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White asparagus, parmesan and toasted hazelnuts

White asparagus is slightly tougher, but has an earthier flavour than the more common green variety. Here’s a unique way to serve it – with smoked butter and lardo.
From: BBC, Spring Kitchen, Tom Kerridge SERVES 2

10 white asparagus spears, 8 spears for cooking, 2 spears for slicing raw
25g/1oz hazelnuts, broken in half or crushed
30g/1oz parmesan
50g/1¾oz butter
salt and pepper
100g/3½oz smoked butter
½ lemon, juice only (to taste)
100g/3½oz piece of lardo, trimmed and sliced on a meat slicer into 3mm-thick slices large enough to cover the bottom of each small serving dish (about 10x7cm/4x2¾in)
250ml/9fl oz pork sauce, reduced to half its volume over a low heat
5g picked chervil leaves

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6 and preheat the grill to high.

Using a fine vegetable peeler, in long smooth strokes, peel the eight asparagus and trim 1cm/½in down from the tips and ends to neaten the peel line. Using a scourer, rub the asparagus until the peel marks have been removed. Set aside.

Tip the hazelnuts onto a roasting tray and roast the hazelnuts until golden-brown. Leave to cool.

Cut the parmesan into cubes about 4mm square (about 6-7 cubes per serving).

Add 100ml/3½fl oz water and the butter to a shallow pan and season the liquid with salt and pepper. Bring to the boil and add the asparagus. Cook until tender - by this point the liquid should have reduced to an emulsion. Remove the asparagus and set aside.

Turn the heat down and add the smoked butter gradually to the cooking liquor until the butter is fully mixed in, add a little lemon juice, salt and pepper.

Using a mandoline, carefully slice the two remaining asparagus spears lengthways.

Preheat the grill to hot.

To serve, put a layer of lardo into the bottom of each serving dish. Lay four cooked spears and top with the smoked butter asparagus cooking liquor.

Add the parmesan, sprinkle over the hazelnuts and then divide the raw asparagus slices between each dish and dress with a little of the pork sauce; scatter over a little of the chervil.

Lay a slice of lardo over each plate covering the asparagus - if some shows that’s fine.

Place under a hot grill to warm and melt the lardo; finish with a little more chervil.