Poached egg, asparagus and avocado salad recipe

Serves 3

Ingredients

For the Salad:

½                                a fennel bulb, finely sliced lengthways

500g (17.5oz)             asparagus

5 tbsp.                        olive oil

¼                                iceberg lettuce (around 3-4 whole leaves)

½                                baby gem lettuce

1                                 avocado, peeled and sliced

1-2                              poached eggs each

Pinch of salt

 

For the Dressing:

15g (0.5oz)                 dill, finely chopped

1 tbsp.                        finely chopped parsley

2 tsp.                          white wine vinegar

½                                lemon (juice)

½                                grated/finely chopped garlic

½ tsp.                         honey

Pinch of salt

Instructions

1.     Place a grill pan over a medium heat and griddle the fennel for 3-4 minutes on each side until it begins to soften and brown. Remove and set aside.

2.     Smother the asparagus in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil with your hands so that they are well covered, adding the salt at the same time. Place on the grill pan and toss every couple of minutes until they start to blacken.

3.     While the asparagus is grilling, prepare the salad by gently tearing the leaves of the iceberg and baby gem lettuce and setting aside in a bowl. Meanwhile, make the dressing by stirring all of the ingredients together in a glass.

4.     When the asparagus have got some good colour on them – usually after around 5-6 minutes – you may need to give them a little help to cook right through. To do this, just splash around 3 tablespoons of water into the pan. It will sizzle quite a bit but the steam from the water will help to cook them through.

5.     Dress the salad (keeping some aside to drizzle over the top) and mix through with your hands. Lay onto a plate and place the asparagus on top with the fennel and sliced avocado.

6.     Bring a pan of water to the boil and gently crack the eggs into it. You don’t need to do a thing to the water before you drop the eggs in (I know some people say you need to swirl it with a spoon first, while I am sure there are other methods, too). Gently simmer the water for a minute or two or until the whites of the eggs are no longer translucent. Remove with a slotted spoon and place over the asparagus. Drizzle the top with the remaining dressing and enjoy!