Recipe Roasted Green Asparagus with Mozzarella and Pecorino

[MypinchofItaly]

Serves 2, Preparation time 10 mins, Cooking time 15 – 20 mins

• 1/2 kg green Asparagus
• Pecorino cheese, grated – a handful
• Mozzarella, to taste
• salt and pepper, to taste
• Evoo – Extra Virgin Oilve Oil, to taste

Method

Wash asparagus and cut the final white hardest part of the stem.

You can cook it both raw and directly in the oven or blanched it a bit first.

Tip: if you decide to blanch or steam it before baking, be careful when cooking it because it will basically cook twice, one time in water and the other in the oven, so blanching time has to be shortened. Overcooked asparagus means get it mushy.
After cooking, transfer asparagus to a bowl filled with cold water and some ice cubes or pass them under cold running water: in this way you will preserve both the bright colour and will remain even firmer.

Cover a baking tray with baking paper and place the asparagus in a row.

Add to the asparagus a few pieces of mozzarella, a drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, a handful of grated Pecorino cheese and a pinch of salt and pepper.

Baking to 180° for 15 minutes.

 

[The Late Night Gourmet]

This is a great recipe. It plays like a side, but I can see just devouring the entire plate and making a meal of it (1/2 kg isn't that much if you're hungry!) I look forward to buying asparagus the next time I'm at the market.

And, you raise an interesting point about blanching the asparagus before roasting them. I've gotten in the habit of doing that because it's pretty easy and I like the end result, but I wasn't exactly sure what the difference was aside from color. I blanch-and-shock spinach so it retains the color for recipes like spinach pie; I blanched asparagus for the same reason. But, I've just learned that the side benefit is making sure the inside is fully cooked before the outside gets roasted.

So, I blanch for a minute or two in boiling water (less time for narrower stalks), then scoop them out and plunge them into ice water to stop the cooking process. Then, I pat them dry, and put them on the roasting pan. See...I'm already planning how I am going to make this recipe.

 

[MypinchofItaly]

This is a great recipe. It plays like a side, but I can see just devouring the entire plate and making a meal of it (1/2 kg isn't that much if you're hungry!) I look forward to buying asparagus the next time I'm at the market.

And, you raise an interesting point about blanching the asparagus before roasting them. I've gotten in the habit of doing that because it's pretty easy and I like the end result, but I wasn't exactly sure what the difference was aside from color. I blanch-and-shock spinach so it retains the color for recipes like spinach pie; I blanched asparagus for the same reason. But, I've just learned that the side benefit is making sure the inside is fully cooked before the outside gets roasted.

So, I blanch for a minute or two in boiling water (less time for narrower stalks), then scoop them out and plunge them into ice water to stop the cooking process. Then, I pat them dry, and put them on the roasting pan. See...I'm already planning how I am going to make this recipe.

The Late Night Gourmet thank you so much, you are always a gentleman
I’m glad you like my recipe and I’d like to hear about it from you, sharing ideas and/or different point of views.