Ah, asparagus. This is a vegetable I have loved since I was a child even though I couldn’t pronounce it. For most of my childhood, I called this delicious vegetable “fat grass”. Growing up, we grew green asparagus in our yard. Late Spring and early Summer were ideal times for picking. I use the term “picking” lightly in this case as you do not actually pick asparagus, but use a sharp knife to cut the stem as close to the ground as possible. It was always important to pick the asparagus as soon as it was ready until the days started getting too hot. If you missed a stalk, it would grow quite tall, then flower and seed. Once this started happening, the picking was essentially over until the next year. Of course, once the really warm weather was upon us, we’d let all the remaining stalks go to seed so that we’d have another great year of picking to look forward to.

As I have loved asparagus my whole life, I’ve had a difficult time eating it unless it was steamed and with a little salt on it. This is for no other reason than that I felt it was absolutely perfect that way so why cook it any other way. I no longer live in a place where I can have an asparagus patch in my yard and I have to buy it from the grocery store. I still love to steam my asparagus, but nothing is quite like picking it and having it on your dinner table an hour later. So I began looking for other, but still simple, ways to prepare asparagus. Here is my version of “cream” of asparagus soup. It’s simple, tasty and not really creamy, but you’ll love it anyway. Enjoy!

Ingredients 

• 1-1/2 cups of chicken broth
• 1-1/2 lbs of asparagus
• 1/2 c 2% milk
• Salt and pepper

Instructions 

• Rinse the asparagus.
• Snap off the “hard” ends of the stalk but holding the middle of the stalk with one hand and the thick end with the other. Bend and the stalk will snap just above the “hard” end. Throw out the “hard” ends.
• Steam the asparagus until it is softened (could be cut with the side of a fork).
• Cut the asparagus into about 1-1/2 to 2 inch sections.
• Put 1 cup of the chopped asparagus aside.
• In a blender, add the chicken broth and the remaining asparagus.
• Attach lid and begin to blend, starting at a low speed.

              

• Bring up to medium (or high, depending upon your blender) speed and blend until well mixed.
• Turn off the blender.
• Pour soup into a stockpot. Using medium heat, bring the soup to a low boil.
• Pour in the milk, salt and pepper and the reserved asparagus stalks. Stir well.
• Return to a low boil and add salt and pepper (per your preference).
• Turn off the heat.

    

Instructions – Serving

• In small soup bowls, scoop several of the reserved asparagus sections from the pot and place into the bowls.
• Ladle soup over the asparagus.
• Serve.

Ideas

• If you are a traditionalist and prefer to use heavy cream, please do so. This would still be 1/2 cup.
• Breaking off the hard part of the stalk isn’t necessary (to most people). This is why you will often have asparagus at a restaurant and have hard, chewy sections that you basically don’t or can’t eat. You can leave them on if you want, but I wouldn’t recommend it.
• In lieu of extra salt at the end, use a little more of the chicken bouillon seasoning powder.
• Steaming – My mother bought me this great vegetable steamer so I can just pop them into the microwave. It works great and shortens prep time considerably.
• Serve with a nice warm baguette for more of a meal than an opening course.