Posted on by Deb

Asparagus with Fresh Ricotta

Asparagus with ricotta

Spring Zing

Freshly-harvested asparagus

“A kind of light spread out from her. And everything changed color. And the world opened out. And a day was good to awaken to. And there were no limits to anything.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

Light shifts with the seasons. It’s vague and unassuming at first. We’re never sure when it really happens. The annual time change confuses our innate ability to feel the change. We must see it. We are so busy reestablishing our daily rhythms that one day we realize winter with its sharp dramatic edges and deep shadows of light has been replaced with a softer focus. The plush velvet curtain of winter is pulled back to reveal a stage where the merry making of spring always surprises us. As the light brightens it pushes away the last scrap of winter revealing all the sparkling color we crave.

The shift from winter to spring is dramatic in the Salinas Valley. Fields and highways come alive with the return of spring crops. Planting, irrigating, harvesting, packaging and transporting all coalesce into a mass of activity that is the foundation of the local economy. The dark winter shadows that fell on the furrows of idle fields are replaced with sprouts of bright verdant green and splashes of ruby red. If one color were chosen to describe the Valley it would be green. From field to field shades of bright chartreuse to rich emerald color our view with spring zing.

Asparagus from field to plate

Spring is the season to enjoy California asparagus. I visited V&V Farms in Gonzales to learn more about growing asparagus in the Salinas Valley. The day of my visit was foggy but the previous weeks warmth had encouraged rapid growth of the asparagus. I visited on a bustling day of harvesting and packaging activity. Brian Violini’s family has been growing asparagus for over twenty five years on their family farm in Gonzales. Asparagus takes two years to mature into the amazing spears we buy in tidy bunches at the grocery store or farmer’s market. Each individual spear of asparagus is harvested by hand, gathered and transported to the packaging facility to be washed, sorted and packaged for shipping. I knew I would be enthralled with the fields of asparagus but I was truly amazed at the packaging facility. The understated exterior of the building holds no clue to the sparkling clean, modern processing facility inside. Packaged with The Coastal View label, V&V fresh asparagus can be found at Costco and Sam’s Club.

Ricotta cheese and Meyer lemons

Essentials

Freshly picked asparagus has a sweet grassy taste, without any bitter notes. When shopping for asparagus remember to check the trimmed ends of the spears as well as the tips. If the ends are dry, look for fresher spears that are still hydrated.

To celebrate the vibrant freshness of just harvested asparagus I gently blanched the spears, pairing them with a dollop of homemade ricotta. I made ricotta from whole milk, lemon juice, vinegar and salt from America’s Test Kitchen DIY Cookbook. It was easy and much faster to make than I imagined. Keep it simple by buying ricotta at the store; just make sure to purchase fresh not the creamy kind in the white tub. The mildly sweet ricotta adds a delicate voluptuousness without being overly rich. To balance the robust flavor of the asparagus lemon zest adds a zap of sunshine while mint arrives for an elegant finish.

Ingredients
1lb fresh asparagus, with tough ends trimmed
1C fresh ricotta cheese
1 lemon, zested
2T olive oil
1/2t sea salt
1/4t ground pepper
1T fresh mint, finely sliced
  1. Fill a large bowl with ice and cold water, set aside. To blanch the asparagus, fill a large pot with water and bring the water to a rolling boil. Add the asparagus to the boiling water. When the water returns to a boil cook the asparagus for just a minute or two. When ready, the asparagus will just begin to turn color, a deep vibrant emerald green. Do not over cook or your asparagus will be limp instead of tender-crisp. The asparagus I used were very thick and I only cooked them for a minute and a half. Quickly but gently remove the asparagus from the boiling water and immediately immerse them in the ice cold water. As soon as the spears have cooled drain them while preparing the ricotta.
  2. In a small bowl mix the ricotta and 3/4 of the lemon zest. Plate the cooled asparagus and scoop ricotta across the middle of the spears. Garnish with a splash of olive oil, salt, pepper, mint and the remaining lemon zest. The asparagus can be eaten as soon as prepared or chilled to be eaten later.

V&V Farms shared freshly picked asparagus with me. This is not a sponsored post; the recipe and opinions are my own.

V&V Farms asparagus field, Gonzales
V&V Farms asparagus field, Gonzales
Baby asparagus (first year), V&V Farms, Gonzales
Baby asparagus (first year), V&V Farms, Gonzales

29 Replies to “Asparagus with Fresh Ricotta”

  1. Pingback: Asparagus Goat Cheese Tart | East of Eden Cooking

  4. I love those asparagus fields, I had never seen one! Homemade ricotta with fresh asparagus, perfect thing to eat in spring. Oddly, we are having asparagus here now (fall), and quite tasty.

  5. I love asparagus. I usually saute them slightly and wrap it with prosciuto and drizzle with some olive oil and balsamic vinegar as serve them as finger food whenever I get to have a party. This is just perfect too, serving it along side with ricotta. Must definitely give this a go. Thanks for coming over Deb!! ♥

  6. It’s interesting to read about the asparagus where you live, as I also live in an asparagus-growing region – except ours is white! It’s a different variety, also grown on mounds, but covered with black material, and it is harvested before it pops up above the ground… so it is already “blanched”! (But has to be cooked!) I think this ricotta sauce would be good with it too. So thanks for the inspiration!

    1. Thank you for sharing Cathy! Learning about where our food comes from is a passion of mine!

    1. Thank you for the delicious comment Laura! The lemon and mint are perfect flavors with the ricotta and asparagus.

    1. Thank you Orly! It was a discovery to learn asparagus had been grown in the Valley for twenty-five years!

  11. Deb, I love the photos of asparagus, showing their beautiful selves as they pop through the ground, seeming to say “hello, we’re here!”. Although I knew it took two years to develop a mature crop of asparagus, I had no idea that it is harvested by hand. Given both of those things, it explains why it is one of the pricier veggies, and worth every penny. The simple accompaniment of ricotta adds just the right counter point while allowing the unique flavor of the asparagus to shine on.

  12. Great pictures of one of my favorite veggies….I really like the soft ricotta cheese served with these perfect stalks of asparagus and Springtime 😉

  13. You are putting me to shame, since we live so close together. I wish I could find the time, and energy, to visit our local farms. What fun it would have been for me to see this farm. I buy their asparagus whenever it comes into season, and was delighted to find it at Nob Hill yesterday. Making my own ricotta has been on my bucket list for a very long time. You have inspired me to scratch that one off. It’s been far too long (over a year?) since I said we should do lunch again. My treat. If we set a date, then it’s a date! Beautiful photos, and love the simplicity of this beautiful dish. Definitely does justice to our Salinas Valley.

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