Half-sleeves in asparagus cream and speck, a succulent and incredibly creamy first course, which is very easy to prepare.
With a few, small precautions and a few minutes of preparation, you will have a truly tasty recipe in its simplicity.
When to make this recipe and when can you find asparagus?
This is a typically spring idea, as you can find asparagus right in the peak of this season, from April to May.
But it is also possible to make it with fresh-frozen products by you, or you can buy them already frozen, while I do not recommend those in jars.
I then paired asparagus with speck, made crispy in the pan, without adding other fats or ingredients but you can replace it with prosciutto or pancetta, always in slices.
Below I leave you some ideas to use asparagus in the kitchen.
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very cheap
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 4 people
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Spring
Ingredients
- 11 oz half-sleeves (mezze maniche) pasta
- 10.5 oz asparagus
- 3.5 oz speck (in slices)
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 oz leeks
- 0.5 oz coarse salt (for the pasta)
Tools
- 1 Knife
- 1 Cutting board
- 1 Pan
- 1 Strainer
- 1 Towel
- 1 Pot
- 1 Colander
Steps
To make Half-Sleeves in Asparagus and Speck Cream, first cut the tips of the asparagus and part of the stem up to the softest part to cut.
If you want to use the whole asparagus, clean the outer part of the stem with a small knife and proceed to cut it into pieces.
Cut the leeks into rings and pour the oil into a large pan.
Heat it for a minute over low heat.
Add the asparagus and leeks together, mix and add two ladles of hot water.
Mix again and cook for 10 minutes over low heat.
In the meantime, cook the pasta in plenty of salted water, making sure to drain it al dente and save a ladle of cooking water
Remove the asparagus tips from the pan, as we will need them whole to garnish the plate.
Put the remaining sauce in a blender cup and blend until creamy.Overlap the speck slices and cut into strips.
Brown them in the same pan that contained the asparagus until the desired crispness is achieved.
Remove the speck, if necessary rinse the pan and add the asparagus and leek cream to the pasta and the ladle of water previously set aside.
Mix.
Add the speck, asparagus tips, grated cheese, and mix quickly.
Serve the dish hot.
