Recipe: Asparagus & Pecorino

Last week we ate at Mario Batali's pizzeria, Otto and promptly afterward I decided to tell you about my vegetables sides tucked in little bowls. Last week's email gave the recipe for some minty English peas and prosciutto and today the asparagus with Pecorino is up.

While the asparagus is still in season (assuming you're not already asparagussed-out), this is an ideal treatment of those sweet green spears: chopped into bits, served raw with the best olive oil you can find and a handful of Pecorino bits. If you can't get Pecorino, which is made from Sheep's milk, Parmesan, a more buttery cow's milk cheese, is a good alternative.

Asparagus & Pecorino
makes 8 servings

8 ounces fresh asparagus
1 tablespoon good-quality olive oil
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
2 ounces Pecorino Romano cheese, diced and smashed into little bits
a few cracks fresh black pepper

Snap off the root ends of the asparagus and slice it cross-wise into 1/4-inch to 1/2-inch long pieces.

In a medium bowl whisk together the oil and lemon juice. Toss in the asparagus and cheese. Combine well.

Divide into small cups, ramekins or bowls between 4 and 8 ounces and top with black pepper.

Comments (10)

Otto's is my favorite place in town, man. Their margherita pizza is phenom. and the olive oil gelato??? WHAT??? so good!

posted by kdkaboom on June 2nd 2009 at 12:31pm
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I bet mixing in some garlic spears would be good too, yumm...

posted by ashbadger on June 2nd 2009 at 1:32pm
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raw asparagus? really?

posted by juice on June 2nd 2009 at 1:37pm
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I might do this with a quick little blanch.

Pecorino is awesome with asparagus. I've made this recipe twice and it is amazing.

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posted by WhitinChi on June 2nd 2009 at 4:03pm
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juice: YES! RAW asparagus. Slice it small. Delicious.

posted by Sara Kate on June 2nd 2009 at 5:26pm
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I LOVE Otto. Every time I am in NYC I pay it a visit, and the little bowls of vegetables are my favorite! Last fall I had the yummiest cauliflower. I will definitely be giving this a try.

posted by pennyplastic on June 2nd 2009 at 6:41pm
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I just tried raw asparagus, picked right from the field. A little too pea-like for my tastes (oh, how I hate peas) but the rest of the family loved it.
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posted by Mama Ark on June 3rd 2009 at 2:32pm
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I made this dish and found it quite addictive! Thanks for the recipe. I upped the lemon a little bit, and I bet it would be great with some sweet peas tossed in to cut the bitterness a little bit.

posted by maggie (p/c) on June 11th 2009 at 9:41pm
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posted by pac79 on August 5th 2009 at 7:23pm
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