Seasonal local food recipe No.364 – Asparagus frittata with soft cheese and chives
This recipe was featured in The Guardian‘s 10 best asparagus recipes. It made for a very tasty meal on Friday evening accompanied by a green salad.
Serves 2
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
200 g asparagus, trimmed
1 tbsp olive oil
salt and cayenne pepper
nutmeg, freshly grated
3 large eggs, beaten
125g soft cream cheese
30g parmesan, finely grated
2 tsp chives, chopped
butter, for frying
Method
Thinly slice the asparagus spears on the diagonal. Warm the olive oil in a non-stick frying pan, add the asparagus and season with salt, cayenne pepper and a pinch of nutmeg. Cook gently over a low heat until the asparagus is tender and lightly coloured. Tip out on to a plate, set aside and wipe out the frying pan.
In a mixing bowl, beat together the eggs, cream cheese, parmesan and chives until smooth. Return the frying pan to a moderate heat, add a little slice of butter and heat until it is just beginning to froth. Pour in the egg mixture, turn down the heat to low and begin bringing in the frothing edges to the liquid centre of the pan using a spatula.
Tip the cooked asparagus into the pan and disperse evenly. Continue to gently lift the more cooked parts of the frittata, allowing the liquid egg to slip underneath them until a happy, soft and curd-like medium has evolved. This should take around 2 minutes. Slide the frittata on to a plate and allow to cool a little before serving.
