Asparagus With Walnuts, Parmesan and Brown Butter
- Total Time
- 10 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 1bunch asparagus (about ¾ pound), ends trimmed
- 3tablespoons unsalted butter
- ¼cup chopped walnuts
- 1garlic clove, minced
- ½teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves, preferably lemon thyme
- 1ounce Parmesan, finely grated (¼ cup)
- Kosher salt, as needed
- ¼teaspoon black pepper
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
179 calories; 16 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 4 grams polyunsaturated fat; 5 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 2 grams sugars; 6 grams protein; 264 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Steam the asparagus until just tender, about 5 minutes.
- Step 2
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook until the foam has subsided and the butter turns a deep golden brown, about 4 minutes. (Take care that it doesn't burn.) Stir in the nuts and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir in the garlic and thyme and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Remove from heat and whisk in the cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon nut mixture over warm asparagus and serve at once.
Private Notes
Comments
Very flavorful dish. One issue I had is 1 oz. of parmesan is more than needed. Moreover, when I whisked in the parmesan at the end, it got all gummy. I think better to sprinke the parmesan on the asparagus then add the butter sauce.
4 min is too long to cook the butter. Needs a very low heat pan and slightly cooled before adding the cheese. Mine was too hot and the cheese/butter/nuts turned into the consistency of toffee. Still good, but not exactly sauce-like. KOK
I sautéed the asparagus and walnuts in olive oil for 3-5 min until browned and tender, then added the garlic and thyme and continued cooking for about a minute. Off heat I finished with some EVOO and sprinkled on the cheese. I liked the flavors, but next time I'll use less cheese, as others have noted.
I made a couple of mistakes with this that thankfully ended with a fabulous dish! First, I thought I had walnuts but I did not and it was too late to get them so I used pecans. My second mistake was that I did not whisk the cheese in adequately. The cheese immediately stuck to the pecans! The result was toasty pecans with a light coat of parmesan cheese! These parm pecan crumbles were a real hit on the steamed asparagus!
Should have read the notes Stuck to the times The walnuts burned and the cheese congealed into lumps of toffee Very unappetizing
I understand why others had difficulty cooking the cheese with the rest of the sauce, but I think the problem isn't because the cheese was put in the sauce at the end, but how it's done. I found that by just sprinkling the cheese over the butter mixture (off the heat, of course), the cheese crisped up in a delightful way. So don't "whisk" as was directed, just sprinkle! It really is a delight when done that way.