Bring a pot of water to the boil.

Meanwhile, take a bunch of thin green asparagus spears, trim off the woody ends, drizzle over a little olive oil and place on a medium-hot griddle pan to grill. Remove from the pan when nicely grilled and cut into bite-sized pieces.

Drop 180g penne pasta in the boiling water and cook till al dente (10-12 minutes).

Meanwhile, in a small pan, add a glug of olive oil, a large garlic clove, finely chopped, 1/3 cup panko (or regular breadcrumbs), the zest of 1 lemon and the leaves of three thyme sprigs. Fry till till golden. Remove from the heat.

Drain the pasta, setting aside ½ cup of the cooking water. Add the pasta back to the pot, along with the asparagus, the juice of ½ lemon, and a little of the cooking water to moisten. Add 1/3 cup chopped ricotta duro/salata and stir well.

Add a final drizzle of olive oil before separating between two bowls and sprinkling with a generous amount of the breadcrumb mixture.

Serves 2.