Recipes

Battered Asparagus Spears with Parmesan-Garlic Aioli

Recommended Wine Pairing(s):

• Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc

Ingredients

Battered Asparagus Spears:

• 2 lb fresh asparagus spears, hard bottoms trimmed, cleaned and dried completely
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp dried oregano
• 1 Tbsp dried parsley
• Sea Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 bottle of Italian Prosecco, chilled
• 3-4 cups vegetable oil

Aioli:

• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 large egg
• 3 Tbsp grated parmesan
• 1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp freshly chopped
• Italian parsley
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Directions

Battered Asparagus Spears:

• Add the flour into a mixing bowl and combine the herbs, salt and pepper. Pour in the Prosecco a little at a time, whisking gently to incorporate. Keep adding Prosecco until the batter achieves the thickness of heavy cream. Don't worry too much about having little lumps in the batter, as they'll just become nice crunchy bits when you start frying.
• Place the asparagus spears in a casserole dish and dust with a little flour to lightly coat.
• Pour the oil into a deep saucepan - you want it to fill a little more than half way up the pan. Heat the oil to 350°F. If you don't have a thermometer, just sprinkle flour into the oil. If it sizzles a bit, then the oil is ready.
• Shake any excess flour off the asparagus. One by one, dip the pieces into the Prosecco batter, then carefully place in the hot oil. Make sure you stand back so you don't get splashed. Fry the asparagus in batches turning them throughout the cooking process to cook evenly. You will know the asparagus are cooked when the batter becomes golden and crispy and the spears float to the top of the oil. Once cooked, remove the asparagus spears from the oil and set aside on a paper towel lined plate. Sprinkle with sea salt and freshly chopped Italian Parsley and squeeze a little fresh lemon juice over. Serve immediately with Parmesan-Garlic Aioli.

Garlic Aioli:

• Combine the garlic, egg, parmesan. lemon juice, parsley, salt and pepper in a food processor or blender and puree. Add the oil in a slow stream and continue to process until the mixture has emulsified.
• Makes about 12 -15 pieces.