Labor Day, when most American workers celebrate and rest, usually means a busy, tiring, labor-intensive weekend for family cooks.

Our fun-loving husbands think it's great to have folks over to celebrate the long weekend, and we feed the hungry hordes as they come and go.

This Labor Day, we're putting our heads together to list our favorite labor-saving ingredients, and we plan to use as many as we can.

In no particular order, our favorites are:

Boiled eggs. They save time on homemade potato salad and deviled eggs. Find them in packages in the deli, the refrigerated section of the supermarket, or on the salad bar.

Peeled fresh garlic. When you're harried, every little thing helps. Peeled fresh garlic finally is available in small jars, so waste is not a concern. Usually found with produce.

Refrigerated (not frozen) rolled pie-crust dough. The updated crusts have no seam to seal, and everyone asks for our dough recipe. Usually found with dairy.

Rotisserie chicken. It makes quick, hearty entree salads for lunch or a light dinner.

Shredded cabbage. The package's recipe is fine for traditional slaw, but this great ingredient will work in other salads and even stir-fries.

No-cook noodles for lasagna. One step is removed from the labor-intensive job of making lasagna. Recipes abound. Use plenty of sauce to prevent a dry casserole.

Crock Pot liner bags. Beverly swears by these beauties, which make cleanup a breeze. Found near plastic food-storage bags.

Microsteam bags. These ingenious bags provide easy, no-fail steaming of fresh vegetables in a microwave oven without dirtying a dish. Found near plastic food-storage bags. Some vegetables in the produce section also have microsteam bags.

EZ-peel shrimp, peeled and steamed shrimp. No matter what a recipe calls for, there's an easy, quick shrimp available. EZ-peel is the newest category. The shell is split, the shrimp is deveined and, with the flip of a finger, the shell comes off.

Today's recipe is the last of our labor-saving secrets. Shrimp Dijon Pasta Salad With Asparagus is a great-tasting, quick and easy recipe that will feed a crowd in a snap.

Only the cook needs to know that it takes just 20 minutes to assemble.

Write to Desperation Dinners, c/o United Media, 200 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016.

Place pasta in boiling water and cook according to package directions. When pasta is cooked, drain well and rinse with cool water. Set aside.

Meanwhile, break tough ends off asparagus spears, and rinse spears well. Cut asparagus into 1-inch pieces, and place in a microsteam bag or in a single layer in a shallow, microwave-safe dish. Microwave on High (100 percent power), uncovered, until crisp-tender, about 2 to 3 minutes, depending on thickness of spears. When done, pour the asparagus into a colander and add a handful of ice. Rinse asparagus and ice with cool water to stop cooking. Drain well; remove ice.

Make the Garlic Dijon Vinaigrette (recipe follows).

Rinse and chop scallions. Place them in a large serving bowl. Drain olives and add them to bowl. If the shrimp are more than 1 inch long, cut into bite-size pieces, and add them to bowl. Mince parsley, if using, and add it to bowl.

When pasta is cooked, rinsed and drained, shake it well to remove as much water as possible. Add it to bowl. Drizzle vinaigrette over pasta to taste. (We typically use about 2/3 cup. Extra vinaigrette can be refrigerated for up to 1 week.) Serve the salad immediately, or refrigerate until ready to serve.

Makes 10 servings.

Garlic Dijon Vinaigrette: Drop 4 cloves peeled fresh garlic one at a time through the feed tube of a food processor with the machine running, and finely chop. Stop the machine, and add ¼ cup red wine vinegar, 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard, ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Process to blend, about 5 seconds. With the motor running, drizzle ¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil through the feed tube in a thin stream. Process just until well combined and slightly thickened. Makes 1 cup.

PER SERVING (not including vinaigrette): Calories 328 (31% fat) Fat 11 g (4 g sat) Cholesterol 27 g Sodium 300 mg Fiber 2 g Carbohydrates 48 g Protein 8 g

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Shrimp Dijon Pasta Salad with Asparagus

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