Pesto Flatbread with Shaved Asparagus and Bacon
Published May 26, 2017•Updated Oct 15, 2024
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When asparagus season arrives, this is one of my go-to simple weeknight meals. It celebrates asparagus season while adding easy-to-love ingredients (bacon! pesto!). Put Pesto Flatbread with Shaved Asparagus and Bacon on your meal plan this week.
Sliced into wedges and paired with a great glass of wine, this is a fresh, fun appetizer or dinner.
And a quick dish like this one is a great excuse to pour yourself a crisp, fresh glass of white wine to celebrate the start of spring.
Shaved Asparagus
The quiet star of this pesto flatbread is the shaved asparagus on top. Even people who are dubious about asparagus (I know there are some) can get behind thinly sliced asparagus combined with crisp bread and melty cheese, right?
Thinly sliced asparagus somehow tastes different from its whole-stalk counterpart. Slicing it super thin insures it doesn’t turn tough. When piled on top of this flatbread it quickly roasts under the broiler which brings out its natural sweet nuttiness.
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Pesto Flatbread with Shaved Asparagus and Bacon
Equipment
- Skillet
- Half Sheet Pan
- Vegetable Peeler
- Mixing Bowl
Ingredients
- 6 strips Bacon
- 8 ounces Asparagus, shaved with a peeler
- 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
- 4 small or 2 large Flatbreads (use any store-bought variety; we love to large store-bought naan for these)
- 1 cup Pesto
- 5 ounces Mozzarella, thinly sliced
- Parmesan cheese, for serving
Instructions
- Fry the bacon in a skillet until crisp. Set aside on a paper-towel lined plate. When cool enough to handle, crumble.
- While bacon is cooling, use a vegetable peeler to shave the asparagus into thin strips. (The best way to do this is to place the asparagus flat on a cutting board and run the peeler over the top, rotating the asparagus as you peel. If you have a spiralizer, you can also use that to spiralize the asparagus.) Toss the asparagus with olive oil and a pinch of salt.
- Turn on the oven’s broiler (set it to its lowest setting if possible). Place an oven rack about 6 inches from the broiler.
- Spray a sheet pan with nonstick cooking spray or line it with parchment paper.
- Set the flatbreads face-down on the sheet pan and broil until they are lightly toasted on the bottom. (Toasting the bottom will help prevent the flatbread from turning soggy when you pile it with the other ingredients.)
- Flip the flatbreads face-up and spread with pesto. Top with the mozzarella and then the asparagus (don’t worry if every inch of the flatbreads aren’t covered with mozzarella; these are much more beautiful if some of the asparagus is peeking out).
- Place the flatbreads under the broiler and broil until the cheese is melted and the asparagus is starting to brown in spots. Keep a close eye on them to prevent burning.
- Remove flatbreads from the oven and slice into wedges. Transfer to a serving platter and top with crumbled bacon and parmesan cheese.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Amazing recipe! I love it.
Fantastic recipe (as always)!!!
Just about to make this for my other half’s birthday dinner but I was wondering if I could use turkey bacon instead.
It contains less sodium so is a little healthier (she’s on a diet…again!)
Keep up those awesome recipes coz I’m always looking for inspiration in the kitchen:)
For sure Matt! – Turkey bacon would be awesome and would work great! A little less sodium in my diet wouldn’t be a bad thing either. 😉