Asparagus Beets And Bleu Cheese Recipes

ASPARAGUS AND BLUE CHEESE AVOCADO TOAST

Steps:

• Toast bread and spread with butter. Top with smashed avocado. Lay the asparagus spears horizontally over the avocado, alternating which way they face. Sprinkle with blue cheese and drizzle with olive oil.

MARINATED ASPARAGUS WITH BLUE CHEESE

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, bring 6 cups water to a boil. Add asparagus; cook, uncovered, 2-3 minutes or just until crisp-tender. Remove asparagus and immediately drop into ice water. Drain and pat dry., In a large resealable plastic bag, combine green onions, oil, vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper. Add asparagus; seal bag and turn to coat. Refrigerate at least 1 hour., Drain asparagus, discarding marinade. Place asparagus on a serving plate; sprinkle with cheese.

ASPARAGUS WITH BLUE CHEESE SAUCE

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, cook asparagus in a small amount of water until crisp-tender. Meanwhile, in another saucepan, whisk cream cheese, milk and salt over low heat until smooth. Stir in blue cheese and heat through. Drain asparagus and top with sauce.

ASPARAGUS, PICKLED BEETS & BLUE CHEESE SALAD

Steps:

• Boil water for asparagus, add salt.
• Make a ice water bath in a large bowl. You will use to shock the asparagus and halt the cooking.
• Trim tough ends off of asparagus spears, leave whole.
• Place asparagus spears in boiling water. Blanche for 2-3 minutes.
• Quickly remove from hot water and place in ice water bath to shock.
• Prepare onions and pickled beets as suggested.
• Arrange asparagus spears on a platter or individual salad plates.
• Sprinkle and arrange the onion slices, beets and blue cheese.
• Top with a light champagne vinaigrette. I like Girard's brand.

ROASTED FRESH ASPARAGUS, BEETS, AND GOAT CHEESE MEDLEY

Steps:

• Heat oven to 425º F. Wash asparagus and cut off the tougher bottom parts of the stems. (Don't snap the ends as you lose too much of the asparagus). If sizes vary dramatically, slice the largest asparagus stems lengthwise. The asparagus can be chopped uniformly into halves or thirds or left whole.
• Wash and peel beets and slice into small cubes. Place asparagus and beets in a large bowl. Add olive oil, seasoning, and thyme and toss until completely coated.Cover baking sheet with parchment paper and arrange asparagus and beets on the sheet so they are spread out and not overlapping. Use a spatula to gather any remaining oil and seasonings to drizzle over the arranged vegetables. Bake for 15-20 minutes until beets are tender then remove them from the oven. Pile the asparagus and beets into the middle of the baking pan. Add cheese, fruit, and almonds. Bake another 10 minutes.

ASPARAGUS AND BEET TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Put the beets in a small baking dish and add about 1/2 inch water. Cover with foil and bake until the beets are easily pierced with the tip of a knife, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Transfer the beets to a plate and let cool. Wipe off the skins with a paper towel and slice into small wedges; set aside.
• Meanwhile, heat the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, 2 tablespoons water, 1 teaspoon thyme, a big pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is tender and caramelized, 20 to 25 minutes. (Add 1 to 2 teaspoons more water to the skillet, if needed.) Transfer the onion mixture to a food processor and puree until smooth. Let cool.
• Roll out the puff pastry into a 9-by-11-inch rectangle on a sheet of parchment paper. Transfer the dough on the parchment to a baking sheet. Score a 1-inch border around the edge of the dough with a paring knife. Brush the border with the beaten egg. Spread the onion puree inside the border.
• Combine the beets, asparagus, olive oil, the remaining 1 teaspoon thyme, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper in a bowl and toss to coat. Arrange on top of the onion puree.
• Bake the tart until the dough is well browned and the asparagus is tender, 30 to 35 minutes. Scatter the goat cheese and chives on top. Serve warm or at room temperature.

CHILLED BEETS AND ASPARAGUS WITH GARLIC CHIVE BLOSSOMS

Steps:

• First, a note on beets: they'll stain anything! Make sure you wear gloves as you're peeling the beets unless you want your hands to be an attractive magenta color!
• Place the quartered beets in a large saucepan and cover with cold water. Place over medium high heat and bring to a boil. Immediately lower the heat to medium and let the beets cook for about 20 minutes or just until fork tender. Drain the beets and run them under cold water. Drain and set aside. As you're doing this, get another pot of water boiling and drop the prepped asparagus into it for just 2 minutes. Drain the asparagus and run it under cold water immediately. This is called blanching. Drain and add to the beets.
• In yet another saucepan, add the water, orange blossom water, sugar and lemon juice. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the glaze has reduced by half and has thickened slightly. Toss with the vegetables, and add the roughly chopped garlic chives. Top with the chive blossoms and crumbled goat cheese and serve as a first course on a bed of mixed greens.

NAPOLEON OF BEETS AND HERB GOAT CHEESE WITH GRILLED ASPARAGUS

Steps:

• Cook beets in salted boiling water until tender, cool in refrigerator, and peel off skin. Soften goat cheese at room temperature, add in herbs, salt and pepper, and garlic; mix well and place in pastry bag. Slice beets into 1/8-inch thick on mandolin and place on plate, pipe goat cheese in between each layer of beets, repeat beet, goat, and top with beet. Garnish plate with asparagus that has been blanched, shocked, and grilled with olive oil. Top with red pepper, tomato, and drizzle with truffle oil.

ASPARAGUS, BEET, RED ONION, AND WALNUT SALAD

Steps:

• Vinaigrette: Mix mustard, vinegar, honey, oil, garlic and basil in bowl. Season with a little salt and pepper and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Salad: Bring a large pan of lightly salted water to boil. Add the asparagus spears to the water and cook for 3 minutes. Drain. Plunge the spears into cold running water to halt the cooking process. When cooled, drain the asparagus on paper towels, toss the asparagus with 1/2 cup of the vinaigrette. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Bring medium saucepan of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the beets and cook until tender when pierced with a sharp knife. Drain. Slip off the skins under cold running water. Slice the beets 1/4 inch thick. You need approximately 24 slices. Toss the beets with 1/4 cup of the vinaigrette. And refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving.
• To assemble the salad, layer the beets, onions, and asparagus on small salad plates. Drizzle the remaining dressing around the plates and sprinkle with walnuts.

ROASTED ASPARAGUS W/ BLUE CHEESE & TOASTED WALNUTS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425.
• Trim and wash asparagus then arrange in a shallow roasting pan.
• Drizzle olive oil over asparagus and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Toss asparagus to evenly coat.
• Roast in oven for 10-12 minutes.
• Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle with blue cheese, then top with walnuts.

CURRIED COUSCOUS WITH ASPARAGUS AND BLEU CHEESE

Steps:

• Bring 1 3/4 cups water to a boil in a saucepan. Slowly pour couscous and raisins into the boiling water while stirring. Place a cover on the saucepan, reduce heat to low, and simmer until the couscous absorbs most of the water, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Remove saucepan from heat and set aside until couscous absorbs remaining water, about 5 minutes more. Fluff couscous with a fork.
• Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Saute asparagus, green onions, and carrots in hot oil until tender-crisp, about 5 minutes.
• Mix vinegar, sugar, curry powder, ginger, and salt together in a large bowl until the sugar is completely dissolved into the vinegar; add the couscous mixture, asparagus mixture, blue cheese, and sunflower kernels. Gently fold the mixture until the kernels are evenly distributed through the mixture.

BEETROOT, FETA & ASPARAGUS SALAD

Steps:

• The day before: make the dressing. Put the oregano or marjoram, a pinch of salt and the garlic into a food processor and pulse to a paste. Add the lemon juice and whizz until smooth. Stir in the olive oil and season - it should be sharp and a bit salty.Cover and chill.
• Two hours before serving: bring a pan of salted water to the boil, add the asparagus and cook for 3 minutes. Drain and cool under the cold tap. Cover and keep cool.
• Put the beetroot in a large bowl and toss with twothirds of the dressing. Add the lemon zest and spring onions, cover and keep at cool room temperature with the remaining dressing.
• To serve: add the watercress to the beetroot and tear in the basil. Toss in the asparagus and season with freshly ground black pepper. Taste before adding salt as the cheese is quite salty.Mix lightly, so you don't dye everything pink, then pile into a serving dish. Crumble over the cheese and pour the remaining dressing on top.

ROASTED BEET AND ASPARAGUS SALAD

Steps:

• The Beets: Wash and dry the beets well. Rub them with the 1 1/2 Tablespoons of olive oil. Place them in a baking pan with 1 ounce of water. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 40 minutes to 1 hour & 15 minutes or until they are fork tender. Allow the beets to cool. Peel off the outer skin and small dice. This should yield about 3 cups. Place the diced beets, blood orange oil and cilantro in a bowl and toss. Season to taste with salt and fresh ground pepper. Reserve in the refrigerator.
• The Asparagus: While the beets are roasting, blanch the asparagus in salted boiling water for about 3 minutes until it is tender and bright green.
• Shock the asparagus in ice water for about 3-5 minutes or until it is cold throughout . Dry the asparagus and chop it into a small dice. This should yield about 3 cups. Reserve in the refrigerator.
• The Dijon Vinaigrette: While the beets are roasting or a couple of days in advance, combine the egg yolk, Dijon, and vinegar in a bowl. With a wire wisk, mix the ingredients well. Slowly in a steady stream, drizzle in the oil to form and emulsion. Add the parsley, chives and shallots. Mix well and season to taste with salt and fresh ground pepper. Reserve in the refrigerator.
• The Moroccan Spice & Almonds: While the beets are roasting, or 1 day before, remove the zest from 1 orange and place in a small oven proof container in the oven to dry out, watching constantly as not to burn it.
• Once the zest is dry allow it to cool. In a coffee grinder, add the cardamom, broken cinnamon stick, allspice & cloves and grind until fine.
• Pour the spices into a small bowl. Grind the dry orange rind in the same fashion and add it to the other spices. Add the sugar and salt and mix well with a fork. Reserve in an airtight container.
• Toast the almonds in a dry saute pan over medium heat on the stove until lightly golden brown. Drizzle the 1 Tablespoon of oil on the almonds and continue to toast for another 30 seconds. Pull the almonds off the heat and pour them evenly onto a cookie sheet. Sprinkle the almonds with about 1 - 1 1/2 Tablespoons of the Moroccan spice and continue to toast in the oven for approximately 1 - 2 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool completely. Reserve.
• To Build the Dish: Remove the beets, asparagus, vinaigrette & cheese from the refrigerator 1/2 an hour before serving. Add about 2 - 3 ounces of the Dijon vinaigrette to the asparagus and toss well. Season to taste with salt & pepper. In a round mold or free style, divide the asparagus onto the center of 6 plates. Add a layer of the dressed asparagus on top of the beets. (If you are using a mold, you will need to layer the beets and then the asparagus onto one plate before removing the mold and repeating onto the second plate and so forth.) Toss the field greens in some of the blood orange oil and place some of them onto the asparagus. Place 1 piece of Maytag blue cheese on top of the greens. Sprinkle each plate with the almonds. Garnish each plate with drizzles of Dijon vinaigrette, blood orange oil and chopped chives.

ASPARAGUS, BEETS AND BLEU CHEESE

Steps:

• Trim the asparagus, peel each stem and cook in boiling water just until it's firm to the bite, 2-3 minutes.
• Drain and chill in cold running water.
• Arrange the cold asparagus spears on a serving platter and pile the sliced beets on that.
• Mix the oil, beet juice and vinegar in a bowl and drizzle over the beets and asparagus.
• Garnish with some crumbled bleu cheese and a dusting of the chopped pecans. Serve right away.