True confessions.
I have never cooked asparagus in my life.
I’ve decorated with it.
I’ve covered vases with asparagus spears and made asparagus arrangements and tucked nests inside asparagus and filled mantels of milk glass containers with asparagus in the spring.
It’s my go-to vegetable.
But cooked it?
In an oven?
Seriously?
I was actually trying to remember if I had even eaten it before. I’m sure I have….in a fancy restaurant where they are heavy on the swirled sauce designs on the plates and light on the actual food. You know….those places where you leave hungry and then go home and eat ice cream.
That’s what I’ve always thought of asparagus.
Until now.
I’m not even sure why I chose this exact moment of my life to begin my asparagus journey.
But I’m so happy that I did and just in case you are only decorating with asparagus, too….let me be the first to tell you….it is absolutely delicious.
And when you wrap it in puffed pastry with parmesan cheese and sprinkle it with sea salt and dip it in balsamic vinegar sauce?
*sigh*
You’ll never wrap it around a vase again. 🙂
Pastry Wrapped Asparagus
inspired by this recipe from Country Living
Ingredients:
1 box (2 sheets) puffed pastry thawed
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
20 asparagus spears
coarse sea salt to taste (I used Morton’s)
3/4 cups balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 bay leaf
Step 1: Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
Step 2: Remove packaging from asparagus and wash thoroughly and set aside to dry on a paper towel.
Step 3: On a floured work surface, unfold pastry and cut into thirds as shown.
Step 4: Roll each of the three sheets into a long tube as shown.
Step 5: Cut each of the tubes into four equal sections.
Step 6: Unroll pastry and place one asparagus spear in the center of the pastry square as shown.
Add sprinkling of parmesan cheese.
Step 7: Roll pastry around asparagus spear.
Brush water on the pastry flap and pinch close.
Place wrapped asparagus onto parchment paper.
Repeat for the remaining sections of the puffed pastry rolls.
Brush tops of pastry with water and sprinkle with sea salt.
Insert into oven and cook for 15-18 minutes until golden brown.
Step 8: Make a balsamic dipping sauce by combining vinegar, sugar and bay leaf in a skillet on the stove over medium-high heat.
Bring to a gentle boil and cook until liquid is reduced to 1/2 cup (12 to 15 minutes).
Strain sauce to remove herbs.
Serve with warm pastry wrapped asparagus spears.
Today asparagus.
Tomorrow artichokes.
I can tell this whole cooking instead of decorating vegetable thing is going to be totally life-changing. 🙂
PS Looking for a little more recipe inspiration? Be sure to check out my recipe page.
LOL...I saw this recipe in CL and I'm doing it for an appetizer for Easter! Glad you tried it first and found out it was good! Asparagus yes...artichoke no.....but you first....
Ok, I don't read a lot of recipe posts, but you had me at asparagus! it's a favorite in our house and this is a new option i'll have to try! Thanks for sharing. :) xo Heidi ps-- hope you're well! let's catch up!
Must try these! We love asparagus at our house, but normally just do a quick turn in a hot pan with olive oil and sea salt and maybe mushrooms, if we have some. (It's also good with chicken breasts wrapped around it, baked in a little broth and butter with salt and pepper. Asparagus is very versatile that way!)
Yummy - what a great idea.
My idea of asparagus is on buttered toast with salt and peppa -- the asparagus being out of a can, of course. That's how we ate it growing up. I probably ate it more as a kid than an adult. But now you're going all "macaroni and cheese, wha? I'm gourmet!" ;D -- so I'll have to try it your way. I'm sure it's delish -- not to mention beautiful. {I'm starting to think that "macaroni and cheese kitchen" thing is all a hoax, girlfriend! You are really brilliant in the kitchen! xo ~Sally (Happy Easter!)
Welcome to the other side...of asparagus. I LOVE it and this recipe sounds delicious!
I saw this recipe just yesterday online too and thought it looked good. We love asparagus around here.
Gorgeous presentation but I have so many mouths to feed this weekend, I am just roasting mine with sprinkled feta cheese. This is so pretty and fancy I am going to try it for just a dinner of four though. One of the things I love about Spring is the fresh asparagus coming to the markets! Happy happy Easter Karianne to you and your family. xo
Look at you, gettin' all high-falutin' with your Pastry Wrapped Asparagus! LOL It looks delicious, and welcome to the wonderful world of spring vegetables! :)
Yum! This looks delicious. We love asparagus at our house. I might have to try decorating with it now! :D
Hi Kari, Your asparagus looks sooo pretty -- even though it's for eating and not for decorating. :) I LOVE asparagus, and your recipe looks just delicious; thanks so much for sharing!! I like asparagus almost any way it's prepared, although I'm still not a fan of the canned variety. I say this because apparently really hard-core asparagus fans even like it out of the can. I hope you have a wonderful day! Denise
Asparagus is one of the few vegetables my daughter will eat. I have a feeling she will like it even more with a little pastry dough wrapped around it. I put this on my pinterest board :)
This looks yummy! I've never had asparagus this way. Will definitely give it a try! Have a wonderful day!~~Angela
Looks like Spring. When it is 29 degrees it was a delight to be reminded that Spring is coming- He is risen!
My son's favorite veggie is asparagus because it is proper etiquette to eat it with your fingers. Isn't he silly?! We just lay them in a dish- drizzle with olive oil and parmesan cheese, and bake at 400 for about 6 -8 minutes. Easy and delicious. -Trish
Haha! That looks good! But, I think my husband would be much happier if I wrapped my vases in it rather than cooked it. :)
Asparagus is not my thing. Makes your pee stink. Really, it does. I know, my husband eats a lot of it. Did I say too much? I digress, your photos make it look absolutely delightful! Maybe I could just eat the puff pastry and cheese, b.c cheese is my thing. There can never be enough cheese. Happy Veggie Day!
LOL! My adult daughter refuses to eat asparagus for that very reason. I'm like, who cares? I eat it anyway.
I don't really like the taste though. Too bitter for me. But in the summer...the hubs...well he can't get enough of it. So we see it a lot around here!
so funny you mentioned that...I was too embarrassed to. I love asparagus and I love that it is a diuretic!
Now I'm hungry. And I want to try wrapping asparagus around a vase. But I'd have to do it in a way that would allow me to still eat it when I was done. Like with twine or something. That would actually be pretty cute. Twine on the top and bottom, holding things in place. But I'd need like 4 hands to get it all tied together without it falling off or pulling all my hair out with exasperation. Why is it so hard for a girl to have her asparagus and eat it too?
Wrap a rubber band around the vase FIRST, then slip the spears inside the rubber band. Cover the band with ribbon, twine or whatever you want.
That looks fantastic! I love asparagus...I'm trying spiced cauliflower for Easter. I'd rather decorate with artichokes...the hearts are Quite good. Just don't ask me to eat or decorate with zucchini! ;)
I LOVE asparagus!!! I have never made it your way - and I DEFINITELY am going to! Thanks for the recipe!
We love asparagus I have not tried it this way. Did your children like it too? Have a wonderful Holy week. Easter blessings. Hugs, Linda
That sounds wonderful! Now I will be looking for asparagus in the produce section of Super Store! Have a great day! Cindy
I am totally impressed. I've eaten asparagus a few times, was not impressed - but wrap it in pastry and parmesan cheese? I'm in!! I was at a writing conference a few years ago, in Indianapolis, where they MUST have gotten a deal on asparagus - it was literally on our plate at 5 meals over the course of three days . . . it's actually very pretty on a breakfast plate . . . we started wondering if it was being recycled . . . . ;)
Just found the vegie side dish for Easter dinner that I was looking for-thanks KariAnne!!
I'm in love with asparagus. To my eye the ratio of asparagus to pastry is off- I would shove about three more in there for balance and flavor. You just can't go wrong.
yummy. This is the one vegetable my kiddos will eat..love the addition of Parm Cheese. Pinned.
Definitely one of my favorite appetizers...I love how you added the cheese..!
These look great and now I have another recipe for asparagus. These are great appetizers. Thanks for sharing. Cynthia
looks delish! I am so serving this on Easter! Thanks for sharing! I just tried asparagus for the first time last year and I too love it! And brussel sprouts. The first time I had brussel sprouts, James and I were at a restaurant with our new baby (years ago) and I took the baby to the car to nurse him and when I came back, my husband, my man who knows me better than anyone had ordered for me... brussel spouts. I was so irritated with him (could have been a touch of postpartum depression going on!) until I tried them. They are totally delish! if you haven't tried them yet let me know, I will give you a great recipe :)
Yummy, KariAnne! I made something similar for Book Club on Sunday night, but used ham too. Aren't they fabulous!!!! The addition of a balsamic dipping sauce sounds luscious!!!
I fell in love with asparagus by making this exact recipe! Be sure and try roasted asparagus on salads. It's delicious!
Oh I LOVE asparagus! And it sounds super yummy this way! I usually just steam it and add some salt and butter.
Try stir frying it in olive oil and a little butter.slivered almonds...Aldente..it's yummy Maybe a squirt of lemon juice..
I love the fact that up until now you had only used asparagus for decorating. Priceless!! :) Elena
thanks so much for posting this recipe. i know it will be the hit of our easter buffet. that same balsamic vinegar sauce works great on roasted veggies too. my family even likes it on fresh strawberries.
Asparagus is my absolute FAVORITE vegetable! I have never seen it prepared like this before - sounds delicious! It is definitely going on my meal plan for next week. Thanks for sharing!
I saw this photo float by on my FB news feed and had to pop over to comment! good for you learning to cook in this way! I'm so proud of you. And such a healthy choice too, well, minus the thick pastry. The photo kind of makes me think of a really skinny man with a huge towel wrapped around him. Have you missed me?? xox
Girl, you will be cooking for "the queen" soon at the rate you are going. We love asparagus. I laughed aloud at the earlier comment about it making your pee smell. My guys have to bring that up every time we have it. What is it about guys?
YUM! I love asparagus! My favorite is grilled asparagus: rub some toss those guys in olive oil and a little sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, grill them turning every few minutes until they look amazing, drizzle in a tiny bit more olive oil and some fresh squeezed lemon juice-seriously one of the best things ever!!
I made this recipe the other night; the only difference is that I made my own puff pastry! Easy recipe on King Arthur Flour and it taste great. I love adding twists to old favorites. Great job, Kari ann, XOXO
These are so cute and look like they'd taste even better!!
Oh these look sooooooo good!
OMG you have gotten so fancy dancy I think I might have to start wearing white gloves when I read your posts :) Hugs, Laura
We do ours up fried in butter. I should have been Southern ;) They are like crunchy shoe string crack sticks when I'm done with them. Crazy, but so good!!
I love, love asparagus!!! I make a similiar appy. I will blog about it too. Yours sounds delish!!! XO, Pinky
KariAnne, you've come a long way for someone who used to be a mac and cheese gal! These sound delicious and look so elegant, can't wait to make them.
When I saw the topic of your blog in my inbox, my first thought was "I've never even had asparagus..." and I felt kinda embarassed... And then I read your post and I felt way better! My sister's little baby loves asparagus, and my kids won't even know what it is. But we are definitely going to try it wrapped in pastry. Everything is great in pastry :) Thanks so much!
Decorating with asparagus? I've never heard of that. We love to eat it so much I can't imagine doing it! I'm glad to hear you have jumped on the bandwagon, there is no other vegetable as delicious...with so many ways to cook it. I actually used it on pizza with crab meat last night...heaven. Debbie :)
While I'm not a huge asparagus fan, your description and beautiful photos make me want to run out and buy some tonight! I will definitely make this for my next family meal with my hubby's folks and am hoping it looks half as good as yours :) Thanks so much, KariAnne!!!
LOL. The part where you go home hungry after dainty appetizers and eat ice cream. Haven't we all done that? (It takes a lot to make me LOL this early in the a.m.) You have a way of taking the ordinary, human experience and bringing humor and even a giggle to it. What a gift!
You've got to try it on the bbq too, you'll love it C:
I love asparagus! grilled in a pan with a little olive oil and seasoning...yummo!
YUM! I love asparagus, AND pastry... win win!
I can't wait to try this Karianne!! I am going to be "top chef" I can feel it !! My peeps love this veggie (not me) I am a fussy one, wish this was not my reality! My grandparents grew this veggie I used to pick it for them, but I wouldn't eat it ha !! Now get this, I make an excellent asparagus that people ask me to make....... here's my recipe: In a plastic zip lock bag put your asparagus, add olive oil, sea salt and a splash of lemon juice, coat well, I let them sit while oven is heating to 350. Place on a baking sheet cook for around 15-18 mins......... I'm told they're awesome
I can't wait to try this Karianne!! I am going to be "top chef" I can feel it !! My peeps love this veggie (not me) I am a fussy one, wish this was not my reality! My grandparents grew this veggie I used to pick it for them, but I wouldn't eat it ha !! Now get this, I make an excellent asparagus that people ask me to make....... here's my recipe: In a plastic zip lock bag put your asparagus, add olive oil, sea salt and a splash of lemon juice, coat well, I let them sit while oven is heating to 350. Place on a baking sheet cook for around 15-18 mins......... I'm told they're awesome
You have such a charming way of sharing your thoughts. '-) Will give this recipe a try, but I already am a fan of asparagus as one of the food groups. I love it in salads, in soups, as a side dish, served warm or cold........And I also am a fan of using it to wrap a vase or candle or as part of a flower arrangement. This is an elegant presentation! Happy Easter to you and your sweet family, Kari Anne. ~ Sarah
I think my kids might just eat their asparagus, if it's wrapped in a pastry.
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