Asparagus Recipe

Asparagus is available in the fresh vegetables section of the suparmarket almost year round now. Years ago, a person never would have thought that possible. But the warm region states grow and ship asparagus to us that live in the northern states. So actually, we really don’t need to wait until spring to enjoy fresh asparagus anymore.

Sometimes I talk of the “good old days” and I probably come across as sounding older than I actually am. Sometimes I chuckle to myself, because I occasionally catch myself saying or talking about things like my Dad did. He would tell stories about “the way things used to be done” and I would nod my head and politely agree and go along with the story. But I do remember a time when fresh asparagus in the dead of winter was not practical. Buying them within the last couple years while available yet out of season, was too costly. They still might cost a bit more while out of season today than in the past, but you’re not breaking the household budget to buy them.

At the risk of sounding old, I remember when we moved from the family farm in the country, to the city I grew up in at the age of six. We of course made room for a garden, a small one in the back yard, but small in comparison to the one on the farm. One thing this garden had that we did not’t have before were a couple rows of asparagus. Now as far as vegetables go, there are eating cooked from the can, frozen, or fresh. But the best tasting is, of course, eating vegetables that have been picked form the garden five minutes before cooking them. Even fresh from the local grocery store can’t compare to that.

I remember in my teen years, staying up late at night watching television. Getting a midnight snack entailed a little more than opening up a bag of chips or what have ya nowadays. My favorite springtime snack was sneaking out to the garden with a flashlight; pick some asparagus and cooking them up quick. Fresh asparagus with lots of butter and black pepper, now that was a snack. I wonder if my mom and dad ever wondered where all the asparagus went. Maybe they knew, and thought it better that I was eating their share of asparagus from the garden than the typical junk food.

I suppose eating fresh vegetables instead of your typical teen junk food sounds strange to most people. Maybe it was just the way I was raised, but the same ideals have helped me when I needed to lose some weight the last couple of years. Seems with age comes a bit of weight gain. But to help with the weight loss, I again resorted to snacking on fresh cooked vegetables rather than the junk food. But instead of the “lots of butter” I have wised up and use olive oil instead.

Always cooking food and eating food with passion. You will see it with every celebrity chef, a love of food and the love of its preparation. One of these years, I’ll buy some asparagus roots and plant some in the garden since I live back on the farm where I grew up, minus the old farmhouse and barn. Or maybe I'll settle for fresh from the store, the small extra cost will be worth it.

Hey… I just remembered, I bought two big bunches last time at the store. The first Red Wing playoff game against the Ducks is tonight. Being rather superstitious, a big bowl of popcorn has to be ready before the game starts. But I see nothing wrong with some sautéed asparagus in olive oil and garlic for intermission.

Here’s a recipe to try, it’s one of my favorite for asparagus.

24 stalks – fresh asparagus (woody bottom trimmed)
Butter – 1 tablespoon (I use extra olive oil now)
Salt & Fresh Cracked Black Pepper – to taste
Fresh Red Pepper – 1 whole (julienne cut)
4 eggs – poached to medium

1. Sauté the asparagus and peppers with the butter till just tender-crisp
2. Poach the eggs in water to medium done
3. Season with the salt & pepper to taste

NOTE: I like the eggs coddled, or cooked to medium so some of the yolk acts as sauce for the asparagus, but feel free to cook to hard-boiled and dice them onto the asparagus. With the concerns of undercooked eggs and salmonella, it is recommended to cook them to hard-boiled

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