Asparagus

RECIPE & IMAGES AMBER BREMNER

We are fortunate to have a number of asparagus growers in the Waikato, making it easy to find locally grown, perfectly fresh asparagus at an affordable price. Choose asparagus with firm stems and tight tips. Store it in the fridge with the cut ends wrapped in a wet tea towel or standing up in a jar with 1–2 cm of water.

SPRING VEGETABLE SALAD WITH GOLDEN TURMERIC DRESSING

Raw asparagus has a distinctive grassy flavour and tastes a little like green peas. It’s rather lovely, and a nice alternative way to enjoy this healthy vegetable. Make sure you use the freshest asparagus you can find. This golden turmeric dressing is one of my favourites. Its creamy, tangy and slightly earthy flavour goes well with most vegetables and works very well with this crisp spring vegetable salad.

Salad Baby cos lettuce leaves (2 heads, or 1 pre-packaged bag) 2 courgettes 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil 2 tsp lemon juice pinch of salt 250g asparagus (1 bunch) 3–4 radishes

Dressing 2 tbsp lemon juice 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 1 tbsp tahini (Available from Vetro Hamilton, La Cave and The Herbal Dispensary in Raglan) 1 clove garlic, crushed or finely grated 1 tsp maple syrup or sweetener of your choice ½ tsp ground turmeric salt and pepper to taste Put salad dressing ingredients into a small jar or sealed container and shake to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning if required. If the dressing is too thick, add a little more lemon juice or a splash of water.

Separate baby cos lettuce leaves and arrange on a serving platter or salad bowl. Use a vegetable peeler to slice courgettes into ribbons. Toss the courgette ribbons with olive oil, lemon juice and a pinch of salt and set aside to soften slightly while you prepare the rest of the salad.

Snap tough ends off the asparagus, then slice thinly on the diagonal. Trim radishes and slice very thinly. Just before serving, add sliced asparagus and about half of the sliced radishes to the bowl with the courgette ribbons and toss to combine. Arrange the vegetables on top of the cos lettuce and use the remaining sliced radishes to garnish.

Serve with golden turmeric dressing. Best eaten fresh.

Amber Bremner Quite Good Food www.quitegoodfood.co.nz

Amber Bremner is the author of popular plant based food blog Quite Good Food. A champion for cooking and eating food that makes you feel good, she believes small changes in the way we approach food have the power to make a difference.

The Herbal Dispensary ph. 07 825 7444 6 Wallis Street, Raglan theherbaldispensaryraglan.co.nz

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Farinata (also known as socca in France) is made with chickpea flour and water. These simple ingredients can be enhanced with herbs, spices or vegetables, then cooked in a very hot oven to create a deeply golden quiche-like pancake with lacy edges. Use any fresh soft green herbs you like — parsley, chives, mint, basil and oregano will all work here. Olive oil is traditional, but as it’s less stable at high heat I prefer to use coconut oil. Chickpea flour (also known as besan or gram flour) is available from Bin Inn, Indian food stores and some supermarkets.

3 cups water 2 cups chickpea flour (available from Vetro Hamilton, The Herbal Dispensary in Raglan) 1 cup soft green herbs, roughly chopped 1 tbsp lemon zest 1 clove garlic, crushed or finely grated 1 tsp salt black pepper 3 tbsp coconut oil (or olive oil) 500g asparagus (2 bunches) Make the farinata batter ahead of time. Whisk water, chickpea flour, herbs, lemon zest, garlic, salt and a good grind of black pepper together until smooth, then set aside, covered, for a minimum of two hours. This resting time hydrates the chickpea flour and ensures a good result.

Preheat oven to 250°C with a shelf towards the top of the oven. Snap tough ends off the asparagus and cut each stem in half. Reserve the spear ends and slice the remaining asparagus stems into rounds. Heat a heavy ovenproof fry pan (cast iron is ideal) to a very high heat. Add the coconut oil, swirl to coat the pan and when it reaches smoking point, quickly pour in the farinata batter. Sprinkle the asparagus rounds evenly into the batter, then arrange the spears over the surface.

Carefully transfer the hot pan to a high shelf in the oven and switch the oven to grill or fan grill if you have it. Cook the farinata for 10 minutes, or until deeply golden and pulling away from the edges of the pan. It should have no jiggle. Don’t be concerned if it puffs up while cooking, it will flatten again when removed from the oven.

Slice into wedges and serve immediately.

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