Asparagus with Orange Dressing and Toasted Hazelnuts recipe has a delicious citrus and nutty flavor. Excellent serve with Grilled Balsamic-Dijon Chicken or Grilled Chicken Piccata. This asparagus recipe is a very easy and quick way to prepare fresh asparagus, plus it is very delicious!
Spring at our house means lots and lots of asparagus. When the fresh asparagus is in season, the taste is the absolute best. Check out How to Select, Store, and Cook Asparagus and more great Asparagus Recipes.
- 2 tablespoons hazelnuts, finely-chopped*
- 1 1/2 to 2 pounds asparagus stalks, washed and trimmed**
- 1/4 teaspoon orange zest, freshly-grated
- 2 teaspoons orange juice, fresh-squeezed
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice, fresh-squeezed
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, extra-virgin
- Coarse salt and sea salt
- Black pepper, coarsely-ground
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Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
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Cook asparagus in a large frying pan of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, approximately 4 to 5 minutes; remove from heat and drain well in a colander.
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Transfer hot asparagus to serving platter or individual serving plates.
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In a small bowl, whisk together orange zest, orange juice, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper to taste. Spoon the prepared Orange Dressing over top or asparagus and sprinkle with chopped hazelnuts.
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Makes 4 servings.
* Toasting Hazelnuts: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a baking pan, toast hazelnuts in one layer in middle of oven 10 to 15 minutes, or until lightly colored and skins are blistered. Wrap nuts in a kitchen towel and let steam 1 minute. Rub nuts in towel to remove loose skins; and cool completely.
** When fresh Spring asparagus is out of season, you could substitute fresh green beans.
Sources: This Asparagus with Orange Dressing and Toasted Hazelnuts recipe is from Gourmet Magazine, April 2000 issue. Photo by Alan Richardson.