ASPARAGUS WITH ROASTED GARLIC AIOLI - delicious and easy!

[caliloo]

ASPARAGUS WITH ROASTED GARLIC AIOLI

Roasting the heads of garlic results in a less-pungent aioli — a nice quality in an appetizer, since too much raw garlic can hijack the palate for the rest of the evening.

2 medium heads garlic, left whole
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
2 teaspoons apple-cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
2 lb medium asparagus, trimmed

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 400°F.

Cut off and discard tops of garlic heads to expose cloves, then brush each head with 1/2 tablespoon oil. Wrap heads together in foil and bake until tender, about 45 minutes. Cool to warm.

Squeeze garlic from skins into a food processor and purée with mayonnaise, vinegar, pepper, and salt. Transfer aioli to a bowl and stir in chives.

Peel lower two thirds of each asparagus stalk with a vegetable peeler. Cook asparagus in a wide 6- to 8-quart pot of boiling salted water, uncovered, until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Drain well in a colander and rinse under cold water until asparagus is cool. Drain and pat dry with paper towels. Serve asparagus with roasted-garlic aioli.

Cooks' notes:
• Aioli can be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Bring to room temperature before serving.
• Asparagus can be cooked 2 hours ahead and kept, covered with dampened paper towels, at room temperature.

Makes 8 (hors d'oeuvre) servings.

Gourmet
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February 2007

[John]

Sounds good! Reminds me of a "new" roasted asparagus recipe making the rounds, very simple:

Arrange asparagus in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, sparingly. Sprinkle lightly with Romano cheese. Place in preheated 350 oven for 7 minutes, enjoy.

Surprisingly good! A nice alternative to steaming.

I don't bother peeling asparagus, I hold each stalk by its ends, and bend gently until it snaps, discarding the tough end.

[JaneG]

That sounds delicious, Caliloo. I love asparagus and have had it alot lately because we are trying to eat more veggies. Like John, I usually roast asparagus. I might try your garlic aioli with roasted asparagus.

Thanks!

[JaneG]

YUM-YUM-YUM!!! I made this tonight and served it with roasted asparagus. DH loves garlic and he swiped one of the roasted cloves and smeared it on some bread. Then he ate the aioli not only with his asparagus, but he also put it on his salmon and ate it with crackers. I think this will be one of his favorite condiment/dip for a variety of things.

But ol' garlic breath isn't getting any smooches tonight!!!

Thanks Alexa, DELICIOUS!!!

[Dusty]

I made this for dinner last night and all I can say is amazingly good!! I'll be cooking it again, and again, and again. Thanks for a great recipe!