I mentioned last week I’d tell you what to do with all the ends you snap and trim off the end of the asparagus when you prepare it. You can end up cutting off quite a bit and it seems a waste just to toss those generous if slightly woody ends into the compost bin.
This is what I do. I eat a lot of asparagus at this time of year. In my extreme state of overexcitement once it appears in the greengrocers and the market, I simply can’t help myself. I save up the trimmings – and the peelings too, if I pare the outer layer from the spears – and keep them in the fridge until I have enough to whizz up into this soup. It tastes remarkably luxe, given it’s made from something I’d otherwise throw out.
You want no hint of woody end.
I use a super powerful Vitamix blender, a hangover from the days when I was sent all sorts of swanky kitchen equipment ‘to try out’. It makes extremely silky purées. If your blender isn’t quite so punchy, just keep going until your soup is very, very smooth. You want no hint of woody end. You may need to pass the soup through a sieve, which though it is an extra step, I always find a rather satisfying task in a Mrs Patmore sort of way.
I have a very short market haul today. We went to the Tuesday market because we always go to the Tuesday market, but we didn’t really shop. We sat in the Marine Bar and had coffee, talked to friends, patted dogs who are also friends. On Wednesday, we flew back to England because tomorrow is my dear mother-in-law’s funeral. She was diagnosed only a few weeks ago with a rare and aggressive cancer which she faced with enormous courage and characteristic ruthless efficiency. The service tomorrow is entirely of her own devising, the readings, the hymns. Her papers are in order. She left no burden on the shoulders of others, other than the burden of missing her.
Creamy asparagus soup
This is the simplest soup imaginable and just right for right now, when spring is here with its elastic-banded bundles of asparagus but it’s actually freezing and what I really want is something WARM.
If you don’t have miso paste, it’s not essential. Just take extra care with the rest of the seasoning. The addition of nuts makes the soup more creamy (what am I now, some sort of wellness influencer?) but of course you could always just add some cream right at the end if you prefer.
Serves 4
20g butter
1 large onion, about 300g, diced
1 bay leaf
1 small celery stalk, about 30g, diced
1 tsp miso paste, optional
1l chicken or vegetable stock
1 x 400ml tin of coconut milk
800g asparagus trimmings – of course you can use whole spears too
60g cashews or blanched almonds
Juice of a small lemon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Warm the butter over a medium-low heat in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan and gently sauté the onion with the bay leaf and a good pinch of salt, stirring from time to time, until the onion is soft and translucent. This will take about 15 minutes.
Add the celery to the onion and fry gently for 5 minutes.
Whisk the miso paste, if using, into the stock and pour it into the pan. Stir in the coconut milk and bring to a simmer. Add the asparagus and the nuts and bring back to a gentle simmer. Cook for about 10-15 minutes until the asparagus is very tender.
Purée the soup in a blender or with a stick blender until extremely smooth. You may need to pass it through a sieve. Return it to the pan to warm it through gently. Add the lemon juice, taste and add more salt and pepper if you think it needs it.
Ladle it into warmed bowls and eat it just as it is, or finish it with a swirl of cream, a trickle of olive oil, a spear of cooked asparagus, however you wish.
Market haul, 23 April 2024
Strawberries for breakfast, and some new-season garlic, a gift for my brother. My luggage smells lovely.
Very sorry for your loss. I hope you have a safe journey back.
Your Mother in Law sounds like a remarkable woman. Take care of yourselves this next little while❤
I love this soup, silky and nutty are some of my favourite soups. Here in Australia there is a season for Asparagus but you rarely find it at the Farmers Market. Small farmers just cant compete with the supermarkets who pay minimum price to farmers that grow exclusively for them and import it from wherever. You never see full asparagus like this anymore, only ever the "baby" kind, not a woody end to be seen or to be concerned about, just snap it and put it in your stir fry before it develops any real flavour.
What we can get occasionally at the Farmer Market is Jerusalem artichokes. No competition for those from the supermarkets as they are just too difficult. So when they arrive (not long now in our neck of the woods) I will buy the lot and make a beautiful silky soup like the one you describe here. No need to add nuts as JA are nutty in their own right.