Cos & Butterhead Seeded Salad with Charred Capsicum & Asparagus

_INGREDIENTS:

• 2 red capsicums
• 1 bunch asparagus, purple & green
• 2 Tbsp cooking oil
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• ½ cos lettuce
• ½ butterhead lettuce
• 3 Tbsp mixed pumpkin/sunflower/sesame seeds
• 10-15g Parmesan, optional

_{INSTRUCTIONS:}

1. Preheat the oven to 220°C (fan).
2. Cut the capsicums in half, top to bottom, and remove the seeds and core. Drizzle over 1 tablespoon of the cooking oil and rub over so all is covered. Place on a small tray in the oven and cook for 15-20 minutes, until the skin has blackened and blistered. Once cool enough to handle, peel off this outer charred skin and discard. Cut the remaining flesh into long strips and set aside.
3. Prepare the asparagus by chopping off 2-3cm from the bottom. Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil and add a large pinch of sea salt. Drop the asparagus in for 1 minute (½-1 minute longer if fatter asparagus), scoop them out and dunk straight into iced water to stop them cooking. Scoop out once cooled and pat them dry.
4. Place the asparagus onto a tray and drizzle over the second measure of the cooking oil, season with salt and pepper and roll them around to completely cover. Heat a griddle pan on a very high heat, add the asparagus and char for a minute on each side (alternatively, you can char your asparagus under the oven grill). Once cooled, roughly cut into 4 pieces and set aside.
5. Cut off the top half of the cos, roughly chop these leaves into bite-sized pieces, rinse and pat dry. Pull off 4-5 outer leaves of the butterhead, rinse and pat dry. Toss both lettuces together in a large bowl.
6. Toast the seeds all together in a small dry frying pan for about 1-2 minutes and set aside. Vigorously shake up all the dressing ingredients in a clean jar until it's cloudy and the honey has dissolved.
7. When you are ready to serve, add the charred capsicum and asparagus to the lettuce and drizzle over the dressing. Very gently toss everything together until all is coated. Gently toss through ¾ of the seeds before plating, and sprinkle the remaining seeds over the top along with shards of Parmesan, if using.

Recipe by Kylee Newton, author of The Modern Preserver