Spargelsuppe: That’s German for “white asparagus soup.” This one is super elegant and doesn’t call for cream. White asparagus are, to quote Cook’s Illustrated, “simply green asparagus that have never seen the light of day.” Soil is mounded over the asparagus as it grows, blocking the sun. As a result, the plant’s chlorophyll and its associated greenness never develop. White asparagus stalks should be peeled, as their skin is bitter, but underneath, they are sweet and tender. They are a springtime treat, often expensive, and marvelous with the other treasure of the season, morels. This recipe was first published in The Fantastic Fungi Community Cookbook.
Spargelsuppe with Morels
Spargelsuppe: That’s German for “white asparagus soup.” This one is super elegant and doesn’t call for cream. White asparagus are, to quote Cook’s Illustrated, “simply green asparagus that have never seen the light of day.” Soil is mounded over the asparagus as it grows, blocking the sun. As a result, the plant’s chlorophyll and its associated greenness never develop. White asparagus stalks should be peeled, as their skin is bitter, but underneath, they are sweet and tender. They are a springtime treat, often expensive, and marvelous with the other treasure of the season, morels. This recipe was first published in The Fantastic Fungi Community Cookbook.
Ingredients
- 1 lb white asparagus
- 3 tbsp butter unsalted, divided
- ½ c white onion minced
- 3 c chicken stock plus 2 tbsp if needed
- 20 small fresh or dried morels see note
- dash dry sherry
- 2 tbsp dry white wine
- salt
- black pepper freshly ground
- parsley or chives or onion grass chopped or minced
Instructions
- Using a vegetable peeler, peel the lower ¾ of the asparagus stalks. Chop the asparagus coarsely, leaving 1 inch of the tips intact. Set the tips aside.
- Heat 2 tbsp of butter in a medium-sized soup pot over medium-high heat. When the butter is melted, add the onion and cook until it is soft, a few minutes.
- Add the chopped asparagus, without the tips, and continue cooking, stirring often for about 5 minutes, until the asparagus begins to soften. Don’t let anything get brown! Turn the heat down a bit if needed.
- Add the chicken stock, cover, and cook over medium heat, just barely bubbling, for 30 to 35 minutes, until the asparagus is very soft. Take the soup off the heat.
- In the meantime, while the soup is cooking, heat the remaining tbsp of butter in a medium-sized skillet over medium heat and add the morels. Cook the morels until the fresh morels give up their water or the rehydrated morels soften, a few minutes, then add a dash of sherry and continue cooking until the morels are fork-tender and the liquid has mostly evaporated, about 10 minutes altogether. If, when cooking rehydrated morels, the pan dries out before the morels are cooked, add 2 tablespoons of chicken stock and continue cooking until the morels are tender.
- Puree the asparagus soup in batches or, as I usually do, remove the vegetables and just puree them, then stir the puree back into the stock.
- Add the asparagus tips and return the soup to medium heat. Cook gently until the asparagus tips are tender, about 15 to 20 minutes.
- Add the white wine and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve the spargelsuppe soup with a share of the morels on top of each portion. A little fresh chopped parsley is nice or use fresh chopped chives. Or I’ll often garnish with a little minced onion grass if I find it growing in the yard, which I often do in the spring.
Notes
If using dried morels, rehydrate them in water for 15 minutes, then drain.
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