New season asparagus with Caviar and Champagne sauce

Instructions

In a pot of salted boiling water, cook the asparagus for 2 minutes (or accordingly if thin asparagus). Remove from heat and plunge into iced water to stop the cooking process. Once completely chilled remove from water, pat dry and set aside.

To make the sauce, melt the butter in a small pot and add the shallots. Cook until tender and translucent ( 3-5 minutes) on low heat. Add the champagne and bring to boil. Reduce this amount by ½. Now add the vegetable stock and bring to boil. Reduce again by half. You should now have about 1 cup (250mls of liquid in the pot). Bring to a low simmer and whisk in the crème fraiche and lemon juice. The sauce should now be thickened and glossy ( don’t boil this sauce as it may split and separate). Remove from heat at this stage and allow to cool slightly. Season with cracked pepper and sea salt flakes. Finally add the caviar ( Important the sauce isn’t too hot as it will cook and ruin the caviar). Stir this through so well incorporated. To serve, flood the plate with the caviar sauce, dress the asparagus in olive oil and scatter with chopped dill and chives. Place the asparagus over the warm caviar sauce.