Asparagus, blanched with a sprinkle of lemon zest and salt, on top of creamy vegan polenta cooked with delicately seasoned chickpeas.
I love this time of year, when I can go to the grocery store and buy as much asparagus as I want without taking out a second mortgage on my house. But the problem with asparagus, from a food blogger’s standpoint, is that it’s a vegetable that tastes best when prepared simply.
Asparagus’ delicate flavor needs no more adornment than, maybe, a squeeze of lemon and a sprinkle of salt, and its texture is perfect with no more than the merest blush of heat. So once you know how to roast it, blanch it, grill it, or make it into pesto, there isn’t much left for me to tell you. You don’t need wild combinations of ingredients or fancy seasonings to enjoy asparagus, just your fork (or in my home, your fingers).
So here I present to you the most basic preparation of asparagus, blanched with a sprinkle of lemon zest and salt, on top of something that sounds fancy but is really homey and hearty: polenta (cornmeal mush or grits, as we call it here) and chickpeas.
A light hand with the lemon and freshly ground black pepper lets the fresh asparagus flavor shine through, and a sprinkle of pine nuts pulls the whole dish together. On second thought, maybe it is a little fancy after all!
Polenta with Lemony Asparagus and Chickpeas
Ingredients
Polenta
- 2 1/4 cups water
- 2 cups vegetable broth or “no-chicken” broth
- 1 cup coarse polenta coarse grind, such as Bob's Red Mill, not instant polenta
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
Chickpeas
- 1/2 medium onion chopped fine
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas or canned, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 cup vegetable broth or “no-chicken” broth
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest peel, freshly grated
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon arrowroot or cornstarch
- 1/4 cup water
Asparagus
- 12 ounces asparagus ends trimmed and stalks cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 teaspoon lemon peel freshly grated
- lemon juice to taste
- coarse or flaky salt such as Maldon, to taste
- 4 teaspoons pine nuts lightly toasted
Instructions
- Bring the 2 1/4 cups water and the 2 cups vegetable broth to a boil in a pressure cooker. Add the polenta while stirring. Stir in the garlic and basil, lock the lid in place, and bring to high pressure. Reduce heat but maintain high pressure for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let pressure come down naturally. Stir well, salt to taste, and keep warm until ready to serve. (No pressure cooker? See note below)
- While the polenta is cooking, sauté the onion in a medium-sized sauce pan until it begins to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and drained chickpeas and stir for another minute. Add the broth, basil, and pepper. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the lemon peel and juice. Mix the arrowroot or cornstarch with 1/4 cup water and add it to the pan. Cook over medium low heat until slightly thickened. Keep warm.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and blanch asparagus for 2 minutes. Drain well and toss with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, 1 teaspoon of lemon zest, and coarse salt to taste. Divide the polenta among 4 plates, and top each with a quarter of the chickpeas and asparagus. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of toasted pine nuts over each serving.
Notes
Nutritional info is approximate.
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The Ordinary Vegetarian
This makes me think of spring! Such a lovely thing to dream of on this wintry (but sunny!) Chicago morning. I love the pressure cooker polenta instructions, I'll be trying this out soon.
Heather (Where's the Beach)
This sounds so fantastic. Thanks so much for sharing!
Rosalie
This looks so delicious! I'm wondering what kind of polenta you use… I have never made it but I've got coarse corn meal in the pantry that I use under pizza crust when I cook it on a baking sheet. I'm wondering if you think that'd work, or if there's some other particular type of corn meal I'd need?
Thanks!!
SusanV
Rosalie, I use Bob's Red Mill Corn Grits Also Known as Polenta (that's the complete label). You should be able to use your coarse cornmeal, but since it may take less time, I recommend using the regular cooking method (instead of pressure cooking) until you find out how long it will take.
Anonymous
Hi Susan,
This looks SO good. . the asparagus from Washington state right next door is just starting to show up in the markets up here in Idaho, so I will look forward to trying this out! Such a delicious way to welcome in the Spring. 🙂
Thanks,
moonwatcher
Kristina (EatingSkinny)
This looks beautiful and so tasty. We eat asparagus at our home as much as possible. Thanks for a new way to eat them.
Kristina
MrsTomcat
This looks fantastic! Can't wait to try it. Love your site!
Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen
This one is definitely going into my "to make" list! Looks and sounds delicious!
fresh365
Oh this is so perfect for spring! I will definitely be making this!
Sunfall_E
This sounds absolutely delicious. My favorite way to eat asparagus is raw, either with a dip or plain. One of my teachers in middle school told us about that.
K
What a pretty and yummy sounding dish! I am still waiting for asparagus to get a bit cheaper here, but this is definitely at the top of my list of things to make when it does.
-K
Tiffany
Yum! I really enjoy asparagus with just a touch of lemon, so I see myself loving this dish. Thanks for sharing the great recipe!
valina
A macrobiotic recipe….wonderful!! 😀
aprilstarchild
I'm going to make this TONIGHT. Oh my god, does it look yummy.
Maija Haavisto
You mean the asparagus season has already started there?! Not fair, we have to wait until May!
Well, at least chickpeas and polenta are always in season… as is frozen asparagus.
Carolyn
I LIVE for asparagus and have been waiting for it!!
Arielassault
I'm jealous. Here you are blogging about asparagus and we Wisconsinites still have snow on the ground.
Bella @ Lil Daisies
oh, this looks fabulous! WE LOVE Polenta over here–but, I have never cooked it in a pressure cooker. I might have to try this!
Blessings,
Bella
Suzanne
yum…so fresh and tasty!
Amber Shea
The texture of that polenta is gorgeous! Everything about this dish sounds wonderful.
amandasdomestic
This looks like a fantastic light and refreshing meal to cook up in the spring, I'm starring this for then! 🙂 Thanks!
natalie
Looks great! I have most of these at home right now. Definitely going to be next week's dinner.
Addie Walters
I love asparagus! It's just now starting to appear back in our grocery stores here in MO…I almost did a backflip in the store yesterday to find a nice-sized cantaloupe for under $3. 🙂 Thanks for the recipe!
Sarah Isenberg
This is perfect timing! I have some lovely asparagus in the fridge, polenta in the cupboard and chickpeas in the pantry. DONE. Looking forward to cooking up another great recipe from your site!
aprilstarchild
Sure enough, made it last night. Forgot the pine nuts, but I loved it anyway!
Turns out my boyfriend isn't a huge fan of asparagus. Oh well, more for me!!
I Am Gluten Free
And one of the best features of your recipe (and many of your recipes) is that it is gluten free!!! Thank you!
Laina
This looks delicious, Susan! I think my dh will like this one. I have some organic limes I need to use up. Will lime juice and lime zest be okay?
Dana Lynne
Made this tonight and it was AWESOME!!!! Couldn't find pine nuts anywhere, but it was still amazing – thanks for the wonderful recipe!!!
Kara
Bought asparagus on a whim today and made this- YUM! So good- thanks.
Maddie
This blog is amazing! Thank you so much!
Joanne
Another terrific recipe. We aren't huge fans of polenta however, this sounds a bit different than how we have tried it in the past.
Wonderful and it looks so good!
WizzyTheStick
Very interesting combination of the polenta and the chickpeas.
CindyS
Looks delish, can't wait to try it; however, my husband doesn't care for asparagus. Could I substitute broccoli, zucchini or something else with the same effect?
SusanV
CindyS, I'm sure it would be great with broccoli or any other vegetable you like.
Anonymous
This is now my favortie recipe (until your next one!) I love anything with lemons.
Thank you
Mary
I can't believe you're enjoying asparagus season already! I've still got 2 or 3 months to wait. You're right about asparagus+lemon+pepper: it's perfect!
kathryn
I recently tried this recipe from Martha Rose Shulman in the NY Times. It's now my favorite way to cook polenta!
1 cup polenta
1 quart water
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter
-Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. -Combine the polenta, water and salt in a 2-quart baking dish. Stir together, and place in the oven. -Bake 50 minutes.
-Remove from the oven, and stir in the butter.
-Return to the oven for 20 minutes. -Stir again + serve
Anonymous
Looks amazing. I also appreciate everyone's comments on types of polenta to buy and alternate cooking methods. Oven roasting veggies is the best. Brussel sprouts might be good with this as well… if you like it with a little zest, crushed red pepper flakes could be a great addition on the veggies!
blessedmama
Yuuuum! I love asparagus. Thanks for another suggestion on how I can gobble it up. Munch, munch.
dreaminitvegan
Susan this was absolutely delicious!!!! I was so happy to make the polenta because I grew up eating it. The flavors worked so well together. I tweeked it a bit but hey that's what we do right?