wash my broccoli; I wanted it to get crispy and brown. If you're nervous, though, just wash and dry it obsessively.

Now, it's easy. Put the broccoli on a cookie sheet. Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. (She says 5 Tbs olive oil, 1 1/2 tsps kosher salt, 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper, but I just eyeballed it.) Now add 4 garlic cloves that are peeled and sliced and toss them in too.

Roast in the oven 20 to 25 minutes, until "crisp-tender and the tips of some of the florets are browned."

I shook the pan around a bit as it went, but not sure that's necessary.

When it's done, take it out of the oven--and here's where it gets really good--zest a lemon over the broccoli, squeeze the lemon juice over the broccoli, add 1.5 Tbs more olive oil, 3 Tbs toasted pine nuts (I left those out), and 1/3 cup of freshly grated Parmesan cheese. She also has you add 2 Tbs julienned fresh basil, but I left that out too.

You won't miss it: the magic combo of the crispy broccoli, the garlic, the lemon and the cheese will make this the best broccoli of your life. I guarantee it; you will go ga-ga over it. I'm so ga-ga over it that I would seriously consider a trip right now to the store just so I could make this for lunch. Broccoli for lunch? After trying this, you'll never want to eat anything else for breakfast, lunch or dinner ever again.