Asparagus flan with Taleggio fondue

AICI – Associazione Insegnanti di Cucina Italiana

Recipe by Eleonora Caprio

(for 8 people) FOR THE FLAN : 1 l milk 130 g butter 130 g flour 6 eggs 10 asparagus spears 100 g starch 6 tbsps grated Parmesan cheese 150 g diced Taleggio breadcrumbs, to taste FOR THE FONDUE : 150 g Taleggio 120 g cream 30 g milk

Prepare the béchamel sauce in the normal way and add the eggs, starch and grated Parmesan cheese.
When the mixture has cooled down a little, add the sliced asparagus.
Grease the moulds, cover with breadcrumbs and half fill with the mixture.
Insert a cube of Taleggio cheese into the middle of each. Add another layer of the mixture, leaving a rim of one centimetre.
Bake in the oven at 160°C for 15 minutes.

FOR THE FONDUE : heat together 120 g cream and 30 g milk. Before it begins to boil, add the Taleggio cheese cut into very small pieces.
Melt the cheese, mixing with a spoon, and cook until the cream becomes smooth and glossy. Serve the flans on a plate covered with a spoonful of fondue.

VARIATION : you can make the same flan using pear instead of asparagus.