First of the Season Asparagus Soup Garnished with Shredded Hard Boiled Egg

This morning started off like most. A long walk to the mountain preserve, errands and then off to the farmer’s market. List in hand I made my way to Mcclendon’s Select. Saturday mornings are always packed and this week was no exception. My husband and I fanned out looking for the items we came for. In my search for leeks my eyes landed on bunches of fresh organic asparagus. It seemed a little early for the season but we do live in the desert. The planned menu was now officially out the door. We were now having soup.

In this recipe the asparagus is tossed into boiling water and cooked about 4 minutes, removed and then placed into an ice bath. The water is saved and reserved for the soup “stock". Leeks, onions, shallots and garlic are cooked slowly together until very soft, “stock" is added back in, simmered, then asparagus is added and cooked another 5 minutes. I used my immersion blender to puree the soup and then served in small bowls with ½ shredded hard boiled egg and topped with a few minced tips. The freshness and the color of the asparagus shone through and we both loved this soup.

This recipe has been slightly adapted from; "Around My French Table", by Dorie Greenspan.

4 to 5 servings

Ingredients:

Soup:

2 pounds asparagus (trimmed)(save a couple of tips to mince for garnish later)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 medium leeks, white and light green parts only (sliced into small ribbons)
½ large onions (sliced thinly)
1 small shallot (minced)
1 clove garlic (minced)
6 to 7 cups asparagus water
Salt and Pepper

Garnish:

2 to 3 hard-boiled eggs (figure ½ egg per bowl of soup)
2 to 3 asparagus tips (minced)

To prepare:

Bring about 8 cups of water to a boil. Add asparagus and boil for 4 minutes. In the meantime, prepare an ice bath. Remove asparagus and place in bath. Save 6 to 7 cups of the asparagus water and set aside in a separate bowl, this will be your broth.

In the same soup pot over medium heat, add olive oil and butter. Then add leeks, onions and shallots, season with salt and pepper and stir until everything has been coated. Cover the pot and simmer about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. (You want heat low enough to have mixture soft in texture but have no color). Add in garlic; stirring constantly about one minute. Remove the cover, add asparagus water and simmer another 10 minutes. Toss in the asparagus and cook another 5 minutes uncovered.

Next puree soup, if you use a blender you will want to do this step in batches or use an immersion blender. I used the later and loved the little bits left here and there.

To serve:

Add ½ shredded egg to each bowl, scoop in soup, place asparagus tips on top for garnish. Enjoy.