For a simple yet elegant soup, try this asparagus soup. Subtle and velvety, without any cream. By the way, you do not want this soup to boil- by not allowing it to boil it will retain a greener, more pleasant color. Boil this soup and it will turn khaki.
INGREDIENTS:
1 pound thick asparagus
1 medium brown onion, finely sliced
1 stalk green garlic, white and palest green part only, finely sliced
1 stalk of celery, finely sliced
1 smallish carrot, finely sliced
1 large Yellow Finn or Yukon Gold potato, peeled and cut into medium dice
1 quart rich vegetable stock
A few sprigs of fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
Salt & White Pepper to taste
Minced chives if you have them for garnish
Grape seed or other neutral flavored oil, as needed
METHOD:
Trim the bottom off the asparagus and peel the lower 2 inches of the spear. Snap the bottom ends of the spears where they naturally break. Cut the rest of the spear into smallish bits (1”), reserving the tips for garnish.
Heat the stock over medium heat, and when it is hot, add the peeled bases to the stock. Reduce the heat so the stock is at a bare chuckle and cook the bases for 20 minutes or so. This is to build the flavor of the asparagus into the stock.
In a pot large enough to hold the finished soup, heat a small amount of oil. When hot, sauté the onion, green garlic, celery, and carrot in the oil over medium heat until they are translucent. Be sure to not let the vegetables color. When the vegetables are translucent, add the potato sauté until all are quite soft.
Strain the hot stock into the pot. Add the chopped asparagus and simmer (Remember- do not boil the soup!) for 5 minutes.
Carefully, puree the vegetables in the blender. Use just enough of the liquid to get it moving. (Remember- Hot liquids in the blender want to explode out when the machine turns on. Only fill the machine partway and cover the lid with a towel.)
Strain the puree into a fresh soup pot, and add enough stock to the puree to give it a nice smooth texture. Season with salt and pepper
Slice the tips lengthwise in half and blanch just long enough that they are no longer raw (30 to 60 seconds), and garnish the soup with them.
Sprinkle the soup with chives if you have them. The soup is also good served cold, although when seasoning you want to be a bit more aggressive. When serving a soup like this (or anything really) cold, you lose around 33% of the flavor, so just remember to turn up the seasoning.
Chef’s Notes:
If you make lots of asparagus, try using the snapped ends to make a stock one week, and freeze the asparagus stock. Then thaw the stock and make the soup later on. Thick or medium asparagus is best for this soup as it is more succulent and sweeter than the thin stalks.
Serves: 4
Source: Chef Andrew E Cohen
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