Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Yield 4 servings

Ingredients

1 cup Panko*

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 pound asparagus, trimmed

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

2 large eggs, beaten

Make Tex-Mex Eggs Benedict for Brunch

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly oil a baking sheet or coat with nonstick spray.

2. In a large bowl, combine Panko and Parmesan; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Set aside.

3. Working in batches, dredge asparagus in flour, dip into eggs, then dredge in Panko mixture, pressing to coat.

4. Place asparagus in a single layer onto the prepared baking sheet. Place into oven and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp.

5. Serve immediately.

SERVINGS: 4–6

Ingredients

1 cup 3/4-inch pieces asparagus

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 cup chopped leeks (white and pale-green parts only)

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 1/4 cups whole milk

1 cup grated mild white cheddar

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 14-ounce can chopped artichoke hearts in water, drained

1/4 cup fresh (or frozen, thawed) peas

2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint

2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

4 ounces crumbled fresh goat cheese, divided

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 450°. Cook asparagus in a large pot of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Drain; let cool.

2. Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add leeks and cook, stirring often, until soft, about 10 minutes. Whisk in flour; gradually whisk in milk. Bring to a simmer, whisking constantly. Cook, whisking occasionally, until thickened; remove from heat. Add cheddar; whisk until cheese is melted and mixture is smooth. Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Fold in asparagus (reserve tips), artichoke hearts, peas, chives, mint, flat-leaf parsley, zest and 2 oz. crumbled fresh goat cheese.

3. Transfer mixture to a 4–5-cup baking dish; arrange asparagus tips on top and dot with another 2 oz. goat cheese. Bake until golden brown and bubbling, 15–20 minutes. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

SAN BENITO — For their dedication to teaching and excellence, 18 teachers from the San Benito school district now hold the title of Teacher of the Year in their school.

The teachers from each of the 18 campuses in the school district were honored at a luncheon earlier today along with a guest and the principal from their school.

The 2016-2017 San Benito CISD Teachers of the Year:

Veronica Rodriguez, Angela G. Leal Elementary

Dorothy Barrera, Dr. C.M. Cash Elementary

Melissa De Leon, Dr. Raul Garza, Jr. Elementary

Nora Garza, Ed Downs Elementary

Kourtney Leal, Frank Roberts Elementary

Monica Simpson, La Encantada Elementary

Ana Yanez, Fred, Booth Elementary

Estela Jaramillo, La Paloma Elementary

Amanda Cruz, Landrum Elementary

Maria Loredo, Judge Oscar De La Fuente Elementary

Marisela Pedraza, Rangerville Elementary

Faviola Evans, Sullivan Elementary

Laura Noriega, Amador R. Rodriguez Juvenile Boot Camp

Cynthia Zartuche Manrrique, Berta Cabaza Middle School

Herminia Garcia, Miller Jordan Middle School

Juanita Ibarra, San Benito Riverside Middle School

Ester Leal, San Benito High School

Juanita Carrasco, San Benito Veterans Memorial Academy

RAYMONDVILLE — A local anti-drug campaign will bring its message to skateboarders and other youths today as Veterans Park opens here.

Communities Against Drug Abuse, or CASA, will warn youths of the dangers of drug and alcohol abuse as they gather for the opening of Raymondville’s first skateboard park.

The event is part of the national campaign “Strong as One, Stronger Together,” Rosalie Tristan, CASA’s coordinator, said.

Tristan said the new $1 million park featuring a sports complex near one of the city’s poorest neighborhoods gives youths the tools to live healthier lives.

“It gives the kids an alternative to drugs, gangs and things they face everyday,” Tristan said. “Its shows kids there are opportunities for them.”

Speakers will include Willacy County District Attorney Bernard Ammerman and Raymondville Police Detective Denise Ledesma.

In Willacy County, statistics show children take their first drink at 12.

Tristan pointed to statistics showing alcohol or drugs were involved in at least 12 automobile accidents that resulted in injuries here in 2014.

The event is set for 5 p.m. at the park at the corner of First Street and Durango Avenue.

For more information, call Tristan at 956-699-5019.

To the citizens of La Feria, thank you for coming out on May 7 and making your voices heard loud and clear.

Above all, thank you for exercising your right to choose, your right to Vote.

To say that one side won and the other lost is not what this campaign was all about.

In the end, it was the inability of the current Administration and School Board to simply involve the community at large in this decision.

Our position has always been – involve everyone, not just a select few in hopes that you will garner enough votes.

It was also quite the spectacle to see all the staff from LFISD and School Board members out in full force on May 7. Can anyone tell us the last time they saw that? Wow.

Simply, wow. It is also quite the site to see several Board Members posting pictures about “working together, being a community” after the final votes were tallied.

Where was this posturing leading up to the election?

Where was the “let’s join hands and sing kumbaya” as they stood out there and some even watched and enjoyed the sight as one of our very own was physically threatened by another citizen?

They are now inviting people to attend board meetings and work together.

Should they be reminded how not too long ago they all sat quietly as one concerned citizen was quieted and kept from speaking at said board meetings?

Is that the behavior citizens can expect from this School Board if they too choose to attend and voice their opinions?

To say there is a difference of opinions is an understatement. However, we all need to find a way to push those differences aside and more importantly the egos, if we are to truly do what is best for this community and our children.

We are all passionate about our community and the education of our children. So please, enough with this “Class of …”, “they’re not from here …” if we didn’t care about what happened with our schools and more importantly our children, we wouldn’t be involved the way we are and we wouldn’t be voicing our opinions the way we do.

Our hope is that the election results will send a message to this Administration and School Board that conducting business as usual is not going to cut it anymore.

One citizen said it best, “until they regain our trust, we will continue to vote no”. And whether or not they believe it, the community has lost confidence in how this school district is being operated.

Yosef Mughrabi Community Advocate La Feria

The Rio Hondo ISD bond election on Saturday, May 12, was decided with fewer than 150 votes out of 1,475 registered voters. Less than 100 people voted in favor of the $20 million bond issue.

It is not that the people of Rio Hondo do not care about the bond issue.

I believe the administration and school board did everything possible to keep the information from reaching the community.

The Administration and school board won the bond election but they lost the confidence of the people of Rio Hondo.

I am not sure any law was broken but I do believe officials prevented eligible voters from voting by not providing adequate information about the bond issue and date of the election.

The “Notice of Bond Election” was in the April 17 edition of the San Benito News. The Valley Morning Star newspaper is a more widely read medium but there was no notice about it in that newspaper.

Superintendent Garcia is quoted in the Valley Star saying he was very happy the community rallied for the $20 million proposal to purchase land and build a new middle school.

If we knew more about it maybe there would have been more community involvement. Maybe administration and school board were afraid people would question the need for a new middle school when there are not just a few empty classrooms in three of the five campuses.

People might even start questioning RHISD ranking and scores.

I like what the La Feria community members had to say when their voters were opposed to their bonds, “the district needs an honest conversation with the community … and for the board and superintendent to come up with constructive and practical ways to demonstrate good faith and trustworthiness.”

So now we move forward. For some, it means paying more taxes.

With the state of the economy, the taxpayers might have chosen to do with what we have, but now it is out of our hands since the administration and the school board members decided to hide things from the taxpaying public.

Diana Bates Rio Hondo taxpayer

Harlingen South’s Jeremiah Gonzalez has made it a habit of qualifying for the UIL state tennis tournament.

The senior has been to state each of his four years at South but, unfortunately, had never won a match.

On Monday, however, Gonzalez made sure his last trip to the state tourney was his best trip as he won two matches to advance to today’s Class 6A boys’ singles championship final.

Full story at RGVSports.com

To say that the Harlingen Lady Cardinals basketball team had a good 2015-16 season is a major understatement.

The Lady Red Birds finished the season at 34-2, lost only one game in the regular season – which came against San Antonio Clark in a tournament shortly before Thanksgiving – then rattled off the next 22 in a row en route to an undefeated District 32-6A title. And while the team ultimately fell short in the playoffs, losing to Weslaco in the third round, the season it had was an undeniable success.

A big reason for that prosperity was the play of senior center Addison Dickey, who not only got things done on the court but also proved to be a team leader to all the underclassmen on the squad.

In addition to her prowess on the basketball court, Dickey was also masterful in front of a net as she provided plenty of power for the Lady Cards’ volleyball team.

Bottom line, Dickey is a gifted athlete and it’s no wonder that she is a finalist for the 6A Female Athlete of the Year award, which will be presented at the 2016 All-Valley Sports Awards Banquet on June 14 in McAllen.

The other nominees up for the award are Mayda Garcia of McAllen Rowe and Belle Palacios of PSJA North.

Dickey sat down with the VMS recently to talk about her nomination.

Q: How does it feel being nominated for the 6A Female Athlete of the Year award?

A: When I found out I was nominated for award, I was in shock. My first question was ‘how did I get nominated?’ I never knew that there was award like this one. I feel completely honored that the people that nominated me even thought to consider me for being in the running for such an amazing award. I feel completely honored just to be a nominee.

Full story at RGVSports.com

HARLINGEN — The thunderstorms that chugged across the Valley for several hours Sunday left wildly divergent rainfall totals depending on location.

At Valley International Airport in Harlingen, the official rain gauge read 1.29 inches.

But areas to the west received much more precipitation, said Mike Castillo, senior meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Brownsville.

About 5 miles southwest of Harlingen, an unofficial volunteer weather observer recorded 4.06 inches of rainfall Sunday. And about a half-mile north of the city, another volunteer recorded 2.45 inches.

The amounts are significant since Harlingen, for the past 30 years, has averaged just 25.18 inches of rain annually.

McAllen Miller International Airport reported 2.91 inches of rain, shattering a record for the date. The previous rainfall record for the day was 1.95 inches set in 1970.

A rare tornado warning was issued for Hidalgo County on Sunday afternoon but there was no official confirmation of a funnel cloud. Castillo said there was one unconfirmed report of a tornado sighting in the Hargill area, and “we did have quite a bit of wind damage reports.”

Castillo said tornado warnings are very rare in the Valley.

“We don’t get the classic-type tornadic thunderstorm like North Texas, Oklahoma or the Central Plains,” he said. “Not that it can’t happen but they’re very small and very short-lived.”

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