Name: Prosciutto Wrapped Asparagus with Sumac
Prep time: 10 min
Ingredients: 12 medium to large sized asparagus spears. (Too thin and they will scorch or over-cook before the meat is done.); cracked black pepper; 6 slices of prosciutto; olive oil; sumac for garnish (can use fresh lemon juice instead); 1/3 cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese (or to taste)

It’s Ontario Asparagus season again. And it’s a tasty time of the year!

We all get so excited when the first real crop of vegetables hit the markets and farmer’s stands, and asparagus is usually one of the first things we get. Now we know for sure the Spring is here!

Ontario Grows All the Colours These Days

There was a time in the not so distant past when the only colour of asparagus we would see grown in Ontario was the good ole green variety. We knew that Europe prized the famed white asparagus, but it just wasn’t a thing here yet. The odd time we would see it at the grocery store, it was probably flown in from Peru. But these days, along with green, and purple, farmers are growing amazing white asparagus.

Little known fact, my mum worked on a farm in Germany every summer, along with all the town kids, tending to the white asparagus fields. White asparagus is asparagus that is grown without being able to see the sun. It is most grown underground, with tarps covering the fields of earth. As soon as the asparagus tips started coming through the dirt, it was time to harvest! Most of all Europe goes nuts in May as the white asparagus hits the veggie stands. If you are ever in Germany, France, Sweden, and anywhere in between at this time of the year, you will find every restaurant showcasing white asparagus in some manner! Once it’s gone, it’s gone for another year, so everyone makes the most of it. Here is a great article on Germany’s love affair with White Asparagus!

How to Store Asparagus Once and For All

Asparagus is woody, and in no time, the bottom end dries out and loses any texture and flavour, it becomes tough and useless. Here is the best way to avoid losing too much of the stem when you finally get around to eating it. When you bring it home, trim a thin sliver off the bottom of each asparagus spear. Place them all in a jar like a flower bouquet, and fill the jar with water. Loosely tent the asparagus with a plastic bag. Since you most likely brought the asparagus home in a bag, why not make the plastic bag do double duty? This way you’ll feel less guilty about having the bag in the first place. Store the jar in the fridge, and you will find that even days later, that the stem end is still fresh and vibrant! Yay! If you do need to, you can trim off the bottom 1/2 inch or so at the most.

Let’s Make Toast Soldiers with Asparagus!

How to celebrate this slightly sweet, nutty, veggie? I’ve got all sorts of recipes up on the blog, from roasted asparagus with harissa to the good ole asparagus tart and quiche. So today I decided to share a great appetizer or side dish that allows asparagus to shine. In fact, I’m going to show that this recipe works great for breakfast or brunch!

Prosciutto Wrapped Asparagus is a classic. I’ve added a bit of sumac to finish it, since the citrusy lemon nature of sumac is perfect against the roasted asparagus.

This dish is just so easy to whip up. Preheat the oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with parchment and lay out your asparagus spears. Dust them with pepper all over. Then you will wrap slices of prosciutto around them. Lay them out like sardines, with a little space in between each one. Drizzle with olive oil and pop into the oven till the asparagus is just tender and the meat has crisped up. You can finish with a quick broil to add some lovely colour and burnish to the meat. Serve them on a platter with a good scattering of sumac and parmesan cheese. If you can’t find sumac (the ground up berries of the sumac bush popular in the middle east) just a squeeze of fresh lemon will work. You really won’t need any salt, since both the parmesan and prosciutto have enough. And yes, I have even used mortadella for wrapping! It really works, and tastes vaguely like fried bologna! These are great served right away, but still work at room temperature for some reason. And if you need to store leftovers, do so in a sealed container and re-warm in the oven till crisped up again, just a few minutes under the broiler will be fine. Or the air fryer for a minute or so will work as well.

So Jen, How Are These Like Toast Soldiers?

As I mentioned, these make for a great side dish for brunch. If you are serving up lovely soft-boiled eggs, I contend that the classic toast soldier make share the plate with these prosciutto wrapped asparagus spears. Eggs and Asparagus really play well together. Dipping one of these lovely tender/crispy spears into the molten goodness of the golden yolk is just amazing! Try it, you’ll be hooked, I promise. And if you don’t want to serve these with soft-boiled eggs, then poached eggs, or an omelette on the side would make for a very memorable meal, whether for brunch or a light dinner.

Oh, by the way, I think wrapping prosciutto shouldn’t be left just for the asparagus. Wrap up bread toast soldiers in a similar way, and it will take the common breakfast fare and take it to the next level! All you have to do is is slice the bread into 4 slices or so the size and length of your index finger. Lay them out on a baking sheet and pop into the 400F oven for about 5-8 minutes, till dried out and slightly golden. Remove them from the oven and brush a little olive oil on each side of the bread soldiers. Sprinkle parmesan cheese and pepper over each. Then wrap the prosciutto around them and pop them b back into the oven. Once the prosciutto is crisped up, about 8-10 minutes you can take them out to serve with your eggs.

For the perfect no-fail soft boiled eggs, which aren’t exactly boiled at all, see my method here!

Love Jen