Grilled cheese and asparagus sandwich

Asparagus has such a short season that it's great to find a new way to eat it.

Asparagus rolls in soft white bread are a dainty way to enjoy the spears but here we're calling in the 'tastes good with everything' addition of grilled cheese.

Choose your favourite oozingly meltable cheese - think mozzarella, cheddar or gruyère.

And your most delectable bread - a good sourdough is always a winner.

 

 

METHOD

You'll need to blanch the asparagus first. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil, carefully lower the asparagus into the boiling water and leave to cook for 2–4 minutes, depending on the thickness of the stems. Using tongs, remove the asparagus and plunge it into iced water for at least 5 minutes. ...

Butter the bread on both sides. Layer each piece of bread with the cheese slices. If you like a meaty version, add in some ham. A good locally sourced farmhouse ham would work a treat.

Heat a large frying pan over a medium heat and add a teaspoon of olive oil in when hot. Put two slices of bread in the pan, butter side down and top with a handful of blanched asparagus spears. Put a lid on the pan to allow the cheese to melt and the asparagus to heat through.

After a couple of minutes, remove the lid and sandwich the two halves together.  Press down with a spatula and cook for a further minute on each side until both sides are golden brown.

Enjoy!