Hello friends! I’m very happy to welcome Rob back to JWJ. Do you remember his massaged kale salad recipe? If you haven’t tried it yet, you MUST. It is simply magic. I invited Rob back for a few reasons, all beginning with the letter F. We’re friends. He’s funny. And, he’s a fab cook. Here he is with his latest sure-fire recipe for shrimp and asparagus salad. Please, give him a proper JWJ welcome 🙂
Yes it’s me again. I wowed you with kale and now I’m back with a healthy and tasty salad this is incredibly easy to make. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll eat healthy food and like it…dammit. As I type, I’m wondering if once again my guest entry ought to come with a 500 word disclaimer on how you shouldn’t take my writing too seriously and end up reporting me to the blog police. Meh, whatever. I have bigger fish to bake.
Today’s dish features asparagus and shrimp. Trust me, I’m not using shrimp as a commentary on the limited stature of your normal host, I just happen to really like shrimp and this dish has become a staple for my family. I suggest wild-caught shrimp and, if possible, shrimp that was harvested off Greenland by a near-sighted gentleman named Horst. But seriously folks, if shrimp isn’t in your budget then you can just move on and wait for the next entry when your regular hostess, Lily Putian, returns with a non-shrimp recipe that has been kid-tested and mother-approved.
As for the asparagus, don’t make me open up a can of whoopass. If you’ve tried it, prepared in different ways, and truly don’t like it, I’ll give you a pass. If, however, you don’t want to eat it because it makes your urine “smell funny”, I’m going to come to your house and not leave until you stop eating all foods that make your poop “smell bad.” Deal? [Julia: Oh no, he di’int…]
Shrimp and Asparagus Salad
Serves 2 if it’s the whole meal or 4 if it accompanies a meal
Preparation Time: 12-15 minutes Cooking Time: 15 minutes
1 bunch asparagus
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper, divided
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons honey
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 cups salad greens or mesclun mix
2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
1 teaspoon oregano (I used dried)
1/4 cup grape tomatoes, halved (optional, I opted out, mostly because I forgot to buy them)
Parmesan, shaved or grated (optional)
Preheat oven to 400.
Trim off woody ends of the asparagus and discard. Cut asparagus into thirds. Place on a foil-lined baking sheet. Make a foil bowl and place shrimp inside. Place on baking sheet with asparagus. Drizzle 1 tablespoon olive oil on asparagus and shrimp, sprinkle 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper on top. Place in oven and cook 7 minutes. Remove the bowl of shrimp from oven and continue roasting asparagus 8 more minutes.
In a small bowl, whisk together mustard, honey, vinegar, oregano, remaining salt and pepper. While whisking, slowly add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil until the vinaigrette is emulsified. Place salad greens and basil in a medium bowl and add enough dressing to moisten (keeping some for pouring over the shrimp and asparagus).
Arrange the salad mixture on plates, top with shrimp, asparagus, tomatoes and Parmesan cheese, if using. Lightly pour more dressing over the shrimp and asparagus too.
Rob, are you related to Julia? You seem to have a similar funny bone! Recipe looks great. One fun fact is that everyone’s pee smells funny after eating asparagus (due to the sulfurous amino acid breakdown), but only about a third of us has the gene that enables us to smell it. 🙂
Julie and I are, as the saying goes, brothers of a different mother. We just happen to be the two funniest foodies on the Internet who also happen to be shorter than 5′ 7″. If you’re not short, you wouldn’t understand :).