Asparagus, asparagus, asparagus. Our patch started sending up shoots early this year after a warm spell and just keeps going. Pictured is one day's picking, thick as my thumb. Thickness has nothing to do with tenderness when dealing with fresh asparagus. Once the tough ends were snapped off this beautiful bunch it still took under 5 minutes to steam and was juicy with a lovely crispness. This year I've finally gotten around to making asparagus stuffed ravioli with mixed results. The asparagus soup, salads, risotto and frittatas have all been delicious but now I am running out of ideas.
There's feast and then there is almost too much of a good thing. Asparagus, it seems, is insinuating itself into just about everything at this point. I've steamed, grilled, sauteed and roasted it in the past few weeks and have now resorted to freezing it because I just just don't have time to pickle it or fry it or spend an hour on the net looking for some new and exciting treatment of asparagus that I haven't tried yet. Believe me, I will miss asparagus very soon, just the way I am missing good tomatoes now. After spending the winter without much nice and fresh, asparagus is the perfect first taste of spring - the great abundance after the lean winter. It makes me think how odd it is that most people no longer seem to think in terms of feast and famine. A broad spectrum of food is always there in our supermarkets. We make it through the winter without much worry although our history is peppered with famines and their consequences. We need reminding to savor the spring feast while it lasts.
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