Grilled Asparagus With Roasted Peppers & Feta
Jul 25th, 2009 | By Peter Minakis | Category: Appetizer, Cheese, Greek, Meze, Olive Oil, Recipes, Roasting, Vegetables, Vegetarian
There really isn’t a recipe here, more of a recommendation to try this combo out. I’ve been enjoying asparagus with Feta and roasted peppers this year since asparagus started appearing on the market.
For the asparagus, you can blanche them quickly in salted water (a couple of minutes) OR steam them OR toss them in oil, season with salt and pepper and grill (my preference) on both sides for just over a minute a side.
Roasting peppers…so easy, so tasty and so good for you! I can remember our family roasting peppers on the grill as long as my memory serves me. When I use the term “roast” here, I mean char/blacken the skins.
DO NOT try and complicate the uncomplicated. Char/blacken the skins of your peppers, whole. Don’t cut them them up as that will dry out your peppers, you’ll lose any juices captured inside the whole roasted pepper and finally, think about it…the time you think you’re saving by cutting them up will actually take more time (then if your were to remove the skins of a whole pepper).
Are you scared of handling the peppers? Are you wearing latex gloves? C’mon! You’re handling food, not bio-hazard material!
After you’ve roasted your peppers you can do one of three things:
- Place the peppers in a paper back and seal;
- Place the peppers in a bowl and cover with cling-wrap;
- Place the peppers in a plastic bag
All three options will do the same job – sweat the peppers so that you can peel/remove the charred skins away from the succulent, smoky flesh of the peppers.
You can lay the peppers out whole on a plate or cut them up in ribbons (like for this dish).
Season your peppers with sea salt and toss in extra-virgin olive oil (some minced garlic is nice too).
Finally, you need some Feta cheese here. When I use the term anywhere on my site, I’m talking about real Feta cheese. That is to say Feta cheese that is made in Greece with either sheep or goat milk or a combo of the two.
Any other cheese made outside of Greece is not real Feta and chances some cow’s milk is also in the mix. Why should you care? First off- flavour. With a dish like this with so few ingredients, you want quality ingredients…fresh peppers and asparagus, extra-virgin olive oil and Feta cheese (Greek).
Costco in the US sells Dodoni Feta, Greece’s largest brand of Feta and if there’s a Greek community or restaurant near where you live, chances are you’ll be able to find Feta cheese. Ask your Greek friends…they’ll tell you where to go!
Some of you may not find Greek cheese, does that mean you should abandon eating the imitation feta? Of course not…my intention here is to inspire you to eat Greek food – not dissuade you.
If (IF) you can’t find Feta cheese from Greece, at least seek out a cheese made from goat or sheep’s milk and please do ask your cheese purveyor why they do not carry it. As a consumer, demand real Feta cheese.
Finally, the assembly of this side dish/appetizer/meze is simple:
- Lay the asparagus on to your serving plate to act as a bed;
- Place a mound of roasted pepper ribbons on the asparagus;
- Crumble some Feta cheese on top and finish with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.
According to my calendar, you still have some time to purchase some local asparagus. Try grilled asparagus with roasted peppers and Feta…it will be a sure-fire hit!
If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://kalofagas.ca then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at truenorth67 AT gmail DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author.
© 2007-2009 Peter Minakis
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interesting to hear that asparagus is seasonal now for you – ours here would taste best in the spring
roasted peppers pair well – love the colour combination too
this looks delicious and I know you caution against complicating it, but I bet it would be good with a poached egg on top.
What a delicious combination!
cheers,
Rosa
Looks like the perfect summer lunch. I’m having such a moment with feta right now, I’m happy to make anything that involves it as an ingredient!
Killer Combination!! Thanks for the Costco info, I am a member YAAAA!
Love love love roasted peppers, & this indeed is a killer combination! Hello Petah…can you ship me some feta please? Good Greek fet…you cannot imagine how I crave good genuine feta! Your post has hypnotized me!
Peter, you’ve made a believer out of me.
Since one of our previous conversation I only buy Greek Feta and -oh- what a difference.
Oooh I had a load of peppers last week, so I roasted and skinned them, then put them in a kilner jar with olive oil.
Soooo I am all set to make this – Peter this looks seriously GOOD!
I so agree with you on the feta part.. I recently had to buy ‘fake’ feta because the store I usually buy my cheese was out of the greek ones, but it’s just not the same.. Really not the same!
A great combo I’m sure but hold the peppers just give me the asparagus and cheese!
MMMMMMMM,…Peter!! This is so healthy & so yummie too!! Beautiful presented!!
That is three of my favorite things on one plate! Great combo!
Love love grilled asparagus & it would be wonderful with the peppers & feta. We don’t even bother blanching the asparagus before grilling
This dish makes my heart sing with joy Peter
My goodness, that is a great-looking dish. Simple, perfect combination.
The best dishes like yours are made with simple yet fresh ingredients.
To me this would make a perfect meal…of course, with a hunk of bread and a glass of wine! I appreciate the finishing touch of the drizzle of oil.
it’s like christmas in july, but that’s not the only reason i like this–i recently found that grilling asparagus is my favorite way to prepare it. gorgeous.
I am pretty sure I could survive on Feta!!
What a completely perfect way to combine these three flavors. I love feta no matter how you eat it!
Love, love roasted olive oily roasted asparagus – usually with a squeeze of lime juice and seasalt….. now roasted peppers, feta and a squeeze of lime juice is even better.
Aspargus season less than 2 months away here, Mmmmmmmmm
Thank you, Peter, a brilliant recipe to let hover in my mind for 2 months
My favorite way to cook asparagus (this goes all year round for me since our winters are too brutal to grill) is to toss them in olive oil, spread them out on a foil lined cookie sheet, sprinkle minced fresh garlic, little tiny bit of salt and fresh cracked pepper and roast in the oven for 15 min.
soooooo good. I’ve never had feta and roasted red peppers on top before, but I have shaved Parmesan on top and it’s yummy, so feta would probably be just as yummy too!
This is a perfect combination in my books Peter. I had better go have some breakfast.
this looks fresh and healthy – bet it would be delicious as a cold salad too.
looks amazing and simply–love it.
I walked into my local grocery store the other day in search of real sheep/goat feta and the cheese manager had no idea what I was talking about. It gave me cheese rage.
Trader Joe’s also sells a *real* feta under their label, although it says “Imported from Greece”.
Most importantly, even the lactose intollerant and dairy allergic can typically consume cheese from goats and sheep. YAY!
Oh yes, that is a wonderful combination indeed. I have, however, never roasted a pepper before. I know, I should give up my food blogger card already!
Excellent presentation.