Grilled Asparagus Involtini With Lardo Food

THE BEST GRILLED ASPARAGUS

Steps:

• Prepare a grill for medium heat. Chop the tough, woody ends off the asparagus (about 1 inch) and peel another inch of the stalks.
• Whisk the lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper together in a large bowl. Add the asparagus and toss until well coated.
• Put the asparagus on the grill at an angle so the stalks don't fall through the grates. Grill, flipping halfway through cooking, until the asparagus begin to char, the pointy ends start to crisp and the stalks are just tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove to a platter and sprinkle with the feta and mint.

BALSAMIC GRILLED ASPARAGUS

Steps:

• Stir together the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, shallots, garlic and oregano in a medium bowl. Pour the marinade into a 1-gallon resealable plastic storage bag, add the asparagus and seal the bag closed. Place the bag in a bowl or on a plate (just in case it leaks) and marinate in the refrigerator for 8 to 24 hours, flipping a couple of times.
• Preheat an outdoor grill to medium heat. While the grill heats up, remove the asparagus from the marinade, allowing any excess marinade to drip off. Season liberally on all sides with salt and pepper.
• Place the asparagus on the hot grill and cook, flipping as needed, until crisp-tender and charred in spots, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a platter, garnish with the chopped parsley and serve immediately.

GRILLED CHICKEN INVOLTINI

Steps:

• Preheat a charcoal grill to medium-high heat. Move the coals to the side so that one part of the grill has indirect heat.
• In a small bowl stir together the olive oil, parsley, lemon zest and salt. Set aside.
• In a separate small bowl, mix together the salt, oregano and red pepper flakes.
• Lay the chicken cutlets flat on a cutting board, lengthwise, and season all sides with the salt mixture. Place a piece of prosciutto on each cutlet. Fold each piece of provolone in half and place on top of the prosciutto. Follow with 1 sundried tomato.
• Working one at a time, roll the chicken up, in a continuous spiral roll, and seal by sticking 2 parallel skewers through the roll. Proceed with the remaining chicken, sticking 2 rolls on each pair of skewers for easy flipping. Drizzle the chicken with the olive oil and grill starting directly over the coals. Sear the chicken on all sides flipping as needed, until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Move the skewers to indirect heat and continue to cook until cooked through, about an additional 10 minutes or. Remove from the grill and allow to rest for 5 minutes. Remove the skewers from the involtini, slice and serve, drizzled with the parsley oil.

GRILLED ASPARAGUS

Steps:

• Trim off the tough bottom of the spear by grasping each end and bending it gently until it snaps at its natural point of tenderness-usually two-thirds of the way down the spear. If the spear is less than 6 inches long, chances are it has already been trimmed for you. Alternatively, you can cut the ends off with a knife.
• Coat each spear with olive oil by placing clean, dry spears in a resealable plastic bag, pour in the oil, and massage spears to coat each one. Sprinkle with salt and massage again. Leave the asparagus in the bag until ready to cook.
• Place on the cooking grate crosswise so it won't fall through. Grill for 10 to 15 minutes (depending on the size and thickness of the stalks), turning occasionally to expose all sides to the heat. Asparagus should begin to brown in spots (indicating that its natural sugars are caramelizing) but should not be allowed to char.
• Remove from grill and serve immediately-eating spears with your fingers enhances the experience.