Asparagus is Popular

New Zealand Listener, Volume 37, Issue 948, 11 October 1957, Page 32

Asparagus is Popular

VERY spring asparagus becomes more and more in demand. Of course, we use canned aspafagus all the year round, and asparagus rolls in thin, fresh bread are quite an everyday snack, But the fresh asparagus which makes its appearance in the spring is always a surprise in flavour and a quite different affair altogether. The arrival of fresh asparagus, young new carrots | and green peas really show us that winter is overt, and we realise that with all our canning, presefving and even deep-freezing we can never quite keep the feal flavour and taste which old | Mother Nature provides. Did you know | that asparagus was eaten in Roman | times and that it was in genefal use ifi many parts of Europe even 400 years ago! Wild asparagus was used by ordin- | ary folk, and cultivated asparagus pro- | duced latge spears up to % Ib. in size! To Cook After washing undér the running tap to get out any soil or sand lay the stalks in @ wide énough pah, sprinkle with a vety little. salt, pour on boiling water to a depth of about an itch or so, cover and boil gently for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the lower ends, tested with a fork, are tender-cfisp. Do not over cook or the heads drop off the stalks. You should» have cut off the tough ends beforehand and scraped any scaly bits aff the stalks with a sharp knife. Lift out carefully with a wide perforated egg-slice, so as not to break them. To Serve Aspafagus is generally served by itself as a first course. Put 3 to 4 cooked stalks on a neat slice of hot toast (to absorb thé.moisture) and pour a little melted butter over or sprinkle aspara'gus with a@ little salt atid pepper. Melt 4 cup butter. If desired it may be browned slightly when melting, Pour it over asparagus either plain, or with one of the following added: A few drops lemon juice, minced parsley or chives, a few capers, a sprinkle of nutmeg, a little minced onion or garlic, a little | ptepared mustard, a little grated cheese, oF a few crisp bacon bits. Ham and Asparagus Rolls Use fresh cooked asparagus. Grill thin slices of uncooked ham on both sides. On each slice of ham place several stalks of asparagus. Then roll up the ham slices. On each roll of ham and asparagus serve a generous amount of thin, fich cheese sauce. In the top of a double boiler melt 1% packet processed cheese (i.e., Vg 1b.). Gradually add "3%cup milk, stirring all the time till smooth. Or serve the rolls without sauce if preferred. Asparagus Continental Use thin green asparagus and cut tender parts into pieces a little larger than peas. Cook about 5 minutes in boiling salted water, then drain. Put a small piece of butter in a saucepan and, when hot, stir in a little castor sugar and about 2 tablespoons water, Add the par-boil asparagus, cover saucepan and simmer very slowly 20 minutes. Remove asparagus and thicken sauce with a little flour, then just before serving, stir in a beaten egg-yolk. Pour this sauce Ovef aspé@ragus afid serve at once. Alternatively, after the little pieces of asparagus have been par-boiled, heat a piece of butter in a saucepan, add some

finely chopped pars ley atid young lettucé leaves, 2 or 3 small whole onions, a pinch of salt, pepper and nutmeg and

nour ang a iHttlie water, Cook a few minutes, stirring, Then put in asparagus and sithmer very gently 20 minutes. Creamed Asparagus Heat thin cream, top milk or unsweetened evaporated milk, Season with salt, pepper, butter and minced parsley. Pour over hot cooked asparagus, Or make a thin white satice, using some of the aspafagus water instead of all milk, and adding a chopped hafd-boiled egg as Well aS Aspafagus. Asparagus and New Peas Two cups hot cooked asparagus cut into inch lengths, 344 cups hot cooked _ ee eS ss ER et ..

peas, 2 tablespoons melted butter, salt and pepper to taste. Just mix them ail together-a delightful combination. Asparagus Cigarettes Roll thin 3-inch tips of cooked, drained asparagus in thin triangular slices of fresh white bread first dusted with grated cheese. Brush with melted butter and grill or toast until brown. Asparagus Souffle (Good) Two tablespoons melted butter, 3 tablespoons flour, 1 cup milk, 4 eggs, 2% cups diced, cooked asparagus, 34 teaspoon salt. Make sauce by blending in small saucepan, butter and flour, add milk gradually and cook slowly until thickened, stirring constantly, Beat egg yolks until thick and lemon coloured and add to the sauce, stirring contantly. Add asparagus and salt. Beat egg whites until stiff and fold into asparagus mixture. Pour into buttered casserole set in pan of hot water and bake in slow oven (325 degrees or tegulo 3) about "45 minutes. Asparagus in Milk If the asparagus does not look quite perfect, cut the stalks into inch lengths and put in the top of a double boiler with just enough milk to cover, Put the lid on tightly and cook over hot water till tender. Then add for every cup of

milk a dessertspoon of butter creamed with the same quantity of flour. Add salt and pepper to taste. This is delicious served on toast. Asparagus en Casserole (A Good Meal) One pound asparagus, 2 Ib. tiny new potatoes, 2 cups boiling water, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 cups shelled green peas, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 lb. ham in thick slices, 1 cup top milk, 1% teaspoon salt, Ye teaspoon pepper, Vs teaspoon nutmeg, 2 tablespoons flour, 6 sprigs of parsley. Scrape new potatoes and boil in salted water about 10 minutes, Wash asparagus, cut tender ends off stalks into pieces about 1 inch long. Place asparagus, shelled peas and sugar in the pan with potatoes and continue boiling about 10 minutes longer, or until tender. Cut ham slices into small pieces, brown each side in pan. Drain vegetables, put in casserole. Pour on milk containing salt, pepper and nutmeg, Sprinkle on top 2 ‘tablespoons flour. Place ham on top. Cover casserole. Bake in a moderate oven 350 degrees about 15 minutes. Garnish with parsley. Spring Vegetable Dish This is attractive in appearance and good to eat. You need asparagus, a smallish cauliflower, young spring car- rots and new green peas. Cook the vegetables separately, leaving the cauliflower head whole with a few of the tender, green leaves attached. Set the cauliflower in the centre of a large, round

serving dish. Arrange the asparagus in. small bundles with the heads pointing to the outer rim of the dish. Flank the asparagus with carrots and fill the spaces with the green peas. Pour a thick white sauce over the cauliflower and sprinkle it with parsley finely chopped. I’ve borrowed this from the Department of Agriculture magazine,

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