Asparagus Gratin

The Temporary Vegetarian: Kenmare’s Asparagus Gratin

By ELAINE LOUIE

“Every March, I think about asparagus,” said Joey Campanaro, the 38-year-old executive chef of Kenmare, in SoHo, who loves the vegetable for its versatility. “I make purees with it, I tempura it, I grill it.”

This March, at Kenmare, he introduced asparagus gratin — sliced, peeled asparagus baked until golden and bubbly in a sauce of cream, white wine and cheese.

Once the asparagus come out of the oven, he sprinkles it with a mix of toasted panko and toasted, ground pecans, and then, in a brilliant flourish, he tops it with a salad — a toss of endive and radicchio lightly dressed with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.

The dish is cold upon hot. Red and green leaves first flutter above the tender asparagus, which poke up through the sauce. Once the radicchio and endive settle into the sauce, and get hot, “they become more tender, and the bitterness, especially in the radicchio, is alleviated,” Mr. Campanaro said. The dish is as pretty as it is tasty.

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Kenmare’s Asparagus Gratin

Yield 4 servings

Time 1 hour and 10 minutes

Lars Klove for The New York Times

Ingredients

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 shallots, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup dry white wine, such as Chenin Blanc or Sauvignon Blanc
• 1/4 cup crushed pecans
• 1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1 bunch fresh spring asparagus, peeled and cut diagonally into 1/2-inch slices, ends discarded
• 1/4 cup grated fontina cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
• 2 large endive, trimmed, and cut into diagonal slices, 1-inch wide
• 1/2 small head of radicchio, trimmed, and leaves torn into 1-inch pieces
• Extra virgin olive oil, as needed
• Fresh lemon juice, as needed
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Method

• 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium saucepan, combine the cream, shallots and wine. Place over medium heat and simmer until reduced by half, 20 to 30 minutes.
• 2. Spread pecans on a baking sheet and bake, stirring once or twice, until toasted, 10 to 15 minutes. Meanwhile, place a skillet over low heat, add panko, and stir until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. When pecans are toasted, remove from oven and set aside to cool.
• 3. Increase oven temperature to 400 degrees. When the pecans are cool, place in a blender and chop for a few seconds until coarsely ground. Mix with panko and set aside.
• 4. In a mixing bowl combine asparagus, reduced cream, fontina, and Parmigiano Reggiano. Mix well and place in a gratin dish that is about 10 inches long and 4 inches wide, or an other shallow, ovenproof baking dish. Bake until asparagus are tender, the sauce is bubbling and the top is turning golden, 6 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and top with pecan-bread crumb mixture. In a separate bowl, mix the endive and radicchio with olive oil, lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste. Spread over the top of the asparagus gratin. Serve hot.