Grilled Asparagus With Smoked Olive Oil Food

SMOKED DUCK BREAST WITH GOAT CHEESE GRIT CAKE, GRILLED ASPARAGUS AND SMOKED BLUEBERRY SAUCE

Steps:

• For the grits: Add grits to 2 cups of water in a heavy-bottomed steel pot. Bring to a light simmer over low heat, stirring frequently. When the grits start to thicken to an oatmeal consistency, add 1 cup of water and continue to cook in the same manner. Repeat with 1 more cup water.
• Once the grits start to thicken once more, add the cream and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the grits thicken again. Add the butter and allow to melt throughout.
• Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Allow grits to cool, loosely covered, 2 hours, or up to overnight in the refrigerator.
• Reheat the grits over low to medium heat, stirring well, adding additional milk or cream if needed for the right consistency. Add the goat cheese and mix well. Add more salt and pepper if needed.
• Oil a hot skillet or griddle, then add a 6-ounce ladle or scoop of goat cheese grits. Cook through until a brown crust has developed on the bottom of the grit cake, about 5 minutes. Carefully flip the grit cake with a spatula or pancake turner, making sure to get between the crust and the skillet, rather than between the crust and the grits. Continue to heat through until a bottom crust has developed, roughly 5 more minutes.
• For the duck: Prepare a smoker or grill for indirect cooking at 225 degrees F.
• Stir together salt and pepper in a bowl. Lightly rub duck breasts with salt and pepper, and place in your smoker or over indirect heat on your grill. Cook, undisturbed, until lightly browned from the smoke and an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part registers 150 degrees F, about 45 minutes. Remove from smoker and allow to rest at least 15 minutes. Preheat a grill (if you used a smoker) for cooking at 225 degrees F.
• To crisp the skin, lightly run a sharp knife in a cross-hatch pattern on the skin, then baste lightly with oil or melted butter. Place skin-side-down on the grill until skin is crispy but duck meat is not overcooked, about 5 minutes.
• For the asparagus: Meanwhile, preheat a grill for cooking over medium heat.
• Heat a large amount of water in a large stockpot over high heat. Add a generous handful of salt. Bring to a roiling boil.
• Add asparagus to the boiling water. (If you have a steamer basket, this is an excellent time to use it, as it makes fishing the asparagus out a breeze.) Cook the asparagus until just turning soft while still maintaining a bright green color. Remove the asparagus from the hot water and allow to cool completely, preferably in ice water.
• Rub the asparagus lightly with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place on the grill and cook until desired level of char appears on the stalks, about 5 minutes.
• For the smoked blueberry sauce: Meanwhile, add blueberries to a skillet or aluminum pan. Place blueberries in the smoker alongside the duck, taking care to leave room for air to circulate, and smoke until the berries take on a dusky midnight blue appearance, about 15 minutes. (Longer cooking will lead to stronger smoky flavor in the berries.)
• Remove the berries from the smoker, then heat them on the stove over high heat with the dark brown sugar. Add the dark rum, being careful of flames. Allow the alcohol to burn off and continue to heat the pan, stirring, until the sugar has dissolved, the berries have released some of their juices, and the sauce is thickened, about 10 minutes.
• Serve the duck breast over the grits with the sauce and asparagus.

GRILLED LEMON PARMESAN ASPARAGUS

Steps:

• Preheat an outdoor grill on medium heat, and lightly oil the grate.
• Place asparagus in a large shallow bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice, going from bottom to top of stalks. Season with salt and ground black pepper.
• Sprinkle grated Parmesan cheese over asparagus. Lightly toss to coat each spear.
• Transfer coated asparagus to the preheated grill with tongs.
• Grill to desired tenderness, 3 to 7 minutes. Before serving, sprinkle asparagus with additional Parmesan cheese.

HOW TO MAKE THE BEST GRILLED ASPARAGUS

Steps:

• Preheat the grill to medium heat, about 350° to 400°F, and brush the grill grates clean.
• Remove the woody ends of the asparagus by snapping the ends off. Bend each stalk gently about 2/3 of the way down the stalk until it naturally breaks where the woody part begins. If desired, use a knife to trim the ends of the stalks to tidy up the cuts. Discard the ends.
• Place the asparagus spears in a shallow bowl or on a platter or baking sheet. Drizzle with the olive oil and toss the spears with your hands to coat. Season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper and toss again.
• Place the asparagus across the grill grates perpendicular to the bars. Grill with the lid closed for 6 to 10 minutes or until the spears are tender and crisp. Use tongs to roll the spears for even grill marks.
• Transfer to a platter and if desired, drizzle with more olive oil and a squeeze of lemon. Can be served warm or at room temperature.

GRILLED ASPARAGUS WITH LEMON AND OLIVE OIL

Steps:

• Preheat the grill to medium.
• In a shallow baking dish, toss the asparagus with the oil to coat well. Add the salt, and pepper and toss.
• Place the asparagus on the grill in a single layer, and cook, turning, until marked and tender, about 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a platter, sprinkle with the lemon juice and drizzle with olive oil, to taste. Cover with aluminum foil and let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

GRILLED PARMESAN GARLIC ASPARAGUS

Steps:

• Prepare asparagus and trim the bottoms.
• Lay the asparagus in the pan and sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss in the olive oil.
• Lay the asparagus on the grill or grill plate in a row. Grill for 5-10 minutes over medium high heat until they have char marks and are fork tender. Remove asparagus and place back in the pan. Toss with garlic and parmesan cheese. Serve.
• *You can also grill the asparagus in foil if desired.

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.

SIMPLE SMOKED ASPARAGUS

Steps:

• Preheat the smoker to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C). Add wood chips according to manufacturer's directions.
• Place asparagus inside a disposable foil pan. Drizzle oil, salt, and pepper over the top. Toss to coat.
• Place the pan on the smoker rack and smoke for 30 minutes.

SMOKY GRILLED ASPARAGUS

Steps:

• Light a grill.
• In a shallow dish, whisk the mayo with the oil, lemon juice, garlic, paprika, salt and cumin. Add the asparagus and toss. Let stand for 30 minutes.
• Grill the asparagus over moderately high heat, turning, until tender and blistered in spots, about 6 minutes.
• Serve warm.

ROSEMARY SMOKED POTATOES WITH GRILLED ASPARAGUS AND FENNEL

Steps:

• Parboil whole potatoes, with skin on, for about 5-7 minutes. Drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking process.
• Half each potato and place in a zip-top plastic bag. Drizzle with oil and add chopped garlic and pepper. Seal bag and allow to marinate at room temperature for 20 minutes.
• Preheat grill to 375°F.
• Remove potatoes from marinade and pat dry. Place soaked rosemary sprigs on oiled barbecue grate. Place potatoes on top of rosemary, flesh side down. Close lid and leave to smoke for 20 minutes. Make sure rosemary doesn't burn.
• Meanwhile, trim the woody end of the asparagus. Slice fennel bulb into 1/2 inch pieces, leaving core intact.
• Drizzle asparagus spears and fennel with oil and season with salt and pepper.
• Return to the potatoes and remove them from the grill. Discard charred rosemary. Season potatoes with salt and pepper and set aside to cool.
• Oil the grill again. Place asparagus and fennel on grill.
• Grill asparagus for approximately 2 minutes, turning when a bright green colour is achieved and golden brown marks appear.
• Cook fennel for about 1 minute per side or until golden char marks are achieved.
• Remove asparagus and fennel from the grill and allow to cool.
• Place asparagus, fennel, and smoked potatoes on a large serving platter. Chill in the fridge for 20 minutes before serving. Drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice, and season with thyme, salt, and pepper.

GRILLED ASPARAGUS WITH OLIVE OIL, LEMON & PARMESAN

Steps:

• Heat a large griddle pan, remove the hard ends from the asparagus and dry griddle on both sides until nicely marked (about 5 minutes).
• As soon as they're ready, put them on the plates and dress with a good squeeze of lemon juice and about twice as much olive oil. (The quantities listed in the ingredients above are really rough as you just need to dress this dish to your own taste.).
• Season with salt & pepper to taste and then add freshly shaved or grated parmesan cheese.

GRILLED ASPARAGUS AND QUINOA SALAD

Steps:

• 1. ASPARAGUS and QUINOA
• 2. Heat grill.
• 3. Brush asparagus with olive oil and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Grill on both sides until just cooked through, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove from grill and cut in half.
• 4. Bring 8 cups of salted water to a boil. Add quinoa and cook until soft. Drain and rinse with cold water and drain again.
• 5. Place the quinoa in a medium bowl and add red wine vinegar, olive oil, parsley and 1/4 cup of olive vinaigrette (recipe below). Stir to combine.
• 6. Place on plate and top with goat cheese, asparagus, whole nicoise olives, sliced tomato and parsley sprigs.
• 7. BLACK OLIVE VINAIGRETTE
• 8. Combine vinegar, mustard, chile powder, olives and olive oil in a blender and blend until smooth.