Grilled asparagus and fennel with crumbled vegan feta, dill, and wild garlic

Type:

Vegan

Categories:

Vegetables, Vegan

Serves:

Serves 4

About the Recipe:

A dish for a late English Spring where wild garlic is everywhere and the one vegetable we are prized for is in full bloom. Feta and dill always work with asparagus, and you could add a poached egg to this to make a main dish or a fancy brunch plate.

*This is an English spring dish, only to serve when wild garlic and asparagus are in season. In summer months, green beans work well as a replacement, cooking in the same method, serving with whole cloves of roasted garlic. In winter, very thinly sliced butternut squash half moons work well. Red onion is also a nice addition, in which you would slice thin and grill about two minutes each side.

Ingredients:

4 bunches of asparagus

2 bulbs of fennel, cut thinly on the thickest setting of a mandolin

½ block of organic feta, crumbled roughly

6 to 7 wild garlic leaves, rolled and ribbon cut

*can be replaced by roasting a whole bulb of garlic in the oven and squeezing out the cloves over the dish to serve

Zest of two lemons

Olive oil and salt to finish

½ bunch of dill, picked loosely from stems

Method:

Heat a grill pan to its highest setting. Cut off the stems of the asparagus (often where it naturally breaks is the freshest part to cut away) and peel to the tips. Place onto the grill. This will take about twenty minutes, tossing at least twice. Set aside and grill the fennel. This will take much less time, so keep an eye to avoid burning.

Place all the asparagus and fennel into a large bowl. Add all the ingredients except the dill and mix well. Plate, then lightly sprinkle the dill over the top and serve.