I know our shares don't start for another week or so, but in anticipation, I thought I would share this seasonal recipe. I use vegetable broth instead of chicken, and Meryl, for vegans, would a normal substitute for milk be silk and for butter the margarine you use?
The first time I had cream of asparagus soup was at Good Earth, one of my favorite restaurants in the Twin Cities. They served it with a squiggle of sour cream on top--delicious!
This is one of my favorite soup recipes, and I got it from Cooking Light. (Even though it's late spring, I truly love, love, love soup. I hope, potentially, we start this space as a CSA-recipe swap, but maybe even start focusing on sharing seasonal recipes in general!)
For a vegetarian version, use vegetable broth in place of chicken broth. Garnish with thin asparagus spears for a graceful presentation.
Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 cup)
Ingredients
- 3 cups (1/2-inch) sliced asparagus (about 1 pound)
- 2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
- 3/4 teaspoon fresh thyme, divided
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 2 cups 1% low-fat milk
- Dash of ground nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons butter
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon grated lemon rind
Preparation
Combine asparagus, broth, 1/2 teaspoon thyme, bay leaf, and garlic in a large saucepan over medium-high heat; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer 10 minutes. Discard bay leaf. Place asparagus mixture in a blender; process until smooth.
Place flour in pan. Gradually add the milk, stirring with a whisk until blended. Add puréed asparagus and ground nutmeg; stir to combine. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, and stir in 1/4 teaspoon thyme, butter, salt, and lemon rind.
Cream of Carrot Soup: Substitute 2 cups baby carrots for asparagus. Omit bay leaf. Yield 4 servings (serving size: 1 cup).
CALORIES 112 (28% from fat); FAT 3.5g (sat 2g, mono 0.8g, poly 0.2g); PROTEIN 6.7g; CARB 13.4g; FIBER 1.1g; CHOL 13mg; IRON 0.6mg; SODIUM 765mg; CALC 152mg
Cream of Leek Soup: Substitute 3 cups sliced leek for asparagus. Substitute 3/4 teaspoon rosemary for thyme. Omit bay leaf.
CALORIES 131 (23% from fat); FAT 3.4g (sat 2g, mono 0.8g, poly 0.2g); PROTEIN 7.3g; CARB 18.3g; FIBER 1.3g; CHOL 13mg; IRON 1.5mg; SODIUM 759mg; CALC 178mg
4 comments:
fresh thyme = heaven!
yes, a soy milk and vegan margarine substitute would work here.
i've always made a roux with margarine or olive oil, but maybe that's omitted here b/c of calories?
thanks for sharing this... asparagus is one of my favorite things. and Shamira loves it so much she will steal the stumps off the cutting board! naughty dog.
Yeah, I get a lot of recipes from Cooking Light, and they like to reduce all kinds of things. It's still really wonderful; I wouldn't know the difference.
What a handy little composter Shamira is!
... just a late note on the soymilk idea: I usually buy unsweetened soymilk to use in cream based soups, and I make a bangin' vegan corn chowder with it that tricked my entire dairy farming family last thanksgiving! Most varieties of soymilk don't need refrigeration until after they're opened, so it's an easy thing to keep on hand.
Oh, Casey, definitely share that recipe when we get to corn season! xo
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