Shaved asparagus and Cashel blue salad

Serves 4

Shaved asparagus and Cashel blue salad (Jason Lowe)

Thinly-shaved raw asparagus make a great and unusual salad. You can also add other shaved raw vegetables to this salad, such as fennel and radishes; and most cheeses, from goat's to Parmesan, will work well too.

8 thick stems of asparagus, woody ends trimmed
A couple of handfuls of small tasty salad leaves and herbs, washed and dried
120g Cashel blue cheese

For the dressing

30ml cider or white wine vinegar
2tsp Tewkesbury or Dijon mustard
40g Cashel blue cheese
120ml vegetable oil
30ml water

To make the dressing, blend all of the ingredients in a liquidiser, season to taste and adjust the consistency with a little water if it is too thick.

Cut the asparagus into long strips as thinly as possible on the angle; you can also shave f it into long strips with a mandolin, though be careful of cutting your fingers! Leave in iced water for 20 minutes, then drain and dry.

To serve, arrange the salad leaves and asparagus on serving plates, spoon over the dressing and break the cheese into nuggets on top.