Scratch and sniff
Well I’m shredding for a cause. Up in among the raspberry canes removing weeds means that I am a nice shade of welt. That will teach me not to pull my sleeves right down on my work shirt. But actually it has been rather fun; it’s cloudy for a start. The first real cloud cover in weeks. And Artur came to see me and playfully roll in the dirt. A shame that he had to roll on asparagus stalks and snap them, but it’s so lovely to find him happy again.
I forgot to harvest the stalks in the past few days, and as a consequence they are about a foot long. But I cut them smartly and took them up for the neighbours. I’m almost but not quite asparagussed out. Is that the phrase? Speared out. Anyway, there will be another crop tomorrow in case I get withdrawl symptoms. 
I have weeded up the rows of broad beans and peas. On hands and knees to grab the little blighters. I don’t dare use the hoe on this part in case I wipe out a broad bean. But I have been hoeing like mad down the cabbage and pasrnip rows. There are even a few parsnip seedlings coming up which is cheering. I had been watering dirt for weeks.
Oh, which reminds me, I must take up some seeds and sow in the gaps. I’ll forget next month.
28th April 2011 @ 4:05 pm
I love cream of asparagus soup, but as a non gardener, it always seems too extravagent a use of the expensive asparagus because it requires a LOT of asparagus. But since you seem to have so much…
If you do decide to make some soup then all those tougher parts of the stalk is won’t be wasted because that’s what you make the stock out of. Reserve the pretty tender parts and set them aside. Rough chop all your tougher stalks and throw them in a stock pot with some chicken bones and onions and simmer until it’s reduced to half its original volume. Strain. Add nice bits of asparagus, cook until tender, add more chicken stock if too thick, a splash of heavy cream salt and white pepper and voila. Minus the cream and the soup could be frozen for some blustery winter day when asparagus is but a fond memory.
29th April 2011 @ 7:51 am
Sounds divine, thank you for posting it; that way I can always come back to this blog when I need to find the recipes.