Spring has sprung around my home in Ohio, and I hope it has where you are, too. The daffodils are blooming, the flowering trees are bursting, and asparagus is hitting the stores! To take full advantage of this bounty, I’ve prepared a quick and easy Easter-friendly asparagus appetizer that would be a wonderful for any spring get-together.
Savory and delicious, the pastry wrapped asparagus appetizer and tangy dipping sauce can even be made ahead. Just assemble, refrigerate, and bake them right before your guests arrive.
When you purchase asparagus, select a bright green bunch that has closed, compact, and firm tips. Also, check the cut ends to ensure that they aren’t too dry. If the tips wilt in storage, soak them in cold water to refresh. To ensure you remove all of the tough ends (nothing ruins the elegance of asparagus like biting into a woody stem!), hold both ends and bend one spear until it snaps. Where it naturally breaks is where the woody part begins. You can use that spear as a guide for cutting the ends from the whole bunch.
Special Diet Notes: Bistro Asparagus Appetizer Twists
by ingredients, this recipe is dairy-free / non-dairy, egg-free, nut-free, peanut-free, optionally soy-free, vegan / plant-based, and vegetarian.
- 2 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons vegan sour cream
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon prepared hot mustard
- 16 asparagus spears, tough ends trimmed
- 1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
- 1 tablespoon prepared hot mustard
- In a small bowl, combine all the sauce ingredients and mix until blended. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
- For the Twists, preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Steam the asparagus over a pot of boiling water for 5 minutes.
- Transfer immediately to a bowl of cold water to stop the cooking process. Pat dry.
- Unroll the pastry sheet on a lightly floured work surface. Cut and remove one third of the pastry for another use. You should have a 6 X 9-inch rectangle remaining.
- Spread the mustard evenly over the puff pastry.
- Cut into 16 strips about ½-inch wide across the short side of the pastry.
- Using one strip of pastry and one stalk of asparagus, beginning at the stem end, wrap the pastry diagonally around the asparagus, leaving space between the pastry.
- Arrange on the baking sheet and repeat, placing them about 1-inch apart, until the asparagus and pastry are used up.
- Bake 18 to 20 minutes, or until golden.
- Serve hot with the dipping sauce on the side.
