Asparagus, the svelte spears of spring
(Season everything with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.)
Slaw: Use a Y-shaped peeler to cut fat, very fresh asparagus into paper-thin ribbons. Dress with extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice and minced shallots.
Soup: Thinly slice an onion, celery stalk and leek. Saute the vegetables in 2 tbsp butter until soft. Add a peeled and diced baking potato and 1 litre of vegetable stock. Simmer until the potatoes are soft. Thinly slice 1 1/2 pounds of asparagus and add to the soup. Simmer until the asparagus is soft and puree in a blender. Serve with a drizzle of cream.
Grilled: Toss thin spears of asparagus with olive oil. Grill over a high heat until nicely charred and tender. Arrange on a platter and drizzle with aged balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil.
Mimosa: Make an emulsified dressing of 2 tbsp Dijon mustard, 1 tsp wine vinegar and 3 tbsp vegetable oil. Toss cold, boiled asparagus with the dressing and arrange on a platter. Chop 2 hard-boiled eggs and sprinkle over the asparagus. Garnish with finely chopped chives.
Hollandaise: Get your hands on a good French cookbook (Jacques Pepin's Complete Techniques) and make a batch of hollandaise sauce. Boil fat spears of asparagus until tender and arrange on warm plates. Nap with the hollandaise sauce and serve immediately.
Frittata: Boil 1 lb of asparagus until tender and slice on a bias. Thinly slice a bunch of green onions and saute in olive oil until soft. Beat six large eggs and stir in the asparagus, onions, chopped mint and 1/3 cup grated Parmesan. Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in an eight-inch ovenproof non-stick skillet until smoking. Turn the heat down to medium-low and add the egg mixture. Cook, occasionally loosening the sides with a spatula. When the centre is almost set, pop the pan into a hot oven for a few minutes to finish.
Milanese: Boil 2 lbs of asparagus, toss with softened butter and arrange on four warm plates. Fry four organic eggs sunny side up and place on top of the asparagus. Shower with grated Parmesan.
Stir-fry: Blanch 1 lb of asparagus until crisp tender and cut into sections on a bias. Cut 1/2 pound of shiitake mushrooms into quarters. Cook 2 tbsp of ginger julienne in vegetable oil until golden. Add the asparagus, mushrooms and a splash of chicken stock and stir-fry until the mushrooms are cooked. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.
Risotto: In the stock you plan to cook the rice in, simmer the woody ends of the asparagus for 15 minutes. Strain. Boil the asparagus until crisp tender and slice on a bias. Make a plain risotto and fold in the asparagus at the end. This risotto is delicious in combination with other spring vegetables such as fiddleheads, wild leeks and snap peas.
