Asparagus dippers with pea & mint dip
- Preparation and cooking time
- Prep:
- Cook:
- Easy
- Serves 6
Ingredients
- 500g-700g asparagus, depending on size (thicker spears work best)
- 8 streaky bacon rashers, or 1 rasher per 2 spears of asparagus (optional)
For the dip
- 200g fresh or frozen peas (defrosted if frozen)
- handful of mint leaves (from about 2-3 sprigs)
- 150g ricotta
- 1 lemon, ½ zested, juiced
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
Method
- STEP 1
Trim away any tough ends of the asparagus. If they’re only slightly hard, you can leave them. Halve the bacon rashers lengthways, if you like, then wrap each half around an asparagus spear and set aside. You could also wrap half the asparagus spears and leave half plain for a vegetarian option.
- STEP 2
Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Put the asparagus on a baking tray, season and bake for 15-20 mins until cooked and the bacon is crisp. For asparagus that’s not wrapped in bacon, you can also cook in a pan of boiling water for 1-2 mins, then dunk into ice-cold water to halt the cooking process. Alternatively, griddle the asparagus in a hot pan.
- STEP 3
Meanwhile, put the peas and mint in a blender and pulse to coarsely chop. Add the ricotta, lemon zest, half the juice, the olive oil, paprika (if using), and some salt and pepper to taste. Blend until smooth. Taste and add the rest of the lemon juice, if needed. Serve the dip with the asparagus spears for dipping.
