Thanks to the warm weather we’ve had lately, Dutch white asparagus are available some weeks earlier than other years. I was shopping for a dinner party and had realized (1) that I wanted to add some more vegetables to the menu and (2) that I did not have a cheese or dessert course yet, when I saw beautiful Dutch white asparagus for a reasonable price. I love to pair asparagus and goat cheese, which both go well with Sauvignon Blanc. But I had already decided on the appetizer. Then I remembered I still have a few bottles of a rare late harvest Sancerre (Sauvignon Blanc) from 2005. And so I decided to create this hybrid between a cheese course and a dessert by adding a bit of honey, so that it would be an excellent pairing with the mildly sweet late harvest Sancerre. I prepared the asparagus sous-vide as that is the best way to preserve their delicate flavor, but you could also steam them.
This dish will work with any soft but pungent goat cheese. For the best flavor try to find a raw milk French goat cheese and make sure to serve it at room temperature.
Ingredients
For 4 servings
8 white asparagus
100 grams (3.5 oz) soft goat cheese
2 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp butter
salt and freshly ground white pepper
Instructions
White asparagus need to be peeled. Start peeling just below the tip. Remove the bottom 1 cm (1/2 inch) of the asparagus.
Season the asparagus with salt and freshly ground white pepper.
Vacuum seal with 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of honey.
Cook sous-vide for 45 minutes at 85C/185F.
Pour the liquid from the bag into a saucepan, and bring to a boil.
Reduce until you have about 120 ml (1/2 cup) left.
Serve the asparagus with the sauce and the goat cheese.
Wine pairing
As mentioned in the introduction, this calls for a mildly sweet Sauvignon Blanc. A Sancerre vendange tardive may be hard to find, but there are late harvest Sauvignon Blanc from places like Chile that should be more easy. We enjoyed this with a 2005 Vendange de la Saint-Luc from Henri Bourgeois. It has a wonderful balance and complexity, is mildly sweet, and was perfect with this dish.
Stefan's Gourmet Blog 
Excellent recipe; along with the others at the bottom of the page these will be dishes I look forward to making. I will need to keep an eye on the Real Foods site here in Edinburgh, and get up there pdq when they have white aparagus for sale.
Have you tried asperges blanches rôti au beurre noisette? Stunning, simple and delicious…
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A delightful lesson again! First: hello to Philip Watson from Edinburgh: in my birth country of Estonia asparagus, and we mostly got white, is almost always eaten with a brown butter cover – no more needed! Stefan: shall copy this soonest ! Goat cheese and asparagus may have been tried but not with honey! And – have always loved Sancerre without realizing it was a Sauvignon Blanc . . . what one leans coming to the Netherlands tho’ am not certain the late harvest variety is quite my cup’of’tea . . .
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Well a dry Sauvignon Blanc will probably not work very well with the honey.
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Stefan you made me home sick by posting this recipe. white asparagus are very famous in the town I was born (Bassano del Grappa), and we used to eat those steamed and served with hard boiled eggs and, of course, extravergin olive oil, sea salt and good wine vinegar. I’ve never eaten white asparagus with honey and goat cheese, but I trust your good taste on this! A must try (when I’ll get the chance to find white asparagus, of course!)
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In the Netherlands, white asparagus are most often served with boiled eggs and ham (prosciutto cotto), and butter. Did I tell you before I have visited the Monte Grappa? I did not know there were white asparagus anywhere in Italy.
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Those white asparagus you can find in Bassano area are famous for their goodness! My dad has a Montaigne house at the Monte Grappa with a garden full of veggie and over 100 cabbages!
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Sorry about my silence of late, we’ve been travelling (UK but mostly Spain). Just got back late yesterday afternoon.
We had quite a bit of white asparagus in Spain, mostly in salads. I had not thought of preparing them sous-vide it looks and sounds wonderful! I love that you paired it with the honey and goats cheese. This is definitely my kind of dessert.
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Mi sembra un bellissimo abbinamento, insolito ma da provare. Complimenti per il Sancerre
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