Asparagus time

It's the awakening of things (at least here in British Columbia)
         It's springtime and the air is getting slightly warm - sun shines through the clouds a bit more often.
And the local supermarket flyers are bombarding us with big giant "asparagus sale" signs! Annoying? Maybe - yes - sure.  But where they come from (mostly Mexico or USA) those asparagus on sale are fresh in season  and delicious!
   The other day I had some - quite thick, soft, flavorful, super green gems - so good!  If you think asparagus is a snobby and expensive food now it's the time to prove yourself wrong.  Go grab a bunch right now.  The asparagus will prove fantastic at the first garden/patio outdoor luncheon of the year.  It will be the protagonist together with a nice Pinot blanc.  Have crisp white linen, a fresh baguette and a chevre together with the asparagus and you are set.  In this case I would suggest cooking the asparagus in salted boiling water until tender but not soft - otherwise they will absorb too much water and loose texture.  Drain the asparagus and let them cool on a plate.  I like them best with a simple lemon-olive oil vinaigrette and a bit of black pepper.  Or you could make a mayo and that would be another wonderful match.  This is super basic but always very good.  Tip: at this time of the season the asparagus are very tender so there is no need to cut too much off the stalks and no need to peel them.

Another suggestion is to pair the asparagus cooked as mentioned above with other vegetables in a nice salad.  This spring I'm keeping in mind Provence as a theme for menus - trying to steer away from cliches and creating plates take hints from that region.  I suggest a grilled eggplant and asparagus salad with pistou and citrus dressing.  It's super easy.  Grill the eggplant cut in medium-thickness slices on your bbq or stove top griddle: give them nice marks and make sure they are tender.  Prepare a pistou: a blend of basil leaves, a bit of garlic, olive oil, salt&pepper, and a few drops of lime/lemon juice - typical of Provence.  Cook the asparagus as above and wash some romaine lettuce leaves.  Prepare a citrus olive oil dressing (tip: add a bit of sugar in the dressing to bring out the lemon essence.)  Assembly: place the lettuce leaves whole on a flat plate; toss the eggplant in the pistou and create a circle of eggplant slices in the center and top with the asparagus. Finally, drizzle the asparagus and lettuce with the citrus dressing - add cracked pepper if you like it.  You will be amazed. The usually assertive flavors of the eggplant and asparagus don't clash but are brought together by the citrus and basil undertones - magnifique!

With some of the same ingredients you can whip up a light and elegant asparagus risotto for a nice dinner.  Make a vegetable broth with half a carrot, half celery stalk, the asparagus stalks cut off, and a small piece of onion.  Use olive oil to sweat some white onion - add the pieces of asparagus and proceed like you would for a risotto - keep it vegetarian, light and clean tasting.  Add a few drops of lime juice instead of wine, add minimal amounts of cheese at the end, no pepper and finish off with a thin julienne of basil! Risotto made this way is spring-ready and quite different from the richer versions we crave on cold, rainy winter days.

Interesting approach:  at the Eden Roc in Ascona, chef Rolf Krapf's spring menu (great menus!) proposes asparagus perfumed with elder flower.  Wow - would love to try but not sure where to get elder flowers here.  I will see.

Welcome to spring!