The March of Asparagus

[Priscilla]

When asparagus is in season, I cook with it a lot, perhaps to the point of testing the limits of appetite among those eating at my table. (I fear.) But we have always gone the distance, maybe exactly because of asparagus, rather than in spite of it.

Do you asparagus? Thin, fat, peeled, un? Steam, roast, boil, grill? Hollandaise, mayonnaise, vinaigrette, butter?

Let's see what asparagus preparations eGulletaires get up to lo this Spring 2003.

[col klink]

Tsk, tsk. You missed the best way! Toss with sea salt or kosher salt and evoo. Roast on a rack at 400F for about 20 minutes and you're in heaven.

Every once and a while I'll steam asparagus with balsamic, ground pepper and parmesan JUST to remind me what I'm missing if I don't roast it.

edit: Woo hoo! The asparagus season started!!!!!

Edited March 4, 2003 by col klink (log)

[CathyL]

Fat, unpeeled, roasted or grilled. (I do peel when I'm boiling.) A little EVOO and a touch of acid - sherry vinegar, lemon juice.

Or romesco. Grilled lamb on the side.

[Priscilla]

Hey I know roast is up there, somewheres, Colonel!

Anyway that's just what I do, too, olive oil, (sea salt), pepper, roast roast roast. Got it from an old Edward Giobbi cookbook. Where did you first run across the roasting method?

[Liza]

Yummm....asparagus. I roast and steam. And sometimes when I'm very naughty, I coulis the whole steamed lot and throw the creamy heaven onto homemade pasta.

[col klink]

Anyway that's just what I do, too, olive oil, (sea salt), pepper, roast roast roast.  Got it from an old Edward Giobbi cookbook.  Where did you first run across the roasting method?

D'oh! Upon further inspection, I do see that you mention roasting. I was a little too hasty, my bad.

I first heard about it in the favorite veggie thread where somebody mentioned roasting veggies. It's now my fav method because you get a great concentrated flavor, not only with asparagus, but with cauliflower, broccoli, taters (chopped small) and pretty much any other veggie.

[IrishCream]

I first learned about roasting asparagus from a Giobbi book also...I think it was the odd "Eat Healthy the Italian Way". Odd because it wasn't low fat OR low carb. My kinda diet. But I have always roasted them in a pan...I'll try a rack next time. I also love them steamed and served at room temp with a shallot vinagrette...eatan with the fingers.

[sagestrat]

Yep, roasting is the best for asparagus. Brussels sprouts too!

[Varmint]

I used to eat a lot of omelets with roasted asparagus and sour cream.

[torakris]

After discovering roasting and griddle pan grilling of asparagus, I don't think I will ever boil it again!

Last night I griddle pan grilled it then tossed it with diced cherry tomatoes and a dressing made with soy-sesmae oil-garlic-chile pepper, sprinkled with scallions and sesame seeds,a wonderful salad!

[Priscilla]

One application I'm working on, again tonight, in fact, is asparagus soup. I cut one blue-rubber-band bunch, maybe just over a pound, in small pieces and only just covered with water, a single peeled garlic clove, a little salt, simmered until the asparagus was way done, got in there with the old immersion blender and broke it all down, passed it through a sieve.

(I pulled out several good-looking tips before they turned to mush to press into later service as garni.)

Corrected texture (don't want it too thick, it'll be stodgy), corrected seasoning, couple tablespoons creme fraiche, stir stir stir. Should be intensely asparagusy. Tiny squiggle or dollop or as-you-like of creme fraiche with a rescued reserved tip floated atop.

Served it in cafe au lait-type cups w/saucers, asparagusy green Provencal stuff. Asparagusy green linen napkins with nice faggoted hemstitching, a recent find. It was a green trip.

[Priscilla]

I used to eat a lot of omelets with roasted asparagus and sour cream.

Varmint I just read Richard Olney's autobiography Reflexions and he was forever serving omelettes with asparagus as a first course, when he wasn't serving omelettes with black truffles as a first course, to all kinds of nobodies and Somebodies.

I don't have his cookbooks and wondered about his method. Wonder if he too roasted it?

[tissue]

Cut the asparagus into 1 inch pieces and stir fry them with fresh scallops and minced garlic. Peel the tougher ends if necessary.

[CathyL]

Priscilla, you need a Richard Olney book! Preferably Simple French Food. Much better written, and far less annoying, than his autobiography. It's a classic.

(I don't recall any discussion of asparagus roasting in his work.)

[Varmint]

I used to eat a lot of omelets with roasted asparagus and sour cream.

Varmint I just read Richard Olney's autobiography Reflexions and he was forever serving omelettes with asparagus as a first course, when he wasn't serving omelettes with black truffles as a first course, to all kinds of nobodies and Somebodies.

I don't have his cookbooks and wondered about his method. Wonder if he too roasted it?

I honestly can say that one day in graduate school I was hungry and had eggs, asparagus and sour cream in the fridge. I made it. It tasted good. I tinkered with different things over the years, but it's still premised on those three ingredients.

[g.johnson]

Asparagus goes surprisingly well with morels.

[KatieLoeb]

Will never forget being in Austria and Germany in May several times, when the white asparagus comes into season. Ohmigiosh - it's absolutely EVERYWHERE - on restaurant menus, at roadside farm stands. The entire population goes asparagus crazy for about 4-5 weeks while it's in season. And it's prepared in a bajillion different ways, as soups, in omelets or crepes, as side dishes of all sorts, etc. My personal favorite was as a very rich gratin. Yummmy! Of course the rest of the meal was always heavy duty dumplings and schnitzel, but the asparagus was always divine. And no matter how rich the meal, there was nothing a good shot of schnapps (or two or three) couldn't cure as an after dinner digestif

Stateside where I don't have access to kilos of white asparagus that was just picked by farmer Wolfgang, I usually steam it upright in my asparagus pot or make a soup that's similar to Pricilla's, although doesn't sound quite as "fancy". I set a pretty table too, but those elegant napkins sound really lovely!

[mikey]

When I can get past steamed asparagus, I'm particularly fond of asparagus with mushrooms, from one of Marcella Hazan's Classic Italian Cooking books.

[Jim Dixon]

My preferred cooking method is grilling. I line up the asparagus on grill directly over medium hot coals and rotate them until they're slightly charred. Then I drizzle with good olive oil and good salt. If you oil first, it drips into the fire and flares up.

Jim

[col klink]

If you oil first, it drips into the fire and flares up.

Jim

Good point Jim, I'm going to try that the next time I roast since I do hear a lot of dripping and at 400 I get a considerable amount of smoking from my oven.

[Priscilla]

Priscilla, you need a Richard Olney book!  Preferably Simple French Food.  Much better written, and far less annoying, than his autobiography.  It's a classic. 

(I don't recall any discussion of asparagus roasting in his work.)

Too right, CathyL. I appreciate your sympathy. I also want The French Menu Cookbook, especially after reading how it came about.

I have nearly owned both multiple times over the years, including memorably, stupidly, passing up a very good quality first edition FMC years ago at a used bookstore for some reason. You know how it is to be irrationally overtaken by foolishness--"I just have TOO MANY EFFING COOKBOOKS," and put the good-quality, inexpensive first-edition Richard Olney back on the shelf and walk away.

I've been tracking them off and on ABE, for instance, and after Olney's death prices really increased. But they are at the top of my list.

Perhaps the only person on earth who thinks Reflexions was a great read, I thrilled to his Richard Olney's harvesting wild asparagus off of his Provence hillside to serve to the likes of Elizabeth David. Pretty cool.

[Varmint]

Klink, is it possible to smoke vegetables?

(please, no references to the smoking of anything that could be illegal!)

[Priscilla]

Mikey, that's what I mean, it's so good prepared a favorite way it is difficult to convince yourself to deviate, sometimes.

I set out to to deviate more often this spring.

[col klink]

Klink, is it possible to smoke vegetables?

You bet. I've smoked onions, beets, bell peppers, hot peppers and corn but have yet to try smoking asparagus. I don't know how they'd turn out but I'm willing to give them a try. Since I'm smoking a whole bunch of brisket this weekend I'll give it a whirl.

I smoked the beets because I had a vegetarian over for a big dinner where I was serving some rare smoked lamb. I presented them sliced on a bed of sauteed mustard greens with the same curried cream sauce just like the lamb. They looked alike and they even tasted good!

I bought a book on smokers and smoking and it had a recipe for smoked cabbage that I've been meaning to try (maybe I should try this too?). Take a whole cabbage, core it and put in a stick of butter. Wrap with aluminum foil and place on a ring of foil for stabilization, smoke for 4 hours. Sounds good to me eh?

[CathyL]

Colonel, which book? A lot of smoked cabbage recipes suggest adding a bouillon cube (!) and a little sugar along with the butter.

I've grilled asparagus with smoke and without, and vastly prefer it without. I like smoked peppers and onions, though.