Seasonal Selection – Spring 2022
Mix it Up with These Fun Ideas for Spring.
It’s that time of year when delicate spears begin to emerge from the ground after a long winter slumber. Get ’em while they’re in season and at the peak of flavor at your favorite farmers’ market or food co-op or in your weekly CSA box!
Asparagus cooks up beautifully in so many ways. Just be sure to:
- Wash the stalks well to clean off the grit.
- Snap or peel off those woody, tough ends.
- Never, ever overcook them! It only takes three to five minutes before they are just tender and perfect.
Fun Facts
Caesar Augustus was such a connoisseur that he organized elite military units, the Asparagus Fleet, to make the rounds by sea to import the best varieties back to Rome. Images of asparagus as an offering have been found on 3,000-year-old Egyptian friezes.
Believed to be native to the eastern Mediterranean and Asia Minor regions, where it commonly grows wild, asparagus also is found in Europe and the United States, where it has thrived through cultivation. The flowering plant has been used for centuries as a vegetable and medicinally as a diuretic and aphrodisiac.
We dare you to mix it up this spring and try something new with asparagus. (A quick internet search should provide a plethora of recipes.)
Roast it. Roasted asparagus is your go-to vegetable for a quick, simple side dish. Just toss it with a little extra-virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, and chopped shallots and roast it on a baking sheet.
Sauté it.
Cook asparagus hot and fast in a skillet to develop a delicate flavor without overcooking. Toss with a simple dressing of lemon juice and whole grain mustard, or try it with chile-garlic sauce, miso, or soy sauce.
Add some crunch.
Add some toasted peanuts or almonds and a sprinkle of shredded coconut.
Wrap it.
Brush puff pastry with egg wash and sprinkle with grated Parmesan, then cut into strips to wind around asparagus stems and bake for a fun and dippable appetizer. It’s also amazing wrapped with bacon or prosciutto and cheese.
Pickle it.
Who doesn’t love pickled asparagus for snacking, adding to cheese boards, or dunking in a Bloody Mary?
Fire it on the grill.
With grilled asparagus, tender, smoky, and sweetly caramelized, you’re just minutes from heaven.
Make soup.
Nothing captures the delicate taste of spring like a simple puréed asparagus soup made with butter, stock, a healthy dose of heavy cream, a dash of nutmeg, salt, cracked white or black pepper, chives, and some lemon zest. Toss in some slivered almonds.
What’s in Season (and coming soon)
- Apricots
- Arugula
- Asparagus
- Avocados
- Blood
- Oranges
- Broccoli
- Cabbage
- Carrots
- Cauliflower
- Chard
- Cherries
- Collards
- Fava beans
- Fennel
- Garlic
- Kale
- Kohlrabi
- Kumquats
- Leeks
- Lettuces
- Meyer lemons
- Mustard
- Greens
- Peas
- Radishes
- Rhubarb
- Scallions
- Strawberries
