Lemon, Pepper, and Asparagus Salad
Spring has finally sprung here in Cincinnati. And with the addition of a shiney new grill to our family, we’ve been opting for easy-peasey meals which include grilled meat and a pile of fresh vegetables. For maximum ease of meal prepping, we just grill the veggies, but sometimes I like to prepare them in other ways.
Lemon, pepper, and asparagus salad is one of those ways. This salad really highlights the fresh in-season asparagus. Since it cooked for a few minutes on the stovetop, it keeps a nice crunch and vibrant color.
The lemon juice and freshly ground pepper just enhance those flavors. I threw in some heirloom cherry tomatoes to add some color and texture to the dish. You could make it with or without the tomatoes.
One note about fresh tomatoes. I ALWAYS season them with coursely ground sea salt and freshly ground pepper. No matter what I’m doing with them, they always get seasoned. And don’t be afraid to use some salt on tomatoes. I remember watching an episode of Barefoot Contessa years ago where she talked about how the flavor of a tomato can really be enhanced by some salt, and how it’s hard to over-salt a tomato. I took those words to heart and firmly agree with her.
One Year Ago: Marbled Chocolate Chip Bundt and Pumpkin Cinnamon Swirl Bread
Two Years Ago: Lemon Garlic Roasted Chicken and Carrot Cake and Cheesecake Cake
Three Years Ago: Spring M&M Pretzel Treats and Vanilla Buttercream
Four Years Ago: Fauxstess Cupcakes and Spinach Pasta with Chicken Sausage, Mushrooms, Goat Cheese and Tomato
Lemon Pepper Asparagus Salad
Yield: Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
1 bunch asparagus (rinsed)
zest and juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
bowl of ice water (for blanching)
Directions:
Chop the asparagus into small pieces.
Put the asparagus and a splash of water in a pot on the stove top. Cover with a lid and cook on medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes, until asparagus turn bright green. Turn off the heat and transfer the asparagus to the ice bath.
Allow to sit in the ice water for a couple of minutes. Drain and transfer to a mixing bowl.
Add the oil, salt, pepper, lemon juice, and tomatoes and stir well. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Garnish with extra lemon zest if desired.
Recipe from Keep It Simple Foods
I am Jen the Beantown Baker. Engineer by day and baking maven by night. Hubby serves as my #1 fan and official taste tester. We got hitched back in 2006. Barefoot. In the sand. With the waves crashing behind us. It was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. 
wow..great to see a green bean casserole with ingredients that are actually found in nature! 🙂 thank you!
love,
cathy b.
I think this homemade version has to beat the pants off the one with canned mushroom soup. I mean, with portobellos and shitakes? Yes please!
I’ve only tried the “classic” green bean casserole for the first time like a month ago and I’m definitely recreating it this weekend – cream of mushroom and all! Yours, however, looks gourmet and unprocessed!
i’ve never had Green Bean casserole and want to try it so badly! I may just make the processed version to see how it tastes. Yours looks way more fabulous than I could probably ever get mine to be!
Yummmmm- well done in getting rid of the processed sections and going for the natural approach!!!! Looks delicious!
I’ve never had green bean casserole but this makes me want to try it! Yours looks really good.
home made green bean casserole! I didn’t know it was possible! 🙂 Personally I’m in the hate category… but I’d be willing to try this version 🙂
definitely looks better than the “traditional” version!!
Oooh, I am so excited about this! A friend requested green bean casserole for a small holiday party that I’m hosting, but I really, really didn’t want to make the regular version of it. This is perfect!
everything’s better homemade!
This sounds like a very useful veggie side dish come the post-Xmas dinners. I did notice recently that oriental shops also sell roasted shredded crispy onions, if you find yourself very short of time one day (they are not expensive).
Definitely the best green casserole recipe! I’ve been making Alton s recipe for years.
beantownbaker — November 24th, 2013 @ 5:51 pm
Isn’t it great?!?