Spring is here, which means asparagus has just about reached the height of its growing season. Next Wednesday, at his bi-weekly Chef’s Table dinner, chef Dan Bethard of West Chester’s Iron Hill Brewery will pay homage to this classic spring veggie with a fresh, not-too-creamy, asparagus soup. He shared the oh-so-easy recipe with us.

Asparagus Soup
From chef Dan Bethard of Iron Hill Brewery

1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup garlic cloves
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
1/4 c. chopped Vidalia onions
1 tbsp. minced garlic
1 lbs. asparagus
3 c. chicken broth
1 c. heavy cream
1 tsp. lemon juice
Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
2 ounces Parmigiano Reggiano

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. In an oven-proof pan, combine olive oil and garlic. Cover and bake until garlic is soft, about 20 minutes. Cool. Strain oil, discarding garlic. (Garlic oil can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 months.)

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Trim asparagus, removing and reserving asparagus tops. Blanch asparagus spears in boiling water for 45 seconds or until asparagus turn bright green. Remove and plunge into ice water.

In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Add onions and sauté until translucent. Add garlic and sauté 2 more minutes (Do not brown garlic.) Add asparagus spears and chicken broth. Increase heat to bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the asparagus becomes tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Using an immersion blender, purée soup until smooth. Add heavy cream and return to a boil. Season with salt and pepper. Strain soup.

To serve, divide soup between six bowls. Top each with shaved Parmigiano Reggiano. 1 teaspoon garlic oil, and several reserved asparagus tops.

This entry was posted on Thursday, March 27th, 2008 at 6:00 am and is filed under Recipes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Posted by Bridget Salmons on 3/27/08 in Recipes