Asparagus is in: Grill ’em if you Got ’em
For lunch earlier this week, I started where I often start around this time of year. I pulled some asparagus out of the crisper drawer and started to prep them. Conventional wisdom about snapping them where they naturally snap is out, so I cut off the woodiest bit at the bottom and start in with the vegetable peeler. Grilled asparagus is the best and easiest way to enjoy them.
FUN FACT: Washington is the #1 producer of domestic asparagus with 23 million pounds harvested in 2017.
Once those spears are off the grill, you’ll slather a baguette with a thick herb pesto, layer on the halloumi and asparagus. Add some salad greens, if you like. You could easily substitute fresh mozzarella in place of the halloumi, but I like halloumi’s heft. Go with a good baguette that won’t sog out or squish like a marshmallow. I like Grand Central Bakery’s. The whole point of this easy, delicious sandwich is to take advantage of the gorgeous asparagus currently at the market.
Not to brag, but we’re partial to locally grown Washington asparagus, whose season runs through June. Fresh asparagus is high in fiber and offers a good source of vitamins A and C, folate, and glutathione, an anti-carcinogen and antioxidant.
The Washington Asparagus Commission kindly provided a gift card to pick up some of the season’s first spears and develop this recipe.
This grilled asparagus sandwich with halloumi also features a spreadable herb pesto with Oregon hazelnuts.
Grilled Asparagus and Halloumi Sandwiches
Ingredients
- 3 6-inch baguette sections, sliced in half lengthwise
- 6-10 medium asparagus spears
- olive oil
- kosher salt
- black pepper
- 1 7 oz. package, sliced halloumi cheese
- Salad greens, if desired
- Herb Pesto Spread
- 1/2 c. basil leaves
- 1/2 c. Italian parsley
- 1 t. lemon zest
- 1/4 c. toasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped
- 2 T. red wine vinegar
- 2 T. olive oil
- pinch of salt
Instructions
To make the pesto spread, put the basil, parsley, lemon zest and toasted hazelnuts in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse 8-10 times until finely chopped. Add the red wine vinegar and a pinch of salt. With the machine running, add the olive oil. The pesto should be thick, but spreadable.
Slice half an inch off the bottom of each spear and use a vegetable peeler to remove the thick skin on the bottom 1.5-2 inches of each spear. Drizzle the asparagus with olive oil to coat and sprinkle with kosher salt and a few grinds of black pepper.
Pat the halloumi slices dry and set aside.
Heat the grill to medium high. Grill the asparagus for 5-7 minutes, turning about half way through. Add the halloumi and grill for 2 minutes each side, just to get nice grill marks on it. You can also grill the baguette briefly, if you like.
To put together the sandwiches, spread about 2 T. on each side of the bread. If the asparagus is fairly thick, slice the spears in the half lengthwise.
Add two slices of halloumi on each sandwich and top with 4-5 slices of asparagus. Put the top on the sandwich and enjoy.
