Pureed asparagus thickened with potatoes and cream or flour and milk and garnished with emerald green asparagus tips will make both recipes springtime favorites.
Spring is a great time for soup: the asparagus are in the market and the evenings are just cool enough to make soup the perfect supper.
Asparagus soup is a good way to use a lot of asparagus at once, and probably the only way to freeze asparagus that leaves it edible when it thaws. Leftover soup should keep well in the freezer for up to 2 months.
When choosing asparagus, use the thicker spears for soup. They needn’t be peeled.
Asparagus soup is better if, once pureed, it is only heated, not boiled or cooked. This can be accomplished by using a double boiler, a waffle heat absorber, heavy cookware and low heat (and extreme vigilance!).
Asparagus Soup
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1 medium onion
- 1 stalk celery (with leaves)
- 4 cups chicken broth or vegetable stock
- 3 lbs fresh asparagus
- 2 medium potatoes
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil leaves
- 2 cups heavy cream
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- Chop onion and celery.
- Break off woody ends of asparagus and discard. Break off tips and reserve. Cut stalks into 1-inch pieces.
- Peel and dice potatoes.
- Mince basil leaves.
- Melt butter in soup kettle.
- Saute onion and celery until softened, about 2-3 minutes.
- Add stock, asparagus stalk pieces and about half of the tips, the potatoes and the basil.
- Cover pot and cook 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Stir occasionally.
- Puree in small batches in blender or in soup kettle using an immersion blender.
- Return puree to kettle and blend in cream.
- Season with salt and pepper and warm carefully—do not boil.
- Steam remaining asparagus tips until emerald green.
- Spoon soup into bowls and garnish with steamed tips.
Cream of Asparagus Soup
- 2 cups chicken stock, vegetable stock or water
- 1 1/2 cups chopped onion
- 6 tablespoons butter
- 6 tablespoons flour
- 1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed (or more to taste)
- 1 1/2 lbs. fresh asparagus
- 4 cups scalded milk
- 1 teaspoon salt
- White pepper
- Tamari—a dash (to taste)
- Break off woody ends of asparagus and discard. Break off tips and reserve. Cut stalks into 1-inch pieces.
- Scald milk and set aside.
- Melt butter in large soup kettle.
- Saute onions and chopped asparagus stalks until onions are clear, about 8-10 minutes. Salt lightly.
- Sprinkle in flour and cook over lowest heat possible for another 5-8 minutes.
- Stir in stock.
- Continue cooking over low heat another 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently.
- When thickened, remove from heat and slowly stir in milk.
- Puree in small batches in blender or use an immersion blender to blend until smooth.
- Return puree to soup kettle (or double boiler, if possible), and add dill, salt, white pepper and tamari.
- Heat soup very gently.
- Steam asparagus tips until emerald green.
- Add tips to soup and serve immediately.
The copyright of the article Recipes: Asparagus Soup in Spring Recipes is owned by Robyn Harrison. Permission to republish Recipes: Asparagus Soup must be granted by the author in writing.
